The Things I Hide

Prologue

Seven. That's how old I was when I met Luke. He was a new student and he wasn't as welcomed as he expected. That wasn't entirely our fault either. I remember he had a weird voice and he wasn't the skinniest kid, but he blocked everyone out. I never talked to him but I remember when he walked into class for the first time. He was nervous, it was obvious because he was pale and shaky.

He sat down at the seat he was assigned to which was next to Thomas. Thomas wasn't a very nice kid either. He picked on Luke constantly for his voice. Sometimes when Luke would ask him a question, Thomas would mimic him.

He was polite the first week, I noticed. He would let others go first and say "thank you" and "please" unlike other kids. He stopped after that. He must have realized that second grade kids weren't nice like him.

The next week, he was a bully. He pushed kids around for normal things like money and food. Kids began to be scared of him because he punch Thomas in the face for making fun of him.

Luke picked on a different kid daily, and my day was yet to come.

It was the day before my birthday when Luke decided to come after my only friend, Micheal.

Michael had been my friend since he moved next door to me. He had brown hair but there was some grey streaks in it so people would make fun of him for being an old man.

He didn't have any friends and neither did I, so in result we became friends.

We were never best friends because Michael claimed he didn't want to be tied down. Something he told me he had heard his father say before his father walked out on his mother and himself. I don't think he knew what that meant at the time, but he still uses that reference.

We were at recess when Micheal was on the swings and I was on the one next to him.

"Hey, old man, I want your swing." Luke had said to Michael that day.

"There are other swings. This one is mine. Get your own."Michael retorted. I guess Luke was used to getting his own way because his face had begun to get red from fury.

He grabbed Michael by the collar and shoved him off the swings.

"Hey!" I yelled at him. Michael was my my friend and he didn't need to be pushed around like that. Luke didn't need to push kids around just because he didn't have friends.

Michael got up, clutching his arm, and shook his head at me. I had gotten off my swing and walked straight up to Luke. He gave me a smug look as if he had won that swing.

"Why did you push him?" I asked him.

"Because this is my swing and he didn't ask to use it." Luke responded.

"No, you pushed him! Why couldn't you have just gotten another swing, you butthead?" I yelled and Luke got angrier by the second.

"What did you just call me?" He said getting off the swings. For a seven year old, he was really tall, but I was pretty average height.

"A butthead. Why can't you be a nice person? Maybe you would have friends. If you were nice to me I would be your friend." I told him confidently.

Luke didn't respond, instead he pushed me which has caused me to fall on my bottom.

"I'm not a butthead." Luke said while walking away.

Michael ran over to me to comfort me but I was faster. I don't remember the next few seconds very well, but let's just say that I have a temper.

The whole ordeal ended with me in the principals office, calling my mom because I needed to be sent home.

Luke sat next to me in the hall, he was being sent home also. He has an ice pack over his cheek because I had socked him pretty hard.

We got into a fight and Michael had run for help. We finally got broken up by the recess monitor that obviously not watching us.

My mother showed up shortly after that, concerned and angry.

"You punched him? Why?" She asked me.

I shrugged. "He pushed Michael and me. I had to do something."

She shook her head at me and looked at Luke.

"Are you ok?" She asked him. He didn't say anything, only shrugging his shoulders.

"Come on, Millie, the day before your birthday you get into a fight." We went home that day and I didn't get into much trouble. I got a few toys taken away from me, because my parents didn't believe in spanking.

The next day was my birthday, and I was eight. At my age, I didn't believe in dresses or looking pretty on purpose, so I went to school looking the way I would always dress.

Michael had given me a card and a hug, telling me he would give me a present when we got home from school.

School went normal for me, I was being watched more than usual because of the situation that happened yesterday.

Luke had shown up to school with a purple bruise on his cheek and, of course, Thomas was the first one to point it out.

This was different, because Luke didn't say anything back. He just took the mockings and went on his way.

He approached me during recess. He had one hand behind his back and the other nervously clutching his jacket.

"Hi, Luke." I said. He nodded at me, not looking me in the eye.

He moved the hand behind his back and in his hand was a flower.

"I'm sorry for pushing you. I saw this over there, behind the slide. Your mum said it was your birthday today..." He said.

The flower was a yellow flower and really pretty. I stood up from the bench I was sitting on and gave Luke a kiss on the cheek.

"Ew gross." Luke said and I playfully pushed him.

"I'm sorry for punching you and thank you for the flower. Yellow is my favorite color." I told him.

Luke and I talked the whole recess, without any fights. I had found out that his father had died and his mother moved to America because of a job opportunity. He was from Australia, which was why he had a weird voice.

"Millie?" He said before school was over that day.

"What?" I asked him.

"You said that if I was nice then you would be my friend. I don't have any friends..." He trailed off and I gave him a nod.

"You can be my friend, Luke." I told him. He gave me a big smile, revealing his teeth. Some were missing.

"Happy birthday, Millie!" He called out to me while getting into his moms car.

I gave him a wave while my mom picked me up.

We've been friends ever since.