October 15th, 2008, at 3:08pm
Columbus, Ohio
Rosemary St. High (Middle School & High School)
*Triggering content: mentions of suicide and death, and bullying.
Josh trudged along the halls of his school, his head lowered and his eyes glued to the floor. Students pushed past him, pushed him against the lockers, just pushed him. You could say he got pushed around a lot, as you can clearly see. This happens to him every day. He's gotten used to it, though, but that doesn't mean he likes it.
The poor boy was bullied often in and out of school. His parents have taken the matter into their hands, but that didn't help at all. Instead, it made it far more worse. The bullying got more intense, the teasing, the taunting, the beat ups; they all got worse. The saddest thing is, just that, he's now used to it.
This added up to his demons. The black shadows, the hands, the eyes, the images, those demons. He's gotten used to it too, but again, that doesn't mean he likes it.
He barely gets any sleep anymore because of them, he's more afraid of the dark than ever because of them, and he can't even blink without fearing for his life. It seemed as if their goal was to make him miserable. If they are, well, they're succeeding. Correction, they succeeded.
Josh had never known what it was like to feel suicidal until he was eleven, when he couldn't take existence anymore and just wanted out. He never understood why his late cousin would take his life away, why he tied a rope around his neck. Josh never understood that until he was eleven and wanted to tie a rope around his neck, too.
Ironically, Josh had a certain fear of death. He feared that if he closed his eyes for too long he'd meet his demons in person, and that was what Josh feared the most— imagine if he did die; he'd be on the same level as them. That's what Josh is trying to avoid for a good amount of time.
Despite the constant pain, torment, and misery, the thirteen year old has been able to sustain. Despite hating his life, he has been able to get here, so there's no point in giving up now. He can do this. He hopes.
Suddenly, Josh was being pushed into the boys' bathroom by a group of boys his age. The real life demons; his bullies. "Ready for another beat up, freak?" one of the fair boys from the group snickered, cracking his knuckles. The rest of the boys snickered along. Josh only shrunk in his shoulders and backed up against one of the stall doors. He feared what they would do to him today. He was always scared, honestly.
Soon, a fist collided with Josh's jaw. The poor boy fell to the floor at such force and out of surprise. He fought back a whimper when he felt a harsh kick to his abdomen. This was what he lived through every day.
And it didn't stop there. Sinister whispering, white noise, and voices speaking in different languages that Josh never understood, filled his ears and head. He put his hands against his ears, and yelled out in pain, not from kick to the back, but from the harsh and terrifying sounds that made his ears bleed. Literally.
Tears streamed down his face as the sounds intensified, and gruesome images flashed behind his tightly shut eyelids. This was pure hell, and he couldn't stop it.
Josh was stuck in a living hell, one that he can't escape no matter what he does. Even he had a close call with death that night.
a/n: the spooky stuff will come along next chapter along with new spooky books before this month ends! love y'all! (remember to vote and comment!)
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