Fight Or Flight

Chapter 11 - Humanities

Chapter 11 - Humanities

Apart from Ed and myself, it seemed like the whole school had now taken against Layla. I thought the incident with Kelly Stone had been long forgotten, but strangely it was now used to attack her even worse than before.

Her talk in English had also left her at odds with both Mr Mason and most of the students in our English class. She was even more reluctant to speak during class and I felt the unease even when we were in our 'Away' group. I could also feel Adam's hesitancy to sit within our group, and he would often get into arguments with Mr Mason about the pointlessness of sitting with us.

Whenever Layla passed a certain group of students around the school, there were shouts of: "Murderer! Witch! Killer! Bitch!" These were the politest words used, all of them followed by words which referred to her sexuality. She was not just a murderer, she was a dyke, a lez, a slut, and somehow - don't even ask me how - a rapist.

No matter how many times the posters dotted around the school said, Brookvale Free School Says Zero Tolerance to Bullying, the reality was that it went on everywhere, in every classroom, in every year group. Kids bullied kids, teachers bullied kids, kids bullied teachers, and, for all I know, teachers bullied teachers. The anti-bullying posters that filled the corridors and classroom around our school, like all advertising, hid the real truth.

What happened to Layla was the real truth.

One afternoon, at the end of January, someone (guess who?) thought it would be a 'laugh' to pin a sign to Layla's back as she walked, unknowingly, down the corridor.

The sign said: DIG A DYKE!

I was walking up the corridor and saw a commotion ahead. Saw other students, both girls and boys, running past Layla and hitting her, slapping her across the head or punching her on the arm, or the back.

"Dig a dyke!" I heard voices shout, as they ran past her and hit her. "Kill the dyke!" somebody shouted.

I ran to her, tried to pull her away from the mob, now a line of grinning hyenas trailing behind us. I tried to get to the exit and get her out of the narrow corridor.

More people crowded around, though, and that chant went up again, almost like an incantation: "Kill the dyke! Kill the dyke!"

"Piss off, Jade," I said. "Just leave her alone."

"We all know why Kelly Stone died, you dyke. You tried to rape her you dirty bitch! You're evil, pure evil. You're a fucking witch!"

I looked at her but decided to say nothing else. She looked at me with snarling disgust. "Can't believe you're friends with a murderer, Sami," Jade said. "And a dyke. Starting to worry about you now, Sami. Hope Adam knows what he's got with you."

Layla pushed through the crowd, moved towards the fire exit door, pushed it open, and ran out of the school building. Everyone in the tight corridor cheered. They had their victory. Layla was on the run. By the look of fright on her face, I worried if she would ever return.

I watched her as she ran, heading out towards the playing field, in the direction of the brook.

I turned and followed her, ignoring the shouts from the mob behind me.

"Wait, Layla!" I called after her, but she kept on running across the playing fields, off towards the small forest at the end of the school perimeter.

I eventually caught her up, as she was climbing through a small hole cut in the fence that led to the brook. She had slowed down as she reached the fence, unsure, it appeared to me, whether or not to go beyond the school bounds.