Of A Forgotten Storm (Under Editing)

The Bully

"Are you a fool or what?" I said through gritted teeth, irritation boiling over. I briefly closed my eyes and exhaled deeply. The girl in front of me swallowed hard, looking fearful under my intense gaze. She might be a fool or simply someone with a very low self-esteem.

"Senior..." She stammered again, her gaze dropping to her fiddling fingers. I rolled my eyes and took a sip from my Coke bottle; it was much needed at a moment like this.

"What? What did I tell you last week?" I cut her off, frustrated. Why do I have to keep explaining myself to this fool? I might just leave her to her own fate.

"To stand up for myself."

"And is this how you do it—by letting those girls order you around?" I asked harshly. Yeah, some girls just like you, my subconscious reminded me. Sometimes, I wish I could silence that annoying voice that keeps tallying my mistakes.

"Are you here to serve anyone?" The girl began to cry. I didn’t even know why I felt the urge to defend her. I’d seen her three weeks ago being bullied by some girls, and she said they had been bothering her since last term. Whenever they did, she would just find a corner and weep. The girl practically had no friends. I wondered why she was still in the hostel if she couldn’t handle the pressure.

"I’m sorry, senior."

"Do you know my name?" She looked at me, surprised, as if I had spoken in a foreign language. "I asked you a question." She nodded, and at that moment, I spotted the girls I had been looking for. A big grin spread across my lips. Today was definitely going to be my day.

"Everyone does," she added. I glanced at her innocent face; she was probably four years younger than me, and naturally, I didn’t bother with kids her age.

"Good then. Next time anyone dares to bother you, just tell them I’m your big sister, okay? And before I leave this school, you must learn to stand up for yourself. That’s if you don’t want to run away after I’m gone."

"Thank you, senior." She said with a somewhat victorious smile, perhaps excited at having someone on her side. I dismissed her with a nod and began my chase; it was going to be a payback day.

Lucky for me, as I quickened my pace, I spotted the two girls entering the restroom. Good. I could have sworn my eyebrows were excited too. I had tried to keep my cool this term, but people just wouldn’t let me. Especially since chemistry had become unbearable after the substitute decided to be on my nerves.

Yesterday, we had a big argument when I arrived late to the chemistry lab for practicals, and he tried to stop me. In his previous class, he’d exaggerated that anyone who arrived late would face his wrath. Curiosity got the best of me, and since I was so hungry at the time, I enjoyed my snack instead. And the craziest thing happened.

The substitute was crazy enough to order me to get on my knees outside the lab. But guess what? I laughed in his face. The look on his face was priceless. I’d pay anything to see it again. Goodness, he might have attended one of those middle-class secondary schools where students are punished for every little thing.

The craziest part about yesterday is that I’m supposed to be in detention today for what I did. It was Thursday, and Thursdays at PIC have always been amazing—games and leisure activities start immediately after lunch break. This week was no exception. The school was vibrant, with most students wearing their game wear.

Just like many other students who had misbehaved during the week, today was the day to pay the price. Unlike the rest of us, the “bad eggs” would be in a closed classroom with some drab teacher supervising them in absolute silence. Meanwhile, outside, everything was buzzing with fun—hot topics, breakups, and all the excitement happened today. Not that I really cared who was dating whom. It was just a tradition, and how dare he?