Prompt: How would Jude handle hearing that one of his kids are being badly bullied? Since then he'd get to see first hand the effects of bullying on the victim
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"Jude!"
Staz pushed the door to our room open and I rubbed at my eyes. He sounded distressed, but the haze of sleep was dulling my own alarm.
"Hm?" I said, trying to shake off the sleep. I'd stayed up late to finish work, and decided to take a nap so I'd be awake enough to go to our daughter's swim meet tonight.
"Elijah," Staz said, looking as distraught as he sounded. "He's crying, Jude. I don't...I can't..."
"Okay, okay," I said, sitting up and rubbing my eyes again. Staz wasn't good at calming the kids down. Usually, them getting hysterical just made him hysterical. If he couldn't get them to calm down enough to draw out their feelings, he usually couldn't help them as much as he'd like to. "Where is he? Did he say what was wrong?"
Staz shook his head. "He came home from school and started crying when I asked how his day was. He's in his room now. Can you...?"
"I'll figure out what's wrong, and then you can help him," I said, standing up. Staz hated not being able to help them, so I tried to calm them down for him.
Staz fidgeted. "What do I do?"
"Go get Elyssa her afternoon snack. I'm sure she'd like to have you help her braid her hair," I said.
He brightened a little. "I can do that." But then he frowned again. "I don't like seeing Eli sad."
"I'll cheer him up as much as I can," I said, moving past Staz and kissing his cheek. "Once I calm him down, I bet he'd love a hug from you."
"I will," Staz said, nodding furiously. "I'll hug him. If he wants."
I went down the hall as Staz went down the stairs. I knocked on Eli's door, but got no response. I could hear him sniffling inside, so I knocked again.
"Eli?" I called. "Can I come in?"
He mumbled out a response that sounded like a yes. I opened his door and stepped inside, frowning at the sight of his tear-stained face.
"What's wrong?" I said, kneeling down in front of him. But then I noticed the fresh bruise on his shin. "Did you fall?"
He shook his head, hugging his knees to his chest. "No."
"Then, did someone kick you?" I asked.
He nodded, tears welling up in his eyes again. "He kicked me, daddy. And they all laughed."
"Who did?" I demanded.
Eli started crying again, sobs choking out. "Parker. He's always mean to me. He said I'm small and stupid. He always hurts me in dodge ball. And he kicked me today when I told him I liked his shirt. He said he doesn't want a loser talking to him."
My lips twitched. Karma was such a bitch. Fuck.
He was small for his age. His doctor had us giving him a special drink with his meals to help him grow and catch up to kids his age, but said it was nothing to be overly concerned about. Elyssa had been small for her age, but hit a growth spurt two years ago that caught her up.
I looked at my son, my heart sinking. The small, kind ones were always an easy target. I could remember being around Eli's age, seeing Ethan hug his mom and feeling so angry, so jealous.
"Elijah," I said, putting my hands on his shoulders. "Look at me."
He hiccupped and looked up at me, tears streaming down his cheeks. "Why are they so mean to me?"
"What they're saying isn't true. When kids are bullies, it's usually because they feel powerless in some part of their life, and bullying makes them feel like they have some control over that. It makes them feel strong and in charge. You are small, but you're not stupid or a loser. He's bigger than you, isn't he?" I said.
Eli nodded, and reached out his arms to me. I pulled him into my lap, hugging him tightly. Is this what Ethan's mom felt like? Feeling so hopeless, so angry?
I brushed my fingers through his hair. "That's the only reason he goes after you. You're smaller, so it makes him feel tough. He's just a jerk, though. He's the loser for going after someone just because they're not as big as him."
It had felt so good to get my anger out on Ethan, and on the other kids I went after. Some part of me was never satisfied, no matter how hard I hit them. But I kept doing it. It was Staz who helped me find a healthy way to get that anger out.
I knew what it was like to be angry and jealous and desperate for control when you had none over the situation that was hurting you. I didn't know what it was like to come home crying because someone had unleashed those feelings on me.
"I don't want to go to school," Eli whimpered. "Can I stay home with you and dad?"
"No," I said. "You're not missing school. I'm going to call your teacher and your principal, and have a meeting with them and this kid's parents. If that doesn't fix it, I'll come in to your class myself and talk to this Parker kid." I might be a lot more mature and calm as an adult, but that didn't mean I wouldn't use my verbal threats on this kid to get him to leave Elijah alone. I knew how to speak that angry language. "I'll pick you up from now on, until this is settled. If you want."
"You will?" he said.
I nodded. "I'll be waiting right outside for you so he can't hurt you when the teacher isn't around. We'll get him to leave you alone. I'll make sure you're not in a class with him next year."
He snuggled against me. "I love you, dad."
"I love you too," I said, kissing his head.
Fuck you, karma.
"Hey, dad wants to give you a big hug to make you feel better," I said, nudging him a little. "Why don't you go get that hug while I call the school?"
He wiped at his eyes and gave me a shaky smile. "Okay, daddy."
He got off my lap and left the room. I groaned a little and rubbed at my eyes again.
Fate had a sick sense of humor. I had some calls to make.
I wouldn't let my son be abused by kids who were like me when I was younger. And I certainly wouldn't let my kids behave like I had.
