[ three ]
6th May, 2005.
Ashleigh was the youngest in the grade. She hated it.
The first year of primary school hadn't favoured her very much. She was what other students called 'teacher's pet', or 'suck up'. Miss Skelton adored her. She was like the Miss Honey to Matilda.
Ashleigh was always sitting at the back of the class, drawing on paper, with textas and crayons. There was an innocent, angelic look when she was seen like that, and that's what made the other kids despise her.
Special Classes.
She had to go to a special class, one of the disadvantages of being the youngest.
"Ashleigh, read this," the teacher flipped another card over, revealing the word 'purple'.
She opened and closed her mouth several times, looking like a fish. "Perplay?"
Her teacher sighed.
It was time to call her parents. "Hi, Ms Lockwood? This is Mrs Carter, I think your daughter has dyslexia."
There was a brief pause, with only the sound of crumpling paper audible. "I think we should get it checked with your general doctor. Alright, bye."
Dyslexia?
That created more trouble.
-
"Why are you at school?" a guy asked her, snobbily.
"Yeah," added one of his peers, "You don't even know how to read."
They were all her height, since she was tall for her age. Despite this, she was intimidated by them. Her back hunched slightly, making the edge of her school dress to fall below her knees.
Another boy ran up to her, kicking her ankles and sent her falling to the ground.
Blood. Pain.
Blood spilled from her knee, as she felt the sharp jabs of pain where rock had collided with skin. Ashleigh let out several whimpers, as the laughter from above echoed in her ears.
"How stupid," James snickered, before he ran off with the rest off his friends.
Ashleigh's palms were red and tiny rock outlines were now imprinted slightly on her delicate skin. Scratches now decorated her once perfect shin, and more blood dripped down her leg.
Tears cascaded down her cheeks, as she laid on the ground, in pain.
This had been going on for four months.
She needed to last for at least another six years.
