How we lost the world

Chapter 9- now - Oliver

I know it's going to be my last day of school.

I can't stop thinking that it's pathetic.

It's the day when they throw out the cripple.

The thought brings hot tears of rage, but I choke them back.

I've lost so much dignity as it is. I don't want to start spouting tears too.

And yes, I know that I was a novelty for a while. I've been with this class since I was five, so I've made so many friends.

Everyone tried to do their best for me every day. Feeding me, lifting me from my wheelchair and finding a cushion for my head, making sure I could see the whiteboard.

But that's dwindled away. I'm not such a novelty anymore. Today I'm lying on the bare boards. Today I think I'll be going hungry again.

I'm trying to concentrate on the lesson – for all I know it's the last one I'll ever have.

But my mind drifts back to that day almost a year ago now when I went that step too far.

When I thought that I'd try to prick the bubble with a compass.

It wasn't that easy. That's when I should have stopped.

As I pushed with the compass point, the bubble's skin seemed to move with me. It was quite elastic and malleable.

And I couldn't puncture the skin. Not at first.

I held onto the bubble to make it easier to work with.

But the bubble grew hot. Bit by bit, and then all in a rush, it also lost its beautiful iridescent colours. It turned sort of a muddy grey.

And I wince to think that even then I didn't give up. I pushed the bubble onto one of my shelves, wedging it against the wall.

And with three or four more strong digs, I was through. I'd poked a hole in the bubble.

That's when the wailing started. Looking back, I wonder whether most of it was me.

I was awake, but not awake.

I was stunned, trying to fight off the sudden noise.

The noise was horrific. It sends shivers down my spine just thinking about it today. And I get that horrible burst of adrenalin in my stomach.

I've heard tall tales of people going grey overnight. Well, now I know what they're talking about.

The noise was unearthly. And it's so bad that much of this noise was coming from me.

It was as if the noise released emotions that I didn't even know existed. Not just fear, but dread, terror and quite frankly, the feeling that I was going to throw up and pee my pants. All at once.

It was a horrendous maelstrom of emotions.

Now when I look back on it, I have another take on the situation. Sure, the emotions were coming from me, but I think it was kind of transferred from the bee – and the other bees that started flooding my room.