Unlike the the close encounter with Ria this morning, the rest of the day played out like any other day in the week for me; a hopeless trudge through the worst that students and even teachers can dish out on me.
It was one thing for students to dislike me, but having to come to the fact that even Lockhart's teaching staff disliked me as well was a hard pill to swallow. It wasn't as though I was a bad student, I had always made sure to at least maintain a B- average for all of my classes. But because I wasn't considered to be Lockhart material, I was made out to be a target by the faculty to set an example for the purebreds.
"Good afternoon class, please raise your hand once I call your name," Mr. Oxden, our English teacher, had begun his roll call.
As he began to call out students' names and watched as silent hands flew up, he paused at one specific name on the list; I already knew what was coming.
"Hm, is LOSER here today?" He accentuated, making sure to pronounce it as 'loser' and not like 'low-zer' which I had many times corrected him for; privately of course.
He looked around, but I hadn't raised my hand yet.
"Is LOSER here? Counting once, twice,..." He ignored where I obviously was as he continued on this charade.
Some of the students began to snicker as they shot glances over to me, I could feel my cheeks grow hot from the attention.
"It looks like LOSER isn't here today, I'll be marking him tardy for that." He concluded, but before he continued on to the next student; I raised my hand.
"Oh my, is that LOSER raising his hand?" He asked as he adjusted his glasses at me.
"Class, could you please help? Is that Mr. Loser?" He asked, more than half of the class nodded in unison.
"Is that so, well, Mr. Loser, can you explain why you hadn't raised your hand earlier during your turn?" He asked as he relished watching me squirm in my chair.
"It's Lozer, not Loser." I half-heartedly tried to explain.
"What was that? It's Lozer? That's odd, strange even," He wrinkled his brow, feigning confusion.
"To think you hadn't taken time out of your oh-so-busy life to not let your own teacher know how to pronounce your name. My, my, my." He trailed off as he cleared his throat.
"But I did-"
"Jaque?" He spoke, ignoring my comment as he continued his roll call.
"I think, I think I have to use the restroom." I choked out, as I excused myself from the classroom; trying my best not to let the hot tears from coming out.
If there was one benefit from being disliked by them, it's that you're invisible once they're done with you.
---
Due to the prestige of the school, students were hardly found skipping class time in the halls; even for students like Eric Graves.
It was during this time that I felt safest when no one could see me as I meandered through the halls.
I used this time to go where I usually couldn't go, as the popular kids often times hogged it during lunchtime; the roof.
As I made my way up to the rooftop, I held my breath as I hovered my hand at the knob that led out into it; I heard something come from the other side.
"Why are you picking on him?" A girl's voice spoke, it sounded familiar.
"Why not? If he has a problem with it, he should just speak up for himself," A boy's voice spoke, I immediately recognized it; it was Eric's.
Crap, out of all people to catch during my sacred time, it was Eric having what was likely a tiff with one of the many girls he's got wrapped around his finger in the school. This comes with the territory as the star of the soccer team; something I would never relate to in a million lifetimes.
I should probably head back, whatever they were talking about wasn't worth the potential beating I'd catch if Eric would see me.
But just as I was about to leave, the familiar girl's voice spoke once more; this time, I had recognized it.
"I think you're being an asshole to Lee, if you don't stop I'll have to reconsider this," It was Ria, hearing her say my name is what made me know it was her.
My heart was pumping fast, why in the world was Ria talking about me and to Eric no less?
Gathering what little courage I had, I willed myself to stay at the door; I had to know more.
"Asshole? You think I'm an asshole? Why're you defending that fat pig so much?" Eric angrily raised his voice.
"Don't call him that!" Ria angrily shouted back.
"Kyaaa!"
Before I knew it, before my brain could beg my body to not do it, I turned the knob and raced out into the rooftop having overheard Ria scream.
But, I couldn't believe my eyes over what I saw.
It was Ria and Eric both passionately kissing. Eric was the first to notice my presence.
"What the fuck, what're you doing here Piggy?" He jeered at me as he let go of Ria's lips.
"L-Lee? Why're you here?" Ria having seen me hurried to let herself go of Eric as she brushed herself off; clearly embarrassed over having been caught.
"I-I-" I didn't know what to say, my heartbeat wasn't going any slower; rather it was reaching a record high as I felt lightheaded.
