Schools.
They're the prisons of kids.
The teachers the jailers,
the bullies the criminals.
Hard.
Unyielding.
Merciless.
Cold.
Silent.
Lonely.
Full of
unspoken thoughts.
It's a wonder how we survive
fourteen years of it.
It's a wonder
how we make friends in the midst of it.
There's nothing that is supposed to cheer us up.
Homework, grades, relationships,
it all brings us
down.
The entire day,
I don't pay attention.
Doodling in my book.
Teachers don't seem to care.
What they do care about though,
is why I'm here.
Who I am.
What's my story.
Well, here I am,
telling you my stories,
And theirs,
while the teachers beg me to play the storyteller of the day.
But I refuse.
I simply say in every class.
"I'm Tallulah Bay."
Although it doesn't satisfy anyone.
They give me curious glances,
masked as concern.
But I see right through it.
Liars.
Soren was right.
They are like hungry wolves.
Their eyes follow my every move,
they whisper in packs.
They open their mouths,
then close them again,
as if wanting to ask,
But not daring to.
So miraculously,
"I'm
Tallulah Bay,"
gets me through the entire day.
Through first and second,
break, then third,
lunch
and finally fourth.
I don't see Soren in the school even once
the entire week.
I think I see him,
more than once
A tall boy with blond hair with bright blue eyes,
but it's not him.
maybe he's playing hooky.
maybe he's sick.
Or,
a small doubting voice says in my head,
he's just
ignoring you.
Or,
another voice volunteers,
He did what
Carina and Adam did.
Shut up,
I tell that voice.
hissing.
shut up.
Home is
just like
school.
a prison.
I suppose that it's safer.
no bullies.
The only jailer myself.
And my father.
While I anticipate for the school day
to end,
I dread what comes afterward.
That's what I feel like
Every
Single
Damn
Day.
Since the day
they
killed
themselves.
Soren never shows up.
ever.
Maybe he's too good,
to belong in this prison of children.
Maybe this prison of children is what led them to killing themselves.
YOU ARE READING
One Small Step | ✔
PoetryIn the past year, Tallulah has lost her sister and her best friend, both to suicide. They guided her, helped her through life, and now they're gone, leaving Tallulah to suffer from the consequences. Without her sister and her best friend, Tallulah d...
