Boombox

Who's Laughing Now

"Hey Jessica, you're so funny, you've got teeth just like Bugs Bunny."

-Who's Laughing Now (Jessie J)

22nd November 1999

I brushed the dirty blonde hair off of her face and did a messy uncompleted braid with her small artificial hair in my large human hands.

As for the boy doll, I took his pants off and set his jeans on fire.

24th November 1999

I got pushed around again today. But it would be the last time. They didn't know that, but I did.

19th December 1999

Today is Hansel's birthday. Not that I care but he had been spreading the declaration around school, trotting in the hallways like some sort of a Olympics champion or something. I did nothing though, I kept my head down, buried my face with my curtain of curly hair and 'stayed out of trouble'.

I don't go looking for trouble, but when trouble spells bullies and bullies make you feel like crap, I consider punishment.

19th December 1999 – later on

Outside the girls' restroom, groups of girls were standing and whispering urgently as if tomorrow will never come. Micka was standing in the middle of the formed circle and gossiping loudest of all.

I, on the other hand, was in the bathroom stall. That particular stall was abandoned before I reached second grade and was popular among many ghost and murder tales. Nobody believed what the teachers had said about it all being plain gibberish by the senior students to prank other kids, but after all, who believes teachers anyway?

I opened my backpack and took out the strands of hair I got from Hansel's bathroom towel in the boys' locker room; considering Micka is a girl I did have faster access but a harder reach, it also got me a punch in the gut and made me whimper in pain for her to stop when I accidentally touched her hairbrush.

I tied each one to their own dolls and touched a hand to my own hairs. The ones those evil minions cut off two weeks ago. That was my rising point. I've had enough.

That day was another annoying Tuesday, the day after Monday, the day prior to Wednesday, a day far from Friday. Micka and Hansel were leaning against the Self-Assessment wall and grabbed my bag, I was momentarily shocked while they spread the entire contents on the floor, I yelled for help but Micka covered my mouth quickly with her sweaty palm as Hansel picked my pair of scissors from the mess he made on the ground and looked at my hair with a look of disgust. I tried to bite Micka's hand but she kneed my back. Hard. I started coughing in her palm as the pain coursed through my spine to my shoulders and caused me to struggle more as tears swelled in my eyes.

No, I thought firmly, I will not cry in front of these beasts.

I peered from the corner of my eyes searching for someone, silently pleading for anyone to cross this path, but it was surely deserted as it was the end of the school day and all the kids are either hanging in the parking space or filing in the awaiting buses. I just had to visit Mr. Edmond to know my last quiz's mark since I was absent the day before.

Stupid stupid stupid stupid stupid

Fear grasped me even further as Hansel approached me with a look of bare malice in his eyes and smiled at me wickedly. I stopped fighting my way out of Micka's strong grip on my body and how tightly she had her stupid dirty hand cupped around my face to prevent any chance of my desperate screams of being heard. Now I think of it, it was rather foolish of me to freeze just like that.