The Jaya Week Challenge 2022

Day 1 - Sakura

"Look at little nerd boy's lunch box."

Jay was used to the bullying he got. It was a routine of sorts. A jock, mostly Mason, always came up to him to just pick on him.

"It's so girly." Others that were in the group laughed with him.

Indeed Jay had a pink lunchbox, however, he didn't care. He like the color and didn't think it was a girly color. After all the times he had his blue lunchbox with him, he needed a change in style in color.

"Wouldn't expect anything less of the loser here."

Jay always tried to drown out the words, just like his father said, one ear in, another ear out. It didn't work. He'd always cry at home, but never did he cry at school. He doesn't give them satisfaction.

One of the bullies came over to him. "Are you deaf or just dumb?" The boy in blue paid no attention and he paid the price for it. The bully swept the lunchbox off the table.

Jay went to stand up but as he did he got showed to the ground.

It never usually got physical, no matter what.

His right arm hurt, and his eyes got wet.

Jay got off his arm still on the ground looking at his bullies. He knew that a crowd was around them, yet no teachers.

"Look, he's about to start crying. Such a baby."

Jay shed an unwilling tear. Where were the teachers?

"He's such a loser, no wonder nobody wants to be friends with him."

Jay as fast as he could, bolted, through the fence with a hazardous hole in it to the forest.

Rain and thunder only added to the blood pumping in his ears.

Soon enough his mind cleared as tears went down his cheek.

He just ran away from school.

He was so dumb.

Jay didn't realize until he almost tripped on his both feet.

A massive cherry blossom tree in front of him.

It was breathtaking.

There wasn't any rain around the little hill it was on.

Jay went toward the magical tree that was there.

"So beautiful." As if the tree had heard him, it shook its leaves.

His arm was still throbbing but he didn't notice.

He sat up against the tree.

"Some guys at my school make fun of me." FSM, he was so stupid for speaking to a tree. But he did it anyway. "I think they hurt my arm." The pain subsided.

Jay looked up wondering if it had anything to do with the tree.

He waits for the rain to stop, talking to the tree until then.

And the tree listened.

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Jay would come two times a week to the tree.

It was comforting.

He would always make sure to bring water to it and to talk to it.

The tree would listen to him complementing it or complain to it.

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This went on for years, even when he joined Wu.

He would still go to that magical place.