December

Challenge: Groups

December 8, 2019

I mentally cringed when my teachers mentioned the word group work. I hate doing group work, no one does their work, no one chooses me, and I'm too shy to talk to anyone. Of course, I have friends, but I am never the first choice for them. I'm like a ghost, no one can see or hear me. I get snapped out of my thoughts when I hear someone calling my name. I turned around to see Jaxon calling my name. Jaxon is my old friend from middle school who decided that he was too cool for me to hang out with. He then became with lots of bullies and just got into trouble a lot.

"Raven, let's go you are going to be in my group." It wasn't a question, it was more like a command. I got up and walked over to Jaxon and his friends. There were three of them in total and they were all extremely taller than me. Jaxon left to see where our team goes and his friends suddenly got very close to me.

"Listen, nerd girl, you are only in this group because Jax made us choose you. You are not one of our friends, you are just the quiet nerd girl who sits in the back of the room and does everything that we tell her to do, got it?" His friends then backed away from me and started acting like nothing happened when Jaxon walked up.

"Okay, guys, we are going to be working in the hallway okay?" Jaxon said and handed us each a paper with instructions on it. We then walked into the hallway and decided to work in the space that was between the lockers and our teacher's door. I put my binder on the ground and pulled out a sheet of notebook paper.

"Okay, we have to make a poster based on the book we just read so I thou-" I was rudely interrupted by one of Jaxon's friends.

"What is this we talk about? You are going to be the one who does the work, right Jaxon? That is why you brought this nerd into our group right?" He looked towards Jaxon's direction awaiting an answer.

"Um, yeah you are going to do all of the work." I heard the uncertainty in his voice but I quickly ignored it.

"Oh, okay then," I said while starting to sketch a poster onto the piece of notebook paper I had out. I felt eyes on me the whole time I worked but I tried my best to ignore it.

I was starting on the real poster when a girl came out into the hall and told us to come back inside because the bell was going to ring in five minutes. I turned over the poster and put all of our names on it. I then turned it into our teacher and went back into the hallway to get my binder and pencil pouch. When I bent down to get my stuff I heard footsteps walking out of the classroom. I looked up to find Jaxons three friends towering over me.

One of them picked me up by my shirt collar and rammed my back into the lockers sending threads of pain to erupt on my back. He then put me back onto the floor but still held onto my shirt. I saw his fist come up and I then felt a sudden pain on my right cheek. I fell to the floor and hold my face in pain. Tears were rolling down my face and my body was shivering. The three boys then started to kick me as hard as they could making me cry hard and louder.

"Shut the fuck up nerd, or else we will kill you and make sure that you are so badly beat up that no one will recognize you." I immediately closed my mouth, but tears kept running down my face. The bell suddenly rand sending the bullies down the hall and towards their next class. I picked up my stuff and ran into the classroom to get me stuff. On my way out I made eye contact with Jaxons worried face but I quickly ignored him and ran down the hallway.

Thankfully I had lunch next and we could eat anywhere we wanted as long as it was in the cafeteria or outside. I ran to my secret spot outside that was next to a huge pine tree. I sat my stuff down and gently felt my face. It felt a little swollen and any contact with it sent pain throughout my face. I was too busy trying to clean up my face that I didn't even notice the pair of footsteps that came up to the tree.

"Hey, are you okay? What happened to you?" I looked up to find Jaxon looking down at me with worry covering his whole face.

"Why do you care? They were your friends, you probably sent them after me." I snapped back.

"Rav."

"Don't call me that."

"Raven, I would never let them beat you up." I then felt him sit next to me and put his hand on my shoulder making me turn to face him. My then put one of his hands on my face and gently touch my now black eye. His touch sent butterflies to erupt in my stomach.

"Why do you even care?" I finally question making him take his hand away from my face. He didn't answer me, all he did was look into my green eyes. He then did something that I never expected him to do. He kissed me and I kissed back.