Wounded

Chapter 1

Hey. My name is Jai Brooks, and I'm a problem. At least that's what everyone always tells me. I have two brothers, Luke and Beau, and we live with our mother, Gina. Recently, my brothers and I as well as our two friends, James and Daniel have hit it off on YouTube. We make prank videos that most people seem to love. Well at least most people.

I had always gotten bullied at school behind my brothers' backs, but ever since we went viral on YouTube, the bullying has gotten 10x worse. I'm really shy so that makes me an easy target. My twin brother, Luke, however, has a really short temper and will fight back so he doesn't really get picked on like I do anymore.

I want to think that my friends and family know that something is wrong, but they never question me or act one it. It makes me feel even more lonely just knowing that I could get beat up, but they couldn't care less about it. So, I never say a word. The bruises are nothing compared to confirming my fear of no one caring.

-

"Oh little Jye!" My biggest bully, Dylan, called out. "Are you ready for your daily dose of vitamin D?" I kept silent, knowing it would be worse if I talked. It was kind of hard to not say anything back, considering he had some really cringe-worthy jokes he could come up with at times.

"Oof." I'm knocked out of my thoughts by his fist ramming into my stomach.

"What a wimp!" Dylan spat. "Who gave you permission to make a noise?" Dylan was furious, but this time I stayed silent as his flurry of punches bruised up my stomach, chest, and sides. I had tears in my eyes from the pain, but I forced them back desperately.

"You better go, wouldn't want Baby Brooks to be late for class!" Dylan laughed venomously when he finally stopped. I watched his retreating figure silently before my tears finally got the best of me. I ran to the janitor's closet and hid inside it. I just couldn't let anyone see me like this right now. I was supposed to be in my math class right now (a/n: I'm American so I have no idea what the Australian school system is like.), but I hated math anyways. Math was more Luke's thing than mine. But then again, so were the rest of our classes. I was the stupid twin. A complete bimbo.

I decided that it would probably be best to go to my next class, which was English. I actually had that class with Luke, so I knew that if I didn't show up then he would ask me about it. I ran to the bathroom and hurriedly washed my face before getting my stuff and waiting for the bell to sound. Once it did, I walked to class, not wanting another run in with Dylan or any of the other main bullies at my school.

Dylan and his group of friends were the main bullies. They would hurt me both with their fists and with their words. Then, there were also the countless guys in my school who would insult and belittle me on a daily basis. I could handle them, though. They also never made a move when Luke was around. He was known for his short temper, and they did not want to set him off.

I quickly found my seat in the middle of the room, but close enough to the back so that I wasn't actually noticed more than I already was. Luke happened to be in my English class, so people naturally noticed us since they thought that twins were so interesting. I had to roll my eyes at the thought.

Luke walked in the room and made a bee-line straight for me. I groaned at the sight. I wanted to make it at least a few more minutes before I had to deal with him. I love my brother, but sometimes he can be a bit too much. I just want to blend in with society, but he feels like he has something to prove. I got used to him winning everything at an early age, and eventually I just stopped trying.

"Jai-Jai, you'll never guess what happened...." Luke yelled excitedly and started telling me about what happened to him today. I could only zone out and stare out the window. The Melbourne sky really was beautiful. It was the only good thing about this place. No one actually realized how miserable I truly was here.

Every day was the same. Wake up and go get harassed and tortured in a place where I'm simply supposed to learn. Go home and get hit in the face with how much better Luke was than me. Maybe even throw in a few YouTube videos on top of that.

The end result was the same though. I only grew more and more depressed by the day. I just wanted to leave, but no matter how much they didn't care, I couldn't quite bring myself to leave my family.

"Jai, are you even listening to me?!" Luke snapped, his short temper getting the best of him.

"Sorry, Luke." I apologized, faking a smile. "I'm not really feeling too good today."

"Are you okay?" Luke furrowed his eyebrows, concerned. I nodded my head at him. It looked like he was actually concerned about me, but I knew that could never happen. I was just standing in Luke's shadow and that's the only person that I would ever be.

"I'm fine. I just have a headache, Luke."