Caged Animals (A Story of Bullying)

*Chapter Six*

PLEASE READ: This chapter was not made up. This is based on a real-life situation that occurred at one of our local high schools. Evening's experience in this chapter IS reality. Think of how sad that is as you read...please. It's not good. At ALL.

Stay strong, all of you. I love you!

"When people hurt you over and over, think of them like sand paper. They may scratch and hurt you a bit, but in the end, you end up polished and they end up useless.”  ~Chris Colfer 

<><><>

*Chapter Six*

I gulped nervously, my eyes involuntarily flickering from face to face, examining the undeniable fire in their eyes and the tense, defensive positions of their bodies. My tongue stuck to the top of my desiccated mouth, my throat yearning for a drink. But my feet were planted firmly on the ground, unmoving; the rest of my limbs were frozen with fear.

            “I-I-I’m s-sorry, I just…j-just, um…” I stammered, subconsciously speaking. My mouth moved before my brain thought it through. My gaze shot to Tyler’s expression as it grew more violent at each syllable. The fire in his hazel irises burned ever brighter, his lips curling into a sneer similar to that of a rabid dog’s. My breathing sped, my bottom jaw quivering uncontrollably. I tried to will myself to run, move, anything, but my body remained unforgivingly motionless, terror overwhelming every other sensible thought.

            “Sorry doesn’t cut it, whore,” Brittany scoffed from Tatiana’s side. I bit my lip, fighting against the onslaught of tears.

            The malicious crowd of my torturers took one forceful step forward, as if by unspoken agreement. Still, my feet refused to move, remaining planted in the rock-hard soil. In my peripheral view, I saw a few eyes fluttering uncomfortably from us to the ground and back, but the majority kept their gaze trained on our showdown, their lips turned up as if they were observing a sports tournament instead of unneeded cruelty. I still couldn’t find William in the gathering crowd.

            “All of those ‘stories,’” Tatiana said bitterly, making rash air quotes with her fingers, “are horrible lies! You lying, worthless bitch!” I blinked as if flinching at her words.

            “You’re gonna pay,” Tyler growled from beside me, his gritted teeth mutating his words. “Oh, you’re gonna effing pay!”

            With that statement, it seemed as if time slowed and sped up simultaneously, the seconds ticking away in the background. Tyler’s iron fist flew through the air, connecting with my jaw in moments, the brittle crack of the bone echoing in my brain. A sharp pain shot through my mouth, a light shriek escaping my vocal cords as my head pitched back, creating dizzying whiplash as it righted itself. Within a single moment, I was on the ground, someone’s leg having connected with the back of my locked knees. That joint suddenly ached, a throbbing sensation adding to the facial pain. My head cracked against the cement; I could feel the rip in my skull, the warm blood quietly soaking into my hair, unprotected by the hoodie. Black spots danced in front of my eyes.

            After those two actions, I could no longer tell who was doing what. The world swam in front of me; I was barely aware of what was occurring. Someone was slapping me across the face, another brutally attacking my nose. My arms and legs were pinned as feet and hands connected with my limbs. My hair was being ruthlessly yanked, some strands falling into the stranger’s nonexistent care. The only thing I was entirely aware of was the hurt, the pain, that seemed to vibrate through every fiber of my being. No other emotion overtook my mind as the beating continued, my silence evidently angering them even more. No screams parted my lips, not even a minute squeal. The pain handicapped my lungs to the point where no sound could escape. I could hardly breathe as a fist repeatedly met my abdomen.  In the midst of it all, my mother’s earrings were ripped out of my protective grip, my earlobes bleeding from the harm. There was nothing I could do to get them back.