I shifted through the walls, bloody tears sliding down my face and dripping off my chin as I navigated the hallway. Eventually, I found the perfect body, a student on the brink of death, but not fully.
Immediately after entering his body, I felt the wounds close together. 'This is it, if society is what killed Oliver, then I will kill society,' I decided, my eyes burning bright as the body shut down.
*4 Weeks later, two days after the first speech.*
"My name, Is Alan Andrews. Most of you know me from my other speech, but if you don't, then you can be damn sure to remember it this time. I came to this stage because I'm sick of how this country handles the shooting situation, how the schools ignore students' pleas, and how you all have led to my only friend being killed.
There were threats sent to that very school, warnings sent, and even a shooter himself begged them to cancel school instead. One of the very few good teachers left in this country has died, all because you're more focused on a rating.
Does being an A-School matter when your students have died? I have a mountain of paperwork that I salvaged from the incident. Do you know what's on it? Over 100 reports of bullying, but the Dean and Counselor marked it off as, 'kids being kids.' What the fuck is wrong with you?
Let me ask you something, what would you prefer? Would you rather the last time you talk to your child be an argument, or would you rather have the chance to make up with them? Thanks to Oliver, those who were left alive could escape, yet you don't hail him as a hero.
Instead, you mock the students who chose to do it, ignoring what led to it. If you had done your fucking job as adults in the first place, do you think he would have died? If the school had told the police ahead of time, do you think anyone would have died?
You mock and destroy the legacy and the families of those who participated in the vile act, but the school's legacy remains the same. Let me tell you, from one crazy son of a bitch to a whole country of them, if you seriously think it's only the students who are in the wrong, you shouldn't even be alive. You worthless pieces of shit.
Sure, some of them did it for fun, but some did it because the thrill of taking lives captivated their hearts. But what about those who were forced into it, like Ethan? What about the constant cases of sexual harassment, did that not raise flags? What Jess did was wrong, she tortured and desecrated the body of a young boy, but if she had only killed those who hurt her, you can be damn sure I'd be on her side.
Craig, murdered only those who hurt him, and never went past that, do you know what happened to him? His bullies skinned his cat alive and hung it in front of his house, they drowned him five times in the school toilets, they shoved firecrackers into his throat and tried to make him swallow them, yet the school never stepped up, and the police did the same fucking thing.
If I was in that situation, I'd have killed them all too, nothing more. I'm on his side, but above all, I'm on the side of Humanity, I'm on the side of the future of this country. Other shooters, I'm not fully sure myself, but you can.
Reporters! Parents! Students! Leaders from around the world, I make this call to you! In Humanity's darkest hour, Oliver stood up for all of us! Yet what did you do? You ran like cowards and kept important information on the down low just to protect yourselves! You mock and tarnish the reputation of the families of those who committed the heinous act!
My one friend, the one man who stood up to everyone and put an end to it, you ignore! If you ask me, not a damn one of you is any better than the students who participated in the murder of over 1,341 students! The deaths, they're on your hands, you filthy pieces of shit.
I make this final call to you, focus on it! Stop ignoring those who reach out for help, stop assuming it's for attention, and take action first, before this ever repeats itself. As I stand on this stage, fake shooting threats are spreading throughout the country, citizens think it's funny to threaten lives.
Yet, you know what else is going on? Schools are still keeping the information secret, they're still not telling the students, parents, or even the police. As a result, students are still dying left and right! I'm not here to make a threat, I'm making a promise, if you continue down this path, more people will die.
So, a final question, leaders and citizens alike. What's more important? Is it some school rating, or is it lives? How many of us must die, before you step up and fucking do something? That's all."
As I wrapped up my speech, I felt a cold, shadowy hand grip my shoulder. The camera lights blinded me, but I knew the comforting feel, the touch of a lost spirit.
Reporters swarmed to my side, pushing each other over, all for a chance to talk to me. Whether I was in the body of an 18-year-old, or whether I was the man I used to be, they still did it. "Mr. Andrews, can we get another comment? Do you have anything else to say after that?" A reporter questioned, but I glared at her, and she sunk back, her eyes wide.
An older gentleman dressed in a suit approached me, reached out his hand, and shook mine. "Thank you, for honoring my son," He spoke, his voice gentle, yet tears kept in his eyes. I only nodded and continued walking.
'This isn't the path Oliver would prefer, but I'll be damned if anyone else I care about gets hurt,' I thought to myself, my eyes burning bright as I kept moving forward. The shadowy hand patted my head before a warm light shined from above. "Goodbye, Oli."
I slumped over, my body slamming into a trashcan, I knew my hold would only last on the body for so long, but this was still shorter than I expected. "I know this shitty feeling," I commented aloud, feeling a cold creeping over my bones.
This was the same feeling I first experienced before being transported to Oliver, yet in a way, it was different. 'I hope I inspired some change because if I didn't, I'll come back. Someway, I will, so fuck all of you.'
*****
Hi! My name is Clue, the author of this novel. I hope you all enjoyed this story, for those of you who stuck it out, anyway. My purpose for writing this was to spread awareness about this problem and address major issues in our society.
I want to give a special thanks to a student in the States for reaching out to me and helping me research shootings so I was able to write this. But, as a special request from them, I wanted to do something big.
My message to all of you is to not call in false reports, to properly spread awareness, and not only to address flaws but to see a change in how we handle our problems. Shootings are so normalized that adults don't turn their heads enough at a threat.
But, to the school, my friend mentioned, if you keep these threats hidden from students, parents, and the news, the only thing waiting at the end of your path is death. You must take proper measures, and not ignore threats, every threat has a layer of truth behind it. This is not a threat, it is a warning to take caution. Nothing good will come of what you're doing, so fix it before it's too late.
Until my next work, see you all next time!