"I gotta go," I muttered aloud as I rushed to let myself back into the staircase, Eric had begun chasing me.
"Let him go, Eric! He doesn't know any better!" Ria cried, but Eric ignored her as he shouted at me.
"Run and you're dead, Piggy!" He shouted as he caught up in no time, grabbing me by the collar of my uniform.
I felt my windpipe constrict from the sudden pressure of Eric grabbing my collar. At this point, I didn't know whether or not he truly meant it, that he was really going to kill me. For people like him, killing nobodies like me was just bad press and a couple of hours of community service at the most. He had a future laid out for him, success at every turn as long as he played soccer; my death would only be a small hiccup for him in his journey.
"Can't oink now huh, Piggy!" He hissed at me as he tightened his pull on my collar, but I wasn't budging as I continued trying to escape.
They say, that when even the weakest animal is backed into a corner, they too can challenge the golden rule; that the strong shouldn't always rule over the weak.
And so, with the last of my strength and what little oxygen left in my brain, I shifted my weight and flew my head back into Eric's face. I felt his nose crunch under the weight of my head as I made contact.
But, that wasn't enough. It never was, who was I kidding?
"OW YOU FUCKING DUMBASS!" Eric screamed as instead of letting me go, he violently pushed me through the doorstep, letting my collar go as I stumbled over the edge of the staircase.
I can't believe I was going to die before graduating from this Eden of geniuses; or should I say, devils.
Trying to remember the day I had first transferred here was like picking at an old scab. The more I pick at it, the more it hurts; but sometimes pain is good, especially if you're trying to heal.
It was a cold Tuesday morning, Dad had dropped me off nearby at a local cafe to let me grab breakfast as he didn't have enough time to make me one; as he was running late to work.
"Try and make some friends, son. High school is an important time for a young man's life, it's where you'll build who you are for the rest of your life." He told me as he hugged me goodbye, he had picked up extra hours at the waste plant and looked ragged from the overwork.
"I will, don't worry." I lied to him as I waved goodbye.
With this exit, I went into the cafe. It had just barely opened at 7 AM and school wouldn't start until 8:30 AM; so I had a lot of time to relax.
As I entered, I was greeted by the barista at the front. It was a pretty middle-aged lady, she had on the cafe's apron and a messy bun tying up her brunette hair; she was probably mildly popular back when she attended high school.
"Good morning, may I take your order?" She said with a polite smile. But, I could tell what she was really thinking by the look in her eyes as she looked at me.
It was the same for everyone, the curt coldness in their pupils; a look of abject disgust.
"H-Hi, could I please have a black coffee and a plain bagel?" I asked her, trying my best to not be a bother.
"Will that be all?" She asked. I could feel that this was a loaded question, as if she was actually saying 'Really? Is that all you want?'.
"No, I'm okay, thank you," I replied quickly, I lowered my eyes as I gave her the money needed for the order.
I took a seat at the far end of the cafe and idly waited for the order to be done. But as I waited, the door's bell went off; indicating someone else had also come in.
I looked to see who it was and as I did, I felt my heart tighten like it had never done before.
It was a girl roughly my age, her hair was like blinding sunlight and her eyes were as blue as the morning sky. She was wearing my new school's uniform, a tan blazer with the emblem of Lockhart embroidered at its lapel.
"What a cute place, ah, good morning!" She bid the barista, she hadn't seen me yet; I was hoping she wouldn't.
"Good morning! My, you're such a pretty little thing!" The barista giggled, the schoolgirl's beauty was universal.
"Thank you! Haha" She let out a little laugh, and my heart felt like it jumped to my throat.
"May I take your order? I'm just finishing up this one right now," The barista said as she shot a glance in my direction, visibly annoyed that I had the gall to order first before her.
"Yes, I would like a black coffee and a plain bagel, please!" She asked, she had ordered the same thing as me; I was surprised someone like her would order something so dull.
"Will do, that will be $8" The barista asked as she set herself up at the register.
"Okay, hmm..." The girl began to rummage through her purse.
"That's weird, it looks like I left my wallet at home." She groaned.
The barista gave her an awkward smile hearing that she couldn't pay for the order.
