"Yeah, I don't think we should hang around so much anymore." Carter explained, looking at his hopeless best friend.
"Wha- why? Guys is this a joke? News flash, it isn't funny." Jacks voice cracks. He can hear the seriousness in their voices.
There's no denying that his feelings are hurt. He knew it would happen one day, just not so soon. They shake their heads in pity, leaving their used to be best friend alone.
Jack sat in the bathroom thinking about the day he lost his only hope to being normal. The day he thought his life would end. Well, with how it's going now, it kind of did.
He took a bite out of his peanut butter and jelly sandwich, which he didn't even want to eat because it's gross but he has nothing else better to do in the stall.
He hasn't sat in the lunch room since the day he lost his friends. They actually never talked to him after that.
They never said sorry, and they never turned back. It was actually like they had never even met him. They went on to bigger and better statuses while Jack was still the odd one out. It was sad.
It was sad how he had spent that whole entire friendship telling them how broken he was and all of his secrets like how he fell in love with Jackson's girlfriend and how he thought about running away.
Well the last one, that's no secret. It's pretty obvious to be honest. Why wouldn't he after all he has to put up with?
There were guys in the bathroom, being assholes. Throwing tissues over the top of the stall and banging on the door for no reason. They have no decency like what if they guy is taking a shit?
Jack takes time to look at his wrists, red, sliced and weird. This isn't how God made you to be.
All flawed and lonely. Jack isn't really sure what God made everyone to be but he knows it isn't him. He actually knows there's a better life than this and he can't do anything about it.
The bell rings for everyone to go to class and everyone's already up the stairs. Jack takes his time. He waits about five minutes before exiting the stall because he doesn't need any extra trouble.
So basically, he's always late to class after lunch because he doesn't have the balls to stand up for himself.
Pulling his sleeves down, he unlocks the door and throws the lunch tray into the garbage next to the sink. There are still guys here. the
Their deep chuckles can be heard from there spot by the window and let me tell you, they just can't wait to get to the new bait.
"It's a little unsanitary to eat in a bathroom, isn't it?" One of them asks and for a minute jack thinks he's trying to be nice. But the other laughs and his opinion changes.
"Yeah dude that's gross." Jack doesn't say anything, he just pulls his bag on his shoulders and turns to walk out the door. He walks away from the problem. That's the high road, right? That's the right thing to do, is it not?
Well, why does chad seem to dislike the high road? He doesn't like it. He seems to want jack to fight and argue and get an even bigger ass whopping. And what the hell happens when he ends up defending himself, and getting suspended in the process?
Another lashing from that son of a bitch? Pretty much.
A hand grasps Jack's shoulder, stopping him from going any further.
"I asked you a question, Steve." He rambles trying to act tough when he really just looks like an ass. There is literally no one else to show off in front of except for his pot head friend that probably shouldn't even be in the 11th grade.
" It's Steven, dumdass." The other kid snickers at his idiotic friend, clearly not knowing he's an idiot himself.
Jack listens to them and he processes. "You've got every goddamn kid on this street calling you Steven!"
"No it isn't." Jack whispers, catching the attention of both the bullies. They look at him confused until one speaks up.
"What'd you say?" He asks.
"My name isn't Steven, dumbass." He mocks the boy and he feels courageous but he also can't ignore the feeling in his stomach that he's digging a hole for himself.
But then again he thinks that these boys are just wanna be's. They want to be like those popular bully jock guys that roam the halls. He doesn't blame them but he doesn't think that beating up an innocent bystander is going to do the job because literally everyone picks on him and everyone is not popular.
They give him menacing looks, not beliving that this pipsqueak, pussy ass kid just said that. And they don't really know what to do. They can be mad but they have no clue what to say.
One of them just breathes in like he's about to say something but he doesn't. He just breathes out loudly and looks at jack.
"It's jack." He tells them and they stare in almost disbelief- like that 'holy shit no way your name is jack.' Face. To say he feels proud is just the beginning and he starts to nod slightly to himself knowing damn well he's doing good.
Now, if only he could stand up to everyone that fucks with him.
"And I have to get to class. So if you could let go of me, that'd be fine." He concludes as he dusts the guys hand off his shoulder and he walks out contemplating where all that came from - and it wasn't much but he fended for himself, which he's had to do is whole life but he's never done it like that before.
-
It's the last class of the day and the period is over in 3 minutes and jack knows that but damn he can't stop glancing at the clock and back at his book. He likes to make it out the door before everyone else because his bullies are always there waiting for him.
So, he sits at the back of the class looking down at his book and praying that it all goes as planned. It didn't turn out too well last time considering that he had to run from them.
And when the bell rings he's out the door. He's zooming pass the teacher and he has left his book on the desk because he doesn't really need it anyway and quite frankly, he doesn't have time for that. Dashing out of the room at lighting speed he dodges everyone in the hall.
And yeah he's that kid that everyone makes videos about; how he runs home before the bell even finishes ringing but they don't know what the hell he goes through when he doesn't.
He makes it out the school with a few laughs here and there about him and he's glad but he doesn't stop there. He keeps going.
Foot after foot, breath after breath, and he's okay with it. He doesn't even care because it doesn't faze him. He does it every fucking day so one would say he's pretty fucking fit but they would never know because he's always hiding in a big black hoodie of some sort.
And, Lord, could the kid be popular- if he moved to another state.
He turns back and doesn't hear anyone or see anyone so he slows his pace when he's three long blocks away from home. He doesn't want any trouble. The air is still cold but he's hot.
As he walks he begins to think. Think about all the downs in his life and that's really all he can think about because his whole life is like a nice big ride down a nice big hill. And he'd change it. He'd change it for the world. For most people that phrase would be the other way around but nope. Not for Jack.
He begins to sniffle and silently cry and he wishes he had someone that loves him enough to have pity on him. He knows when it comes to the point when you want someone to have pity on you then it's pitiful. But he doesn't want to be this way.
He hasn't chosen to be this way and sometimes he looks at all the cool kids in school and the celebrity's and wonder what there world is like. How it feels to be rich and surrounded by people who support you and love you.
Then he hears it. The laughing, giggling and fooling around. It's them and he stops for a minute to make sure he isn't imagining them. They are behind him and so damn close.
"Look. It's Steven!"
