Everybody Leaves

Chapter 1

Chapter 1: Ordinary Ones

The school bell rings. Such a vexing sound; functioning by timer and every 50 minutes sending micro vibrations through the air that reach our ears and within the milliseconds that it transfers to our brains, we subconsciously recognize that very noise as the signal for next period.

Yes, a vexing sound indeed.

Groups of random teenagers pile out of the classrooms and head to their lockers to start the process over, and in another 50 minutes they'll be doing the same.

Everything is normal as high school goes. Girls gossiping, guys being idiots, but they all seem to subconsciously push more into the wall as a lanky boy enters their midst.

And it looks near slow motion, as the teen walks into the hall, staring at the ground, and everyone is looking at him, as if he's committed some type of horrific act.

One girl doesn't seem to notice his presence, and veers into the center of the hall just to be roughly pulled back.

"Watch out!" The boy that pulled her whispered. "It's the Freak." The girl looked in his direction and grimaced, as if he were repulsive.

Five hundred fifty-four students in that school. Five hundred fifty-three of them are ordinary. One is not. Guess which one of them they all decide to go against.

Ninety-eight and six tenths percent of school is a complete waste of time. For the non-ordinary person, the other two and four tenths percent is filled with chemistry and proving the teachers wrong.

And now, the non-ordinary boy, the freak, he's there, at that 2.4% that is filled with both those things.

And now the teacher is speaking but he can't listen, because his brother just texted him and told him their father has died and all he wants to do is leave, but he won't. He'll just sit there, like everyone else, and no one will look at him or speak to him like always.

Life is good.

The boy walks out of class and back to his locker, just as was predicted. And it's a clock, it really is. Once it's done with the day it starts over and does the same exact thing. Day by day, minute by minute, second by second, it's a never-ending routine, and it's funny how no one ever seems to notice how terribly boring it all is.

He is retrieving his gym clothes and he can feel a presence behind him, and when he goes to close his locker, they're there. The ordinary ones, the ones that for some reason decide that they need to bring him pain, are there, and their pushing him into the lockers and are to much in his personal space then what seems necessary.

"Oi, Freak," is what they tell him. "What did I tell you about coming in this hallway?"

The Freak doesn't say anything, and the other ordinary people are laughing.

"Eh, Joseph," one of them says, "I think we ota teach him a lessen."

"I think your right." He looks around. The hall is empty. He strikes.

Ah, yes. Life is good.