Lexi collided into the locker, and she slid against it, falling to the floor. She bowed her head, in shame, and she ran her tongue over her lip, tasting the salty taste of blood. The taste she knew so well.
She looked up, seeing through the think curtain of blonde frizzy hair at the laughing students who had shoved her against the lockers. They were walking away, without a second glance, and she swallowed, standing up, with wobbling legs, using the locker for support.
She stumbled towards the janitor's closet, her own safe haven inside of a mortal Hell.
She opened the door, and stepped in, closing the door behind her, and her eyes ran around the walls of the room, with the various cleaning goods, that were hardly ever used.
She slid into a position against the wall, her head in her hands, and she finally let out a sob.
Today's attack had been worse then the others, it was unexpected, she had no warning.
Positioning herself, she slid off the skirt of her uniform, leaving her in shorts.She lifted her shirt, to see the mass of bruised blue and cursed purple. Today, she had hit the lockers, with the right side of her hip, and she slowly traced it with two fingers.
Lexi frowned, already forming the plan in her mind to tell her parents, if they noticed, the scrapes on her legs. She had fallen in Health? No, that had been used too many times.
Lexi would figure out something, she always did. It scared her how easily she could lie.
Lexi looked around, and took in a shaky breath.
It was okay, she was going to be okay, she was going to walk out in a while, and everything would be okay.
She stood up again, her knees almost buckling, but she walked out of the closet, and the drum of student activity pulsed louder in her ears.
Lockers slamming, laughter, talking, yelling, shouting, flirting, getting out books and dropping them.
Lexi knew this sound, like everyone else at this school. It terrified her.
She headed down the hallway, her hands itching to pull up the hood of the jacket she usually wore.
The jacket was black, it was forgettable, she could hide her eyes with the good of it, and when she wore it, she didn't have to look at anyone.
And it was perfect.
But Lexi headed to the school bathroom, to fix her cuts, to soothe at least a little of the pain.
A girl walked out, and she was smiling, she even held the door for Lexi, but Lexi ignored her and stepped inside. The girl gave her a confused look, a taken aback one. But that didn't matter.
The girl was just another pawn, just another Forgettable.
Everyone was at this school. That was how it was, and that's how it would always be.
Lexi stood over the sink in the bathroom, dabbing a towel under the water, then to her lip.
This was how she lived her life. Hiding, Running, Continuing.
This is how it had been for years, and it was still the same.
This was the present, but this was not her future. It would not be, she wouldn't let it.
Lexi knew that much, even if she didn't know what ran though the heads of the boys and the girls who tormented her.
She would never know.
Or so she thought.
