Bullied In

FIRST DAY PT 1

The whole house was dead silent on an early March Wednesday morning, even the vents kept quiet. All of the rooms were pitch black to the point where you could only see the white doorframes, or the brightness of the streetlight peeking through the shades.

However, as soon as 5:30 struck, the loud blare of a phone alarm broke the silence. Daniel sluggishly got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom, cautiously navigating through the dark hall. 

He wasn't prepared for this quick transition, the moment the house burned down he knew everything that was in there would be gone forever, including his mother. Daniel had no choice—he had to go to school and put on a mask for everyone to make others believe he was okay.

To be honest, he just wanted to get the day over with. 

He later grabbed his stuff and opened the door feeling the freezing cold air, even with the storm door separating the two. 

"Don't forget this," a deep voice called out. He looked back to see his older cousin holding his keychain; a six-foot-four dark-skinned man in his mid 20s with a football build, and long locs that covered his eyes.

"Thanks Dre," he sighed, putting the keychain in his sweatshirt pocket. "I'm just too tired this morning." 

"I understand, bro. Just don't get too tired, aight?"

"I wont." Daniel chuckled and dapped him up before he left out the door. 

The bus stop was conveniently placed, being less than a minute walk away. He kept his hoodie on and attempted to conceal his face, avoiding eye contact with anyone who would look at him when he would get there. He thought that he was a stranger, probably even a threat with his black sweatshirt.

No one paid him no mind when he got to his stop. The bus arrived almost immediately after Daniel got to the stop. He got on and sat by himself up front, remaining silent for the rest of the 5 minute drive.

The bus soon got to school, and everyone made their way into the building. The freezing Upstate New York air wrapped around Daniel's bare hands and fingers. He began walking slower as he approached the entrance door, preparing himself for what he would see and hear. 

As soon as he walked inside he immediately wanted to leave. The halls were packed, and people squeezed past each other trying to head to class. The school was obviously huge, but not huge enough for the early morning rush. Daniel kept his head down and sluggishly walked, yet didn't know where he was going. His first period was all the way upstairs on the third floor and was still stuck in the first floor. 

He was so stressed out, he didn't pay attention to a small group of people chilling by the wall of lockers and ran right into them. He cussed under his breath, knowing the trouble he got into. 

"Bruh," one of them yelled, "what the hell?" 

Daniel took his hood off and revealed his face, getting a good look at the person he ran into. "I'm so sorry," he huffed, "I'm new here and I don't know where I'm fucking walking to." 

"It's fine," she forgave. "Where is your class?"

He pulled out his phone and searched for his schedule. "Room 3508, Mrs. Kim"

"Wait really? I'm headed there too! What's your name?"

"Daniel."

"Nice to meet you!" They shook each others hands, locking eye contact. "I'm Alexis." 

They made their way upstairs to their first period, barging through the herd of students rushing to get to class. The class was tucked in a corner along the halls, and required you to find an opening through a hallway filled with people just to enter since the door and corner of the hallway is crowded. At one point it had gotten so bad that during a fight, the students transitioning to class blocked multiple doorways. Some of them even accidentally got pushed into the classrooms.