The Goal

𝟷𝟷| 𝙾𝚋𝚕𝚒𝚟𝚒𝚘𝚗

Oblivion (noun)

- the state of forgetting or of being oblivious.

~*~

Have you ever felt like the air around you was too toxic for you to breathe? Like, breathing felt as if you were trying to inhale sand. Everything was thick. The air was too thick to inhale and exhale. Every whiff you took made your body heavier. It was like a drug, but instead of experiencing a high – you're forced to cower under the judgemental stares of everyone else. 


That was every single day at Lakeside High.


I didn't understand it, honestly. When I first started high school, it was nothing like that. We were free to do whatever we wanted to and when we wanted to. There was nothing standing in the way of our freedom. But that all changed at the end of my freshman year. It was then that Lakeside High hit a roadblock, a roadblock by the name of Jillian Rooney.

Jillian was the student body president and the brains behind the scheme of segregating everyone into distinct cliques. She had been bullied through our entire freshman year and finally concluded that she had enough of everyone's harsh words. After a few days, she presented the notion of cliques, having researched everything about it from movies and books.

The points she brought across actually made sense. There would be less trouble if everyone stuck to their distinct clique. No one would be bullied because they wouldn't need to associate with anyone outside of their clique. These were only some of her points.


I wasn't going to lie, her points were valid but I had no idea that three years down the line it would turn into my gravest nightmare. Things went from merely being separated to only being permitted to do a sport which was allocated to your clique. As you could tell, I was deposited into the popular cheer squad.


Jillian's ideas were taken into consideration until it was eventually approved. It didn't help that her aunt was the principal so she was allowed to make modifications to the rules whenever she wanted. I just wished Jillian could see how miserable she'd made the people around her.

They were limited to a precise group and sport, incapable of enjoying their days at school. She was the reason stereotypes were such a big deal at Lakeside. But of course, no one would go against her. Her position at our school was so distinguished and students were frightened. If only freshman-year Jillian could see what a bully she'd become in the future.


I let out a deep sigh, inclining my head onto the table. The smell of food satisfied my nostrils but I refused to let myself be captivated. I wanted to bathe in despondency at the fact that it was just another monotonous Monday. There was chatter all around, various groups dispersed around the cafeteria as they conversed with one another. 


"Can you stop being all mopey?" Maya questioned with a frown, shoving a chip into her mouth. Her blue eyes examined our table, taking note of Tammy who was gazing ahead with a lovesick pout. The cheer captain glimpsed in the direction she was staring and gasped. "Tammy!"