Talking To Other Victims

While Sunny tries to help the other bully victims, I just stand there, not knowing what to say. I almost feel like I should chase after the bullies and fight them or what they did. But after seeing who these students are, I’m more interested in knowing what happened. You know, maybe I could get some information that could help me deal with them, or we could just team up to beat their asses. I’m still not confident enough to talk to them, and since Sunny is already helping them stand up, I just let her talk for me.

—Are you guys okay? What happened?—

Sunny seems more worried about her friend, who I do recognize, but I’ve never really talked to before. The other student is another unpopular guy, just like me, but who does have more of the nerd characteristics, so I get why he would be bullied. Sunny also doesn’t pay much attention to him, even though she does help him, which must hurt. But because Sunny is too occupied talking to her friend, I decide to ask about him.

—Hey, dude, did they punch you or push you around?—

—Yea, I was just talking and they just shoved me from behind—

I can immediately relate with this guy. But he sounds more terrified of the bullies than I am. I’ve gotten to the point that I only despise them. I do get anxious when my bullies are around, but I don’t really fear them, I just want them to stop bothering me. I could be lying, but this guy is definitely afraid of the bullies, and it shows. He is holding his head, like he also hit it on a locker like me. But as I try to continue asking him for information, Sunny and her friend join the conversation, with Sunny being the one who always takes control of the situation to prevent further turmoil.

—Andrew, don’t do anything stupid just yet. Let’s hear what Penny has to say—

Oh right, I remember that name. Penny has been a long time friend of Sunny, and while she doesn’t know Sunny for as long as I have, I think she has grown closer to her than I have recently. I think she might turn into Sunny’s new best friend, but I don’t really have a problem with that. My first impression of her was that she is a really cute girl, and I still think the same. It actually distracts me a little when she starts to talk. However, I try to only listen to what Penny has to say. I’ll get to talk to her later, I’m sure.

—T-they just walked by and shoved Tyler for no reason. I tried to help him, but then they started attacking me. I don’t know why…—

It sounds horrible that a girl as innocent as Penny would get bullied too, and seemingly just because he helped someone else getting bullied. It makes me think that my bullies would hit Sunny too if she got in the way. That’s mainly why I don’t want her involving herself in this. But I think Vincent really wants to have sex with her, so I doubt she would ever hit her. That just shows you how these bullies think. Although, it still doesn’t make sense why they bully Penny. I can see them wanting to have sex with her, or at least I can see myself doing it. I mean, she is cute and all, so it would make sense. Anyways, Sunny is just as surprised as me, but since Penny is a very close friend of hers, she gets all angry again.

—How dare they do that?? I’ll make them pay!!—

I think it’s funny to see Sunny getting that upset about someone else. Usually, she only gets worried with me, but that’s probably because I don’t talk to her when she hangs out with other people. I’m sure she cares this much about all of her friends. But knowing that she won’t be able to stand up against the bullies, because they would probably just try to flirt with them, I step in to give my point of view.

—I don’t think it’s worth it. You know how those guys are, they do everything they want. The worst part is that everyone lets them get away with it, not even teachers do anything about it. So I doubt even calling the principal will help—

Both Sunny and her friend frown in disappointment, probably because they know that what I’m saying is true. The other guy just nods, which tells me he has also come to this conclusion. But suddenly, Penny gains some interest in me for some reason, and she starts questioning me about the bullies.

—Wait, are you also bullied by those guys?—

—Yep, they suck. I hate how it’s pretty much impossible to argue with them…—

—I know, they are so mean and for no reason whatsoever—

—I think I know why they do it. They just like the feeling of power and being able to harass everyone without repercussions…—

I’m definitely not being very optimistic about this situation, but I want to let Penny know about what I’ve gone through. But just seeing her expression of distress, I realize that it’s better to show a bit of hope. I don’t really know what I could do to fight the bullies, but if a cute girl like her is being bullied, then I must do something. It’s not only for her, it’s for me and all of the other bullying victims, but mainly for her...

—But don’t worry, I have something in mind to make them pay…—

—You do? What is it?—

—Well, I can’t say it now, it’s a bit of a secret. But I’m sure that if we work together, we can make them regret everything they have done to us—

Both Penny and the other guy get excited, even cheering a little. I smile to see them so happy at the idea of taking **** on our bullies. But as I look at the side, I see Sunny staring at me. She is giving me a bit of a playful smile, like she knows what I’m up to. But I think she is just trying to mock me for giving some hope to her friend, probably because we both know that the chances of fighting against the bullies are very low. I mean, we could definitely try, but we would probably fail. So to not give Penny a false sense of hope, I try to explain myself a bit further.

—I do think we would need a bit of time to form a plan, but I believe we could do this—

—Really? That sounds great!—

I already love Penny’s excitement, even if she is being a bit naïve. That innocence might be useful in the future, I don’t know. But now that I gave a more realistic perspective to this whole situation, there’s not much I can do. The bell rings, and even though I didn’t get to fight my bullies, I think I did a lot this recess. I met other people like me, or at least people who are going through the same as me, and it feels really good. Sunny also shows her support with her bright smile, but that’s to be expected by now. But what is not something I was expecting is Penny handing me a piece of paper with what seems to be a phone number written on it.

—Here, if you have an idea, let me know. I want to see those bullies being taught a lesson—

It’s very rare for girls to give me their phone numbers. Actually, it has never happened before, except for Sunny, but she didn’t even give it to me, she just found out about my number and texted me out of nowhere. But as weird as it is to get Penny’s phone number, I’m actually quite happy for it, although I think she only did it so we can plan our **** against our bullies. Something I assume when she shows a lot of determination with a fierce expression, which does show how much she hates our bullies, but also looks adorable because she can’t be intimidating, even if her life depended on it.

But after being caught off guard when she gave me her phone number, something I wasn’t even planning to do, I remember that I have to go to class again, and what those classes are. I realize that I have to make another choice, after already changing my plans a little bit. Next up are English class and Spanish class, which are both equally difficult for me. I’m usually pretty good at these classes, even though I still didn’t go to them in the past few months. But if I remember correctly, these two classes are heavily different, not only because of the language, but because of the teachers. Both female teachers are like the complete opposite of each other, and while I do have high chances of passing each of these classes, I feel like one of them will be much more stressful than the other, which is…