He was Almost Absorbed by the System

Chapter Eight - Speaking of Bullies

He awoke from his daze after being prodded painfully in the ribs. He turned to look at the culprit. "What did I miss?" Aidan murmured sleepily at Felicity, wondering what were her fingers made of.

Felicity scowled at him. "Wipe the drool from your face and I'll tell you," she stated, arms crossed at her chest. Chase stifled a chuckle into his fist, though his eyes did not leave the stage in the auditorium, where the assembly was taking place. Anthony Marshall Junior was at the podium, still performing his speech in the same monotone way that had sent Aidan into a light doze in the first place. Seated behind him were the principal and the other two candidates for Student Body President. This assembly had been called in order that they could make their first campaign speeches.

Aidan yawned, not bothering to hide it, as the principal clapped enthusiastically once Anthony had concluded his speech, while encouraging the suffering students to do the same. There was a smattering of halfhearted applause as he sat down. Aidan glanced at his phone, unsurprised that the boy's chances of losing the vote had increased a couple percent. Still, the boy had a satisfied look upon his face as he sat down next to his fellow candidates.

The principal stood at the podium to introduce Cameron as the next candidate. The girl surprised the whole of her audience with her words, suggesting that she wanted to freshen up and beautify certain areas of the school, such as the school toilets, which most students avoided unless they were desperate and the school grounds so there would be somewhere pleasant to relax or study between classes. As she began talking about the school cafeteria, Felicity whispered her surprise that Cameron's speech was actually good. Aidan snorted in the depths of his mind. It should be, he'd worked on it all night, then had snuck into school early to slip it into the girl's locker. He was more surprised that she'd actually chosen to use it and not mentioned something like changing the cafeteria ladies uniform to something pink and frilly.

Seeing as he knew the speech so well, he found himself drifting off again, not realising that the girl had sat down and the third candidate was standing in her place. "My name is Katy Daniels and I wish to become Student Body President in order to stand up and act against bullying in this school." There were a few murmurs that followed her words, but the girl managed to continue her speech over them. "You may be looking at each other and saying words like 'what bullying?' 'Is she serious?'. Yes I am. You may not be aware, but recently a student of our school tried to take their own life due to the endless bullying they suffered in this school."

Aidan suddenly became alert. That bitch! Was she seriously going to use his friend as a political point in her campaign? Thank fuck that boy wasn't here to listen to this! Aidan could just imagine Warren crawling back into his shell if he knew. Katy had 'carefully' omitted details to 'hide' his identity, such as his sex, but glancing around Aidan knew that the majority here knew who she was talking about.

"The punishments for bullying are not harsh enough and the bullies are protected too well by the silence of their victims and witnesses. I wish to give victims a voice, a way out of the vicious cycle that they often find themselves trapped in. I wish to empower students so they are able to stand up to the bullies and say we will not suffer anymore. If that person had the chance to speak out, perhaps they wouldn't have taken such drastic measures..."

"What do you know? What do you know about that person and what happened to them?"

All eyes turned as one away from the stage and towards the boy that stood up in amongst them, arms crossed about his broad chest. "Excuse me?" Katy said after a moment. The principal behind here opened and closed his mouth like a fish, wondering whether to intervene.

"Everyone knows that there was a person who almost fell from the roof," he said. "But you claim they tried to commit suicide. How do you know?"

"Well it's obvious..."

"Is it?" Aidan kept his voice deep and questioning.

"Of course, why else would he have been up there? He almost fell and probably would have died, if not for his rescuer," she added the last part a little more quietly for some reason.

"Really? Well I go up there for lunch sometimes, cos it's quiet. But it gets real windy sometimes." He tilted his head to one side to gauge her reaction, but she just glared at him. "And how do you know that person was bullied? Have you seen it?"

"Of course, I've seen it, I wouldn't claim it otherwise!"

"And what did you do about it?" 

Katy let loose a strangled cry for a moment, while the students stared at her in silence watching eagerly this show that was being performed in front of them.  Bullies, victims, witnesses, as one they savoured the interaction between the boy and girl like dogs salivating over a steak.  "I didn't do anything," she admitted quietly.  She coughed to clear her voice as the student body began to mutter amongst themselves then added loudly.  "But I should have done.  Which is why I am standing here now, trying to change things.  And you? What would you do?"

The students turned to see how the boy would react.  "Me? Well, to be honest, I don't know.  I've not witnessed any bullying, that I know of," he shrugged lightly.  "Not saying that it doesn't happen in this school, it happens everywhere.  I'd like to claim I'd intervene, but who knows how I'd react with a bunch of guys with muscles for brains looming over me when I try stop them picking on the quivering nerd kid."

"Hey that's stereotyping!" Someone yelled causing laughter to ripple through the crowd. 

He shrugged again and sat down.  "Sorry for interrupting your speech.  But please, next time, don't use my friend as a case subject for your campaign.  I don't appreciate it." 

Katy glared at him angrily, before glancing at her written speech in order to salvage what she could.  However, before she could do more than open her mouth to speak, the principal behind her coughed and said that they had ran out of time and needed to wrap things up.  He reminded a frustrated Katy that the three candidates still had a month to put their cases forward during break and lunchtimes for the next month until the vote would take place.  He then dismissed the assembly.

As they filtered out, a large, dark-haired boy slapped Aidan on the shoulder, jolting him forward with his strength.  "Nice speech, dude," he said, "if you were campaigning, I'd totally vote for you!"  He then jogged lightly down the corridor towards a gathering of girls who squealed at his approach. 

Aidan pointed at the senior's back and turned to his friends.  "Who was that?"

Chase wrapped his arm about a shell-shocked Felicity and laughed.  "You don't know?" She exclaimed.  "No of course you don't! Who did I think I was talking to!  That was Shaun, vice captain of the football team, probably the most sought after single male in this dump."

"And why would he know that?" Chase laughed.  "He's not a girl."

"But if I was gay, I'd go for him!" Aston claimed. 

"What, you switching now, cos all the girls turned you down?" Chase poked his ribs.

Aston slipped around Aidan, intent on using him as a shield.  "Aiiidaaan! Chase is bullying me."  Chase snorted, loudly.

"You can hardly call that bullying.  He just stated a fact," Felicity claimed.  Aidan looked at Chase and Felicity, then glanced up at Aston, before shrugging and deciding not to get involved.  Aston was taller and bigger than both of them anyway.