"I'm sorry, but-"
"It's okay, I'll p-pay for it," I spoke up, surprising even myself as I interrupted the barista.
The girl hearing me speak, looked at me. Seeing her look at me made me feel as though I had climbed the highest mountain around; she was smiling.
"What? Really!? Thank you so much!" She joyfully said, clapping her hands excitedly.
"N-No problem," I told her as I awkwardly shuffled over to the register, handing the barista the exact change.
The barista said nothing as she took the money, but the look of disgust she had for me before waned a little.
As I was about to return to my table, I felt a tug at my blazer's cuff; it was the girl who had caught me.
"Excuse me, what's your name? If I'm not mistaken, this blazer you're wearing means you're also going to Lockhart, yes?" She innocently asked as she let go of my cuff; my throat felt like it was full of sand.
"L-Lee," I replied, I couldn't bear to look her in the eye or I'd lose all my nerve.
"Lee? What a nice name!" She cheerfully said.
"One black coffee and plain bagel ready." The barista spoke, placing the order down at the counter for either one of us to pick up.
"Ooh! My order's ready, it was nice of you to pay for it! Let's meet again at Lockhart, Lee!" the girl said as she gleefully grabbed the order and rushed out of the cafe.
The barista and I watched her leave, she then spoke up as the doors closed shut.
"That was your order," She said in an amusing tone.
"Oh," I replied.
I hadn't even gotten her name.
Why, why am I remembering this memory?
The cafe and the barista faded away like murky damp sand as I stood alone in this perpetual darkness.
Then, I saw them. It was Eric and Ria illuminated in the darkness.
Ria had her lips locked with Eric. She looked irritated, but happy as Eric kept her suspended by her back.
Eric looked like a gorilla as he kept her in his embrace, he was forcing his tongue into her mouth; she looked uncomfortable as he tried.
Then, they too dissipated like damp sand; I was alone in the dark once again.
Then, I felt a numbness creep from my forehead down my face. It was cold and wet; it smelled like iron.
It was blood, I was bleeding profusely from my scalp.
There was a faint scream in the distance and some muffled shouting. Then the blaring lights of an ambulance.
I could hear my father's voice begging to someone. He was desperate, but I could feel him losing hope.
Then, there was the slow beep of a machine; it was fading away like the ticking of a clock.
I was dying and didn't have much time left.
"What a tragedy," A voice spoke, I couldn't tell where it was coming from.
"W-What? Who are you?" I asked out to the abyss.
"Me? I'm unimportant, you, however... " It's voice trailed off.
"You have a larger role to play," It re-emerged, but this time, I heard it come from behind me.
As I turned around, the surrounding darkness was instantly replaced by what looked like an empty airplane terminal.
The last time I ever was in a terminal was when I was six. When my Mother abandoned me as she took her flight.
It's why I don't fly.
"What if pigs could fly?" The voice appeared again, but this time I could finally see who was speaking.
It was a man, no, a woman? It was a being whose face was constantly out of focus as it shifted into different people every time I blinked.
They were sitting at one of the benches for an unmarked flight, beckoning me to come to them.
"I don't understand what's going on, am I dead now?" I asked them, but they didn't respond; they were waiting for me to sit down.
I cautiously took a step forward and sat myself down next to them. I hated sitting next to anyone, as I always felt as though my fat would touch them; I had learned that lesson when I was young.
"Lee Lozer, seventeen years old, sole son of a waste technician and a deadbeat Mother." They spoke, at least they pronounced my last name right.
"You're currently at the crossroads of life, for many people, they may call this purgatory,"
"If I'm dying, just get it done with already. I don't care anymore," I spoke up, tired of the whole ordeal.
"Oh no no no," They wagged their finger.
"That isn't how it's done here, there's a way to this you see,"
"Your death wasn't supposed to happen, you were projected to 'expire' much, much later," They looked at their wrist, on it was a small simple watch; it didn't have any time-keeping hands however.
"So? I was killed by some genius, who cares if I die now and not later?" I retorted as I dug my hands into my pockets.
"Everything matters, even the seemingly meaningless and worthless; much like you."
"Thanks, that makes me feel much better." I snapped back at them.
"Now now, don't get frustrated. I didn't bring you here to bicker, but rather, to give you a-- what do the kids call it nowadays? A 'lucky break'."
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GOT IT