Flaming Rose

"No one can do everything, but everyone can do something."

Sapphire takes a quick step into class, her hazel eyes full of fear. With her muscles tense, she walks briskly to the back of the room, clutching her books for dear life. Snickers and laughter fills her mind as she closes her eyes, ready for another day of pain and torture.

With a light tap on her shoulder, she looks up and the glowing blue eyes, thirsty for blood makes her blood run cold. A pleading spark fills her eyes as she braces herself for the pain. She could hear it now, the laughing, cheering, and crushing of bones.

"Everyone please take a seat!" The teacher snaps, angered by the scene that fills her eyes when she steps into the class. Sapphire breathes a sigh of relief as the boy scrambles back into his seat, fearing the teacher.

"Kaden you can write me an essay on world hunger while you sit with me in detention for the next week," the boy from before- Kaden- slumps back into his seat, letting out a loud groan. Sighing, Sapphire listens attentively to the rest of the class, trying to block out all the snickering and teasing of her fellow classmates.

Lunch seems to buzz by, far faster than Sapphire would have liked. The students fill the halls, doing as they please without any teachers to guard and protect the weaker ones of the group. Sapphire makes a beeline for the cafeteria, the only safe place in the school during the mass of chaos. As she nears the bathroom, two girls take up a spot on either side of Sapphire, smirking evilly.

"You worthless little thing!" They scream as they each grab Sapphire's shoulder. their nails pierce into her skin as they shove Sapphire onto her knees. Tears immediately stream down Sapphire's face, her wall of protection crumbling down.

"Oh, did we hurt the little baby?" Britney's voice fills Sapphire's ears, the high pitched voice full with pride. Nails scratch down Sapphire's face, leaving in its mist a long striking red path. Her perfectly fake nails reach Sapphire's chin, pulling her face up with a loud crack, forcing her eyes to look up.

Sapphire's eyes fill with surprise as a fist nears her face, crashing right in the middle of her nose and upper lip. Blood flows from Sapphire's twisted pale nose and beaten crimson lips. Her shiny brown hair mops up the tears and blood as they release Sapphire's face, letting her eyes drop to the floor again.

"What's wrong, have you had enough?" Kaden asks, slightly disappointed that the show might end too quickly. "Well? Speak up you worthless thing!" He raises his hand, giving her a hard slap across her head as motivation.

"Leave," Sapphire struggles to find her voice. Her throat tightens with pain, refusing to let her speak.

"Oh, what was that?" Kaden asks, a hint of fake sympathy fills his voice. "You, you want us to leave? Well guess what, we aren't going to anytime soon." He slaps her again, this time on the other side of Sapphire's head.

Sapphire's eyes widen in pure fear as Kaden and Britney spins two razor sharp knives between their fingers, a wide smirk of triumph evident on their faces as they kick Sapphire onto her stomach, revealing her bare back. Blood flows freely from the new wounds they inflect on her raw skin, leaving Sapphire screeching in agony when they had the guts to walk across Sapphire's now bloody back

The snickering and laughter start to fade away as Sapphire is left alone. She remains there, crying her eyes out and letting the pain sink in. Sniffing, Sapphire struggles to get up, only to collapse to her knees again.

"Why can't I just give up?" She asks herself. Her tears and the blood mix together on the floor, creating a sticky wet substance.

"Oh dear oh dear!" Black spots fill Sapphire's vision as the world start to spin. Somewhere off in the distance, she hears the scrambling of feet. After what seems like years, a voice fills her head.

"She lost too much blood."

"Will she make it?"

"I'm not sure."

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep. The beeping soon stops abruptly, filling the air with a single shrilling beep.

----

"How do you feel dear?" Sapphire blinks open her eyes, the white ceiling far too bright for her eyes to handle. Sapphire squints her eyes and attempts to sit up only to find various cords attach to her body. A nurse quickly rushes to her side, helping her up.

Sapphire looks at the nurse with judging eyes. The nurse looks young, maybe in her late twenties with warm sparkling brown eyes and shiny matching long hair tied back with an elastic. Her feeble smile tells Sapphire that she can trust the nurse.

"What happened dear?" The nurse asks patiently, waiting for Sapphire to talk. Sapphire just looks away, looking around the hospital room. She hears a sigh beside her and turns her attention back to the nurse who now has a bowl of soup in her hands.

"Here, have some. It'll give you your strength back," the nurse reaches out, waiting for Sapphire to take the warm bowl.

"What's the point?" Sapphire asks, not having the slightest reaction to the shock that fills the nurses face.

"Well," the nurse fakes a cough in an attempt to steady her voice, "your mom came by earlier and dropped this off. She said she'd be back later." The nurse places a bounded purple book with a heart shaped number pad on Sapphire's lap.

"If you need anything, just call," the nurse stands up and walks out of the room, leaving the slightly cold bowl of soup on the wooden nightstand.

"Zero... Three... Zero... One," Sapphire grabs a pen off of the table and proceeds to write in the book; her diary.

"Dear diary,

"What's the point of life? All everyone does is hurt each other. It's pointless, struggling each and everyday. No one is there for me, I'm just all alone. Life is a brutal thing, I wish I could just throw it all away. I don't want this life, I can't stand anymore.

"I want peace. Nothing can help with my life, nothing at all. Diary, oh diary, please kill me now. They always hurt me, but not enough to kill me. The world is a dangerous place to live in, with all the evil and torture. A knife is no longer enough to help me bear this pain.

"What would it feel like? To take a gun to my head? I dream of it every night, and every morning I can't bring myself to do it. No, I can't, diary please help me. I'm scared.

"Do you remember Mike? From grade five? I wish I'm brave like him. He doesn't have to put up with this life anymore. I bet he's at peace, without anyone evil to harm him anymore.

"Somehow, I wish I helped him. Maybe then things could have been different. I wouldn't be so alone anymore, maybe I would be happy. No, happiness doesn't exist. I don't remember smiling at all, it's too much of an effort to smile.

"I just want to belong in this world. I'm just a toy that they use for their own pleasure. Those people out there who just watch me suffer like this are cruel people. I wish they would be my voice, to tell them to stop.

"A little boy once asked me why I don't cut my bangs. I told him that I liked them covering my eyes. It helps block out some of the evil and threatening looks casted to me by the demons at my school.

"They're all evil, every single one of them. They watch me yet they don't help. They all complain that bullying is too much of an issue yet, they don't help. I can't take life anymore. No, I'm done. I'm done with this diary. I'll be gone one day, maybe I'll be with Mike.

"I hate life."