He Left Sparkles in his Wake

Wishing I had Your Confidence

The following days and weeks were debatably better; no one had thrown a fruit at him, he hadn't cried, and it was primarily verbal bullying. A few taller and stronger guys had pushed him into lockers or punched his shoulder, both hard enough to bruise, but for the most part it was only verbal but that hurt just as bad as the physical. All the while, Mr. Wecht had never mentioned the Flower Festival. Richard only knew about it because the boys behind him talked about how they were going to get laid because of it. Richard continued to write and draw, but he couldn't get Sparkles-McGee out of his head. He was just so...captivating. He had only seen this exquisite creature once, yet he was the only thing Richard could think about. He happened to be staring out the window when Mr. Glitter walked out of Bluebell to attend the festival.

"Oh Mai God! He is so attractive and I've only seen him for a total of like, twelve seconds. God I'm gay." Richard screamed into his panda. That was it. He decided to go to the Flower Festival just for a little bit to see if he could find this living dream....and to get some actual food. Protein bars, granola bars, and instant noodles are only appetizing for so long after eating them for weeks straight. Still in his Asagao uniform, Richard grabbed his wallet, which thankfully had never been stolen while he was being bullied, and ran down the stairs. The festival was not his thing. Too many people in one place, too cramped, too many sights and smells. After twenty minutes of not finding the Glittery God, he gave up and bought a salad and a surprisingly large yet cheep plushie of a MagiKoi from Nokemon. Richard returned to Bluebell; as he walked up the stair, the sent of earth and ham beckoned him to the second level. He shook his head and jogged up the stairs to his room and enjoyed his salad with his new friend. The next day was Saturday, so Richard decided to go walk to that open space again to clear his mind. He decided to wear a tee-shirt with his uniform slacks and his jacket. Just in case, he buttoned his jacket all the way up so his shirt could not be read. He left the dorm with a smile and excitedly awaited the view from the tree. He was too deep in his thoughts to hear the footsteps behind him until it was too late.

"Hey faggot!" One of the boys shouted as Richard was encircled by many taller males. They continued to call names nearly at the top of their lungs while Richard tried to keep his body from shaking. He just wanted it to be over...a girl with pink hair walked over and tapped one of the boys on the shoulder.

"What the hell do you want, girl?" He asked aggressively.

"No,no,no,no! What are you doing? I'll be fine; save yourself." Richard insisted under his breath. The girl set her books on the ground with a smile before reeling back and punching the boy square in the jaw. Richard was amazed as the boy fell over; his friends looked thoroughly upset. She continued to smile as a line of six males appeared behind her. Did one of them have guns?!

"Hey! Get away from her!" They yelled. Richard was frozen in place until the girl snagged his hand and pulled him away from it all.

"Wh-where are you taking me?" He asked, suddenly concerned that she planned on bullying him physically.

"My safe-haven. Don't worry, you'll like it there! And I promise I won't hurt you!" She called back as they neared the tree Richard had been seeking. The girl leaned against it while Richard stood planted in his spot. She extended her hand to him with a grin.

"Name's Cake, by the way!" Cake exclaimed happily with bright red cheeks from running. Richard looked at her, waiting for her to trick him, but took her hand in his and shook it.

"It's Richard..." He trailed off nervously. Cake slid down the tree to the soft looking grass.

"You a first year? I've never seen you around. Though, I'm new too so I don't really know, haha.." She trailed off as well.