The sky was late afternoon, setting the sunset below the mountains. In the high sky, the smiling sun rode down the mountain. A hot orange color covered the tall buildings, the crowded streets.
In a small alley in a hidden corner of the city, a group of teenage girls around 15, 16
were smoking electronic cigarettes, creating an uncomfortable, humid space. The oldest girl in the group, her hair dyed red, mercilessly stepped on the small girl who was cowering, trying to resist under the wet, fertile soil:
- How rude! I told you to try smoking a little, you don't even need it.
Then she bent down, used one hand to squeeze the girl's face and lifted it up. The corner of the girl's lips
had a tear, her cheeks were swollen and purple, and one side of her shirt was also torn. She curled her lips, her other hand held the medicine and slapped her face hard:
- Next time, try it like that! If you don't listen once, your face will be ruined once.
After hitting her a few more times, she seemed bored, stood up, brushed her hands, turned her head, and grinned at the two girls with flashy makeup behind her, her voice sour:
- You guys! Go!
The whole group of girls looked at the little girl with weak limbs lying on the ground with disdain, not caring at all, coldly leaving, and baring her teeth in warning: "If you tell your parents, you're dead to me". When the figure had disappeared from sight, the girl dared to move, struggling to sit up. Her hair was messy, her clothes were dirty. Only then did she dare to fold her arms and let out a heart-wrenching cry.
In the distance was a square student card with a picture of a pretty girl smiling gently, the corners of her eyes still raised a bit mischievously. Next to it was the name:
Do Ninh Vy
15 years old, the most innocent and brilliant age, the age that marked the most beautiful memories of one's life, Vy, an optimistic girl full of youthful vitality, was tainted by something called school violence.
The girl had never experienced this kind of thing, gradually shrinking herself into a corner.
Vy painfully used tears to soothe her own grievances. The things she longed for and resented kept throbbing in her chest. She also couldn't understand what she had done wrong to be bullied by those girls.
Because of high scores?
Because of their faces?
Or just because they want to bully others?
Thanks to their great "merits", her classmates all avoided her like the plague. It was the end of 9th grade but Vy still didn't have a friend to understand and share with. Although her achievements were still good, she had to endure torment every day.
It was ridiculous, she didn't dare tell anyone.
Vy put her hands on the ground, raised her head and looked at everything vaguely. On the soft lines of her
face were so many bruises, some places were even bleeding. This
face, Vy really couldn't remember how much damage it had suffered.
Dad left early and came home late, mom disappeared abroad, no one cared about
her.
Sometimes, Ninh Vy felt disgusted with this world. Even though she really wanted to denounce, Vy
couldn't get a single strand of faith. Everything was just buried deep in her chest, that's
all.
Thinking of this, dark memories suddenly flooded her mind. She remembered the time she had gathered all her courage to talk about this with her Literature teacher - her favorite teacher, in return she was given a smile, "Friends are just teasing each other, don't be so cautious and conservative." She remembered the time she wanted to talk to her father, but as soon as she opened her mouth, her father entered the room, slammed the door, and cursed and yelled. She remembered the fearful looks of her friends and the avoidance, making her helpless and hiding under a dry shell...
She had said it many times, right...
She had been very obedient, right...
So everything in the book was a lie, and the little girl didn't dare to trust anyone anymore...
Everyone would be like that, would leave her, and leave her alone
to endure...
"Pop" - Vy hurriedly escaped from the dark things, patting her head to wake up. Vy, don't think too much! She tried to do something to dry her tears and then go home.
Vy remembered the important homework that Ms. Tram had told her in the civics class. The teacher also said that whoever didn't do it would call their parents. She didn't want to call her parents, that would make her father angry. So she crawled to the place where her school bag had scattered books, arranged them, and took out paper and pens. Many times, the teacher had criticized Vy's books and notebooks for being very dirty, causing her to have to change her notebook cover every two or three days.
Vy took out a new mask and put it on, now she looked fine with her bangs reaching her eyes, only revealing her clear, black eyes.
She opened her notebook and read the question.
The question was: Write about your dream.
Dream?
It contained so many ambitions of youth.
But now, Vy only has one small wish.
The little girl struggled to hold the pen and scribbled in the red notebook, then put it aside and took out the blue notebook. This was her diary, but because she didn't want anyone to read it, she wrote it in a rough notebook. Wiping away the tears that were still lingering on her chin, she gritted her teeth and wrote:
"My dream is to be able to say what's in my heart once more."
After finishing writing, Vy felt an indescribable pain and disappointment in her heart, so she quickly crossed it out. After thinking for a while, she put her pen down and wrote again, and suddenly a strong wave of turmoil surged through her mind. She seemed to put all her heart and mind into the sentence, her handwriting pressed tightly onto the notebook:
"My dream is to have a friend."
As soon as she finished writing the last word, a bright light emitted from the notebook, forcing Vy to close her eyes. The notebook rustled, Vy's hair also flew in the strange wind. Her mind was in a daze, but her subconscious was very clear
about the desire to "have a friend".
A deep voice spoke from the top of her head, making her heart skip a beat:
- Hello, I'm Nghia, you called me, right?