Ethan Haile

~Chapter One~

My hands were scratched, calloused, and bloody. My grip was strong, but slowly losing its strength with every second. The wind was cold and sharp, as it blew across my face. I closed my eyes, and tried not to think of my current situation. Hanging off the edge of a 50 foot drop. I thought of how I even got here. I thought as hard as I could, but I couldn't remember. As I was distracting myself with my own thoughts, a piece of ice came crashing down onto my right hand. The pain it inflicted was too much, and I lost my grip and began my decent toward the soft snow, but with every rose, there's a thorn, and a thick layer of ice underneath it. I somehow got turned around mid-fall, and saw the ground, closer than ever.I hit the layer of snow, and was shaken back into reality.

My head shot up, and the bright fluorescent lights of the classroom blinded me as I opened my eyes.I looked up to see my chemistry teacher, Ms. Kylee, staring at me with her hands on her hips. I could feel how wide my eyes were, and I could feel my face getting warm.

"Mr. Haile, would you like to tell us how to convert 73.98 milligrams into decagrams?" She asked sternly as if she was expecting me to have a break down, but no, not again.

"Actually yes, yes I would." I said, sitting up in my uncomfortable plastic seat. She looked at me in shock. "The decimal moves over three places, making the answer 73980 decagrams." Somehow, her eyes got even wider and she became red.

"That's right." She said with a cracky voice. "But you still have to go down to the office. They will discipline you appropriately." I looked around the room. Seeing twenty six eyes staring at you, mocking you, judging you; it's a lot to take in. It's too much pressure. A wad of paper hit me in the face, making the laughter even louder. I grabbed the paper and stuffed it in the pocket of my hoodie. Turning toward the door, I gave Ms. Kylee a glare and stormed out of the class. Walking down the hallway was a challenge for me. I just wanted to go home. But I didn't even feel safe in my own home. My dad was gone; One day he just up and left when I was two. Now fourteen years later, my mom is still a wreck. Even if they fought a lot, they were still husband and wife. Now, my mom does nothing but drink and stare lifelessly into the TV. We live with my uncle, who has filled in for my mom and dad, literally. He taught me how to use power tools and cook meals for myself. But most of all, he taught me how to be myself. He was born Justin Haile, into a family of five kids. He was different from the beginning. He enjoyed playing dolls with his sisters, more than playing with cats with his brothers. When he was a teenager, he enjoyed theatre and when he graduated, he went to school for the arts and wrote his own small play. If you haven't guessed yet, my Uncle Justin is the most stereo-typical gay guy ever, but he's the most important person in my life. My thoughts were once again interrupted by a hard reality, literally... I ran into a door. I dropped all of my books and hit the hard floor with a painful *thud*. I lied down on my back and closed my eyes. Why am I such a failure? I thought to myself.

I heard a click, and a small, slightly adorable voice gasped, "Oh my god, are you okay?"

I opened my eyes in shock. A short girl with green eyes and a pretty smile stood there. I was lost in how cute she was. In fact, I was so lost, I forgot to answer. "Oh!" I finally said. "Yeah, just, this door came out of no where!" She let out a small laugh, and sat down on her knees to help me pick up all of my stuff. "Thanks for this. It really means a lot. I'm not used to people helping me." I brushed my red hair out of my face. I looked at her and she was slightly blushing. We just kind of sat there staring at each other. I shook my head and came back to reality, again. I stood up and reached out my hand to her. She hesitantly took it, and I pulled her up. She stumbled and fell into me, her face falling smack into my chest. I stayed as stable as I could, and wrapped my arms around her back instinctively. Once we gained our balance, she looked up at me. She looked happy, but scared at the same time. I smiled and said, "My name's Ethan by the way."

She chuckled a bit, and didn't move. She stayed pressed against me. "I'm Myra." She replied. After she said that, she finally moved back onto her own feet, and her own balance. She stuck her hand out for a handshake. I met her hand with mine again, and we shook.

"Sorry about pulling you so hard." I said, putting my hand behind my head. "I know how uncomfortable the floor is, considering it's where I spend most of my time." She laughed again. I liked it when she laughed.

"So where were you going?" She asked. I bent over and picked up my stack of books.

"The office." I sighed. "You're new here, so pray you don't have Ms. Kylee. She is too strict... Even though I fell asleep, I still knew what was going on."

She smiled and said, "Actually I do. I'm supposed to be there right now. I just couldn't find it."

"Cool, we have it the same hour. That's good to know." I said. "Um, do you want me to show you where it is?"

She nodded and replied, "That would be awesome, thanks."

I walked her to class and when we walked in, Ms. Kylee, along with all the other students, turned their heads to us. "That was fast." Ms. Kylee said to me with a hint of sass in her voice.

"I didn't go yet... We ran into each other in the hallway. Well I didn't run into her per say, but she said she needed help, so I just came to bring her here. Her name is Myra and she's new." I said. I looked down at her. She was looking up at me, smiling and blushing. "Did I do good?"

       She nodded and said, "As best as you could." She giggled and gave me a playful punch in the shoulder, "Just kidding, you did great."
  
       I leaned in next to her ear whispered, "My seat is the one with an empty spot next to it. You should sit there." She nodded and started walking over to the vacant desk.

      "Well," Ms. Kylee started, "Thank you Mr. Haile, you've been a big help, but you still-"

       I interrupted her. " I know. I'm going." I gave Myra a small wave, she waved back. I turned and left the room.