Caged Animals (A Story of Bullying)

*Prologue*

Now remember, guys, I warned you that there will be quite a bit of profanity in this story. As I've said before, I'm just trying to portray how some people's days are: horrible, horrifying, terrible, and hurtful. Thanks for reading, everyone. It means a lot to me.

BULLYING IS NEVER OKAY.

***

*Prologue*

“I can’t believe you’re leaving tomorrow.”

            I watched the mint chocolate chip ice cream drip down my cone. It looked like a green teardrop falling down its brown face. It seemed everything was crying today. It was my brother Harbor’s last day here. The next day, he would head off to Juilliard to study dance.

            “I’m gonna miss you too, Evie,” Harbor told me. He seemed calm about all this, as he always was. I sighed.

            “It’s really going to suck without you here,” I said, tears welling up in my eyes. “Things will get even  worse.”

            “I didn’t know they were bad.” I looked over at my brother—my best friend, my only friend, and my hero—and realized my mistake. I had completely messed up my disguise. The disguise that all the world was good and fine and kind.

            “They aren’t,” I said quickly. “I just meant that it’s not as fun when you’re not here.”

            Harbor rolled his eyes and chuckled. “You’ll be fine, Evie. The world doesn’t revolve around me.” I smiled, but my heart fell. Oh, if only he knew.

            “Anyway,” he continued, shifting on the hard ground. “I have a little ‘going away’ present for you.”

            “But I don’t—“

            “I know you didn’t get one for me,” Harbor interrupted, rolling his eyes again. “God, you can be so oblivious.” He grinned at me, and I smiled back. “But I saw this and just knew you’d like it.” He pulled something out from behind his back.

            My breath caught. A journal. A beautiful new journal, with a collage of Disney characters etched across the front of it. I took it in my hands and opened it. Thinly-lined, gloriously blank pages looked back at me. A new, empty world to pour out my emotions to. A shiny silver ribbon to mark the page I was on dangled from the top. I gazed at the cover again. Walt Disney: tied with my brother for my top hero. I hugged the journal to my chest.

            “Thanks, Harbor,” I told him. “I love it!”

            “Knew you would,” he gloated. He sighed. “Well, guess I better finish packing.” He got up and walked easily across the lawn.

            When he was gone, my normal world returned to me again. I leaned against the tree trunk, struggling for strength. The only thing in this world that could ever make me smile had just walked out of my life.

***

As soon as I stepped into my room, my cell phone began ringing. “Colors of the Wind” from Pocahantas blasted from the speakers. I stared at it in amazement for a moment. Who would call me? I had no friends, excluding Harbor.

            Suddenly, a surge of hope rushed through me. Maybe someone had decided to give me a chance, a second try, a re-count. I flipped open my phone and said bravely, “Hello?”

            “So, slut, how many boys this summer?” a voice cackled from the other end.

            “Yeah,” another one chimed in, “and how many of them left? God, for a whore, you’re the ugliest thing I’ve seen in my life.”

            Tears welled in my eyes as I listened to them. Tatiana Goldberg and Brittany Williams. They were the two most popular girls in school…and two of my worst tormentors. How did they get my number?

            “Ready to come back to school?” Tatiana taunted. “We’ve all been waiting to hear of your, ah…activities.”

            “Yeah, of the slutty kind!” Brittany added.

            “Oh, and hey,” Tatiana continued, “Tyler told me to remind you to, and I quote, ‘do my homework, bitch.’”

            Their witch-like laughter rang in my ears even after I hung up. I locked my door and held in the tears. If it was starting this early, what would this hellish year be like?