— being deaf, Chay doesn't think of himself as being different from others, but some people do. It's always the worst on the bus to his uni because of a group of bullies. Until one day when a boy with headphones sits next to him and everything changes —
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Chay loves his university.
He loves studying. He loves that he is able to study at his university despite being deaf. What he doesn't like is the ride to his university. But it's the only bus he can take. And he hates it! He hates it so much!
The driver is nice. An older man with a friendly smile and always talks slowly enough for Chay to understand almost all of it just by reading the man's lips. There's also this older lady with her granddaughter who travels somewhere every morning. Then there are two teen girls that always sit right in the front and then there's Chay's nightmare.
They always sit all the way at the back but no matter how far or close they are to Chay it's always the same. The moment he gets on the bus, they stand up. Sometimes just one or two of them, sometimes it's all of them. They step in front of him—pull his bag off the shoulder, sometimes they even manage to empty all of it on the bus floor (and Chay then ends up worrying the entire day if he didn't forget something under one of the bus seats.) They enjoy watching him as he is trying to get to his favourite seat on the bus. They know which one it is, and Chay hates that they know, but it's impossible not to notice.
He always sits next to the window in row five from the back. It's the place he took the first he took the bus... and Chay tried. He tried multiple times to sit somewhere else, but he loves familiar places, they make him feel safe even though on this bus it's really hard. When he finally gets to his seat, his bullies sometimes keep talking to him really really close as if he couldn't hear them, or they go sit back but it never takes long before he feels a piece of paper hit his head or shoulder. The first couple of times he read what they wrote.
Monster
Stupid
Ugly
Idiot
Now he doesn't read it anymore. He lets it fall wherever it falls and once they are nearing his stop he just picks everything up and throws it away in the trash once he gets out of the bus.
Chay doesn't know because he tries his best not to pay any attention to his bullies until it's necessary, but he thinks that they are laughing at him whenever he starts picking up those papers as well.
At first, some people on the bus tried to help Chay, but eventually, they all got back to their lives and Chay understood, they didn't know him after all.
Today, Chay feels more nervous about taking the bus than usual. It's the anniversary of his parent's death so he is more emotional than usual and the last thing he wants is to break down crying in front of his bullies, that would just push them to be even worse. He takes a deep breath, grabs the strap of his bag tightly, and gets on the bus. The driver gives him the nod of a head and a smile. Chay does the same and starts moving through the bus. Fingers clutching the strap of his bag, he makes his way to his seat. He is almost there when he is stopped. Hand painfully squeezing his shoulder, two guys in front of him are laughing. Shivers run down his spine. He doesn't even have to hear them.
