Even as Michelle and Ella stood up to me from various bullies in class, deep inside I felt an overbearing sense of hopelessness and emotional insecurity.
"Is this what school is all about? Bullies and rascals all in one roof?" I thought to myself.
While we were on our way to a mall to do some shopping, I asked Michelle and Ella if they experienced some harrowing experiences of their own.
Ella answered, "That time when my valuable ballet shoes went missing inside the classroom," and Michelle responded by saying,"I remembered when my makeup kit was clandestinely taken away from my bag."
Ella retold the story of how she lost her ballet shoes.
"I was just about to prepare for ballet class when something was missing from my bag. It was my ballet shoes. At the time, no one is sure if it was misplaced or somebody took it."
Ella continued on with the story as we walked inside the mall.
"I couldn't join ballet class without these shoes, so I remained in my school uniforms to seek them. It was not until later that afternoon when a schoolmate of mine found a missing pair of ballet shoes inside the dance room. Turns out it was my shoes that were misplaced somewhere after the previous day's class. My name was also written inside the sole."
"By that point, however, ballet class had begun, and I had no time to prepare," Ella added. "So I decided not to join practice for the day. Luckily for me, my ballet shoes showed no sign of wear and tear. They still fit snugly on my feet. And I was able to rejoin the ballet group the following day."
Michelle then recalled how her makeup kit was stolen.
"After basketball practice," Michelle said, her teeth clenched after each phrase."I changed back to my school uniform only to find out that I no longer had the kit inside my bag."
"It was only after we had started to pack up when a classmate of mine saw a seemingly hidden makeup kit beside his desk. That turned out to be my makeup kit; some brat took it away from me secretly. I reported this to the principal and promptly admonished the guy responsible for this incident."
We all had bad experiences. Not everyone is spared from a miserable period in their lives. For Michelle and Ella, those moments serve as a reminder that they must protect their valuables at all times and never leave them unattended.
But just as we wrapped up shopping, I suddenly had a haunting flashback sequence. Something popped into my memory, one that was just as bad as my initial day of school.
Back in first grade, I was forced to connect with a different group away from Michelle for a science project. As it turned out, the group featured a familiar face: That very same bully I came face to face with from day one.
I felt scared the moment I saw him. I tried to plead my teacher Alyssa into joining a different group, but she told me to stick with your own because all groups had an equal number of students.
And so I reluctantly joined in. Unfortunately, the fear in my eyes was palpable. I could not concentrate, and I simply lacked any interest in working with him because I felt insecure.
Michelle stepped in for a moment and provided some advice.
"Christine, you have no choice," Michelle said to me. "You must coexist with him whether you like or not, otherwise you get a failing grade for this project."
"But I'm scared," I told Michelle, after which she responded "Just get this over with. Don't worry about him. Just focus on the project, and you'll be fine."
In the end I ignored any noise and wound up finishing the science project in time. That project turned out to be a dinosaur poster painting for us to show. Surprisingly, that bully of mine was able to contribute to the said piece, much to my surprise.
But once science class ended, he once again showed his true colors. Upon leaving the classroom, the bully produced a sinister note on my table that wrote "See you after class."
Fast forward to class dismissal and I came face to face anew with the bully. He seized me and whispered savagely in my ear saying "We haven't forgotten you lad. Remember me and my buddies, you fat, near-sighted midget?"
Unfortunately for me, Michelle left school early because she felt sick. The teachers were busy with other matters, so I was all alone to deal with him.
Suffice to say, they had me cornered, tore off part of my uniform and pushed me around like a punching bag. They left me in ruins, crying and in obvious discomfort.
It was at that point when I suffered a horrible headache and collapsed on the floor unconscious. Michelle and Ella immediately called for help and rushed me to a nearby hospital.
While doctors took me to the emergency room, Ella told Michelle to call my mother Charissa and inform her about the incident.
As Charissa rushed her way to the hospital, Michelle and Ella sat down near the emergency room looking extremely worried. They both began crying, and as they awaited the diagnosis from the doctor, they anticipated the worst has yet to come.