NEW KID

Chapter Two

Herbert White
Wednesday, 9th September, 1981

Herbert stood at the road intersection under the shade of a tree waiting for the school bus with a smile on his face.

Today was going to be his first day of twelfth grade, and his first day at Milford High school. The prospect of a new environment, new experiences and maybe new friends excited him, especially since he was finally rid of his former school, Crestmont High. He had a hard time there, the teachers hated him, he had no friends, his grades were poor and the principal was out to get him. But all of that was over now; this was a fresh start.

The sun shone bright and hot, its scorching heat penetrating even the shade. He had his backpack on, with his black hair combed back. He wore his best dress shirt, trousers, shoes, and tie. As his mother always said, 'First impression was everything', and he wanted to make a good first impression.

He stood under the shade for about ten minutes before the yellow school bus arrived at his stop. He happily got on, and the bus driver shut the door and carried on.

The bus had a central aisle and seats on either side of the aisle. Each row on either side of the aisle had a seating capacity of at least two.

Herbert walked down the aisle, searching for an empty seat, the bus was already almost full. He wore a half-smile, wanting to appear friendly and welcoming.

"What the fuck are you smiling at?", one of the kids called as Herbert walked past him.

"Nice tie, faggot!", another kid called.

"Who let the tax accountant on the bus?", another kid yelled from the back and the bus burst out laughing.

The name-calling stirred Herbert and his smile was gone now. The day was not going as he had imagined.

He saw an empty seat beside a girl, and as he strolled down the aisle toward the seat, the girl placed her bag on the seat and said, "Beat it, freak!"

"Nice glasses, fuck face!", another kid commented.

The attention he was attracting was making him uneasy.

"Nice shirt, fag! Does your sister know you stole her shirt?!" Another kid called as he walked past.

There! He saw another empty seat, beside a fat kid.

"Don't even think about", the kid spoke in retaliation as Herbert walked up to the seat.

Herbert kept walking down the aisle, and THUD! He tripped on a kid's foot and hit the floor hard, and his glasses slipped off a little. The whole bus erupted in laughter.

"Watch where you're going, fag!", the kid that tripped him commented.

He had had enough, Herbert rose from the floor immediately, set his glasses back properly and clenched his fists, ready for a fight.

"What's wrong with you?" He yelled.

"Fucking watch where you step, retard. These sneakers are new," the kid replied.

Bam! Herbert landed his right fist square on the kid's cheek.

"Uuuuuuuuuh!" the kids on the bus murmured.