Limited

When he finally reached school, Kordell was the last to leave the bus. He hadn't been paying attention, so Dave honked the horn a few times. On the fourth time, Kordell jumped to his feet and dragged his things along beside him. He wanted to say, "thank you," but that would have left him with one word, so he remained silent. I might as well say something. What's the point of having words if I don't use them?... But what can I say with only three words? Kordell pondered, as he sauntered out of the bus, practically walking into a pole. But he decided that he was only going to use them in an absolute emergency.

Kordell hadn't spoken a single word the whole time he was at school; he almost came close quite a few times but stopped himself before he could go any further. He really wished he knew sign language, but he didn't see any point in learning it before.

As he went to his classes and coasted the halls, he could hear people talking about him. He could sense their relief to receive a break from all his bragging and felt horrible for the way he treated those with fewer words. Kordell also started noticing things he hadn't cared to pay attention to before, like how Paisleigh's white shoes had tiny skid marks on them.