Have Some Hope

Chapter 2

I walk down the halls. I have lunch! Finally! There aren't many people around so I'm not getting shoved which is nice. I grab my lunch out of my locker and walk outside.
It's still really hot out but this is better than having to go in the lunchroom. I open my lunch box and grab a PB&J. I start eating it while leaning against a tree.
There is a girl walking my way. She's probably looking for someone else. I go back to eating my sandwich. I see a shadow coming closer.
I look up to see the girl right in front of me. She has long brown hair put in a neat ponytail and hazel eyes that are staring right at me.
"Hi." She says.
I wave a little at her. She doesn't sound mean. I'm not really scared by her.
"Do you want to come sit with me and my friends?" She asks tilting her head to the side a bit.
I hesitate. Should I go? Maybe they won't like me. I nod anyways.
"Follow me!" She says.
I pick up my notepad and lunch. I follow her over to a little picnic table. I don't know how I missed that walking out here.
There are three other people at the table. Two more girls and a boy.
"That's Chip." The girl says pointing at the boy. He is short and has black hair, icy blue eyes, and a lip piercing.
She points at the taller girl.
"That's Valley."
I look at the girl. She looks kinda scary. She has striking blue hair and green eyes.
She points at the last girl.
"That is Meadow." She says.
Shes almost as short as Chip but looks really happy compared to him. She has blonde hair and angel blue eyes.
"And I am... Rain!" She exclaims dancing around.
Valley looks over at me.
"So... What's your name?" She asks.
I grab my notepad. I write 'Hope' and give it to her. I look down at my shoes and kick at the grass. They probably won't want to be friends with me.
"Nice to meet you Hope!" Meadow says.
I look up surprised. They actually want to be friends?
"You can sit down." Meadow says pointing at the bench.
I sit down next to Chip. He gives me a small wave. I wave back. I open my lunch and finish my food while the others talk about their classes.
The bell rings and I pack up my stuff.
"We'll see you tomorrow right?" Chip asks.
I nod and wave. Maybe I was wrong about today being a bad day.
The weeks go by excruciatingly slow. My father leaves more and more bruises on my body daily. I hide it from my friends, so they don't get worried.
I zone out at lunch as my friends talk about some guy. The final bell rings and everyone rushes to class.
I walk to my last class from lunch. History. Ugh.
I walk down the halls, making sure not to bump into anyone.
I go into my classroom only to bump into a huge guy. I look up at him shaking. He has to be like 6'9.
"Why did you bump into me?!" He screams.
I walk back into the classroom. He is staring me straight in the eye.
"Answer me." He growls.
All my stuff fell out of my hands. I look around for help but there's no one in the classroom yet.
I keep walking back while he strides forward.
"Why did you bump into me?!" He yells again.
My back hits the wall. I'm trapped. Just then Kai, Meadow, Chip, Valley, and Rain walk in.
The guy raises his fist and I slide down to the floor and I cover my face with my arms. He kicks me in the legs.
"How does that feel huh?" He says. " You little mute! "
I crumble down deeper into myself. This is humiliating.
"Leave her alone!" A male voice screams as the guy was about to take another hit.
He turns around and looks. I lift my head up a bit to see my friends. Kai is glaring at him. Meadow and Chip look scared. Valley and Rain look ready to kick his butt.
" Why do you care Kai? " the guy asks.
Kai replies not missing a beat.
"Because she is our friend. And you need to stop."
The guy looks intimidated.
"Just go!" Kai yells making me flinch.
The guy scrambles away. Chip and Meadow run up to me.I
"What hurts?" Chip asks softly.
I get up and grab my notepad. I write 'nothing'.
Chip looks me in the eyes.
"You just got beat up. Something has to hurt."
I write down 'I'm used to it.' I tear the page out and put it down.
I pick my stuff up and run out of the classroom while others are coming in.
I can hear my friends calling my name. But it just makes me run faster. My vision starts to go blurry and tears stream down my face.
I get to my locker and shove my stuff inside. I grab my phone and keep running. I run to a park and sit on the grass in front of a pond.
It starts to sprinkle outside and I put my head in my hands. I CRIED in front of them. This is bad bad bad-
"Hope?" Kai calls out.
" Hope! " Chip exclaims when he finds me.
"Why did you run?" He asks. I see Kai and the girls walking over.
I pull out my notepad.
I scribble onto it 'I'm going to tell all of you. But let's get somewhere out of the rain first.'
Kai helps me up and grabs my stuff.
"Ok. Lets go to my house." He says.
I'm ready. I can do this.