(Violet's POV)
Two Years earlier...
I creep through the halls of my highschool, looking out for any stray teachers or students waiting to catch me. I held my bagged lunch and quietly opened the bathroom door. I listened carefully for a moment to see if anyone was in a stall, then when I heard nothing, I opened one of the stalls, locked it, put down the toilet seat and started eating my lunch. I only had limited time to eat before I'd have to make my escape and go back to the lunch room.
As I finished my sandwich, I opened a bag of crackers I grabbed from the counter at my house. I wished I didn't have to go back to class. I would get bullied and harassed again and again by some wanna-be bitches. They still don't know the whole truth. The sound from outside filters into the bathroom, meaning that someone came in. I am now alert and still waiting to hear footsteps. I have the crackers sitting on my lap. I shift my weight trying not to make a noise. One cracker falls to the ground smashing into bits while making my presence known. "Damn it." I think to myself.
The footsteps stop, and I hear more shuffling as the door opens again.
Suddenly, I hear the bell ring.
My brown paper bag still sits on my lap, along with the rest of the crackers and the sandwich wrapper. I decide to ditch the rest of my lunch as more people chose to come in.
I felt invaded as I sat there, in the stall, as girls flooded in.
Should I risk it?
I stand up, grab my leftovers, and walk out of the stall with my head held high.
"Oh, look," A girl named Maya said, pointing and having all the other girls look at me. "The slut was actually eating in the stall."
Suddenly, I felt my confidence flicker away. I put my head down, and threw my lunch out, and walked out quickly. I felt my eyes start to water as I walked to my locker.
They don't know the truth! I thought.
I thrust open my locker, grabbed my books, and rushed to class.
I didn't realize how late I was going to be, so once again, I had a confidence boost.
I stepped through the doorway and looked inside. The teacher was writing on the board, so I had my chance to quickly take my seat. I rushed to the back of the room and sat down, just as Mr. Blake turned around.
"Joining us, Violet"
Everyone's head turned towards me, which made me shrink in my seat.
"So, as I said before, class, pull out your homework and we'll go over it," Mr. Blake continued. My face turned hot. I forgot my homework on my desk at home. Shit.
"Actually, just pass it forward to me, we have a lot to do in class today."
Come. On!
The torture will never end. A boy in my class turned around to hand the teacher my paper, but I just shook my head.
"As we move on to our next section of the chapter, we begin to discuss more about the literacy behind the books we read," Mr. Blake said.
~
An hour later, we picked up our books and walked out of the classroom.
"Um, Violet, may I see you, for just a second?"
I nodded and walked over to Mr. Blake's desk.
"Violet, you have had four late assignments in the last two weeks," Mr. Blake told me. "May I ask what's going on, that is preventing you from doing your homework?"
I thought for a second. "Family problems, so I just end up forgetting to do the homework when I go to bed,"
"Should you see the guidance counselor, perhaps?" He suggested.
"Um, I don't want to..." I started, but Mr. Blake continued.
"I'll ask Mrs. Jackson if she has time during lunch tomorrow to talk to you."
"Oh, you don't have to,"
"But if it's preventing you from doing your homework, then maybe, yes."
"Um, okay," I said, and turned to walked out of the room. I had one more class, and then freedom. I walked down the hall, and as I did, I saw Maya and her group of friends look at me and laugh.
"Is that red spot on your arm from your 'boyfriend'?"
"No," I mumbled. They laughed as I continued walking. I swapped books at my locker and went to the room a few lockers down. I walked in, this time, early enough to claim an open spot in the back. One more hour. One more class.
