Just Breathe

Part One - My nightmare came true...

I meet me friends in the hallway near our lockers I can see everyone staring at me, I can hear what their saying, all the whispers and rumors.

I'm Aiden Parker, I have brown hair and ocean blue eyes, I’m the quiet and now gay kid. This all started from a few days ago when I chose not to break up two of my best friends, Noah and Remi to help another friend, Oscar. See he's had the biggest crush on Remi for years and it's been obvious. When I originally came out to my friends they were all happy for me and they swore not to say anything and respect me and my decision. Oscar on the other hand used this opportunity to blackmail me into breaking them up, but I didn't as Remi was finally happy with a guy who was actually worth her time. When I told him no that's when he snapped at me, he then chose to expose me using social media the fastest way for gossip to travel.

"Hey, I didn't think you were coming?" Jordyn asked, she was one of my few friends I have left now, she had a septum piercing which matched her black hair, often kept at shoulder length. Remi and Noah came over and helped hide me a little by fully surrounding me, they knew how bad my anxiety can get. Breathe, I kept telling myself, Just breathe it'll all go away soon enough. I look to Jordyn and give her a half smile as im not feeling the best.

"I didn't want to it was a matter of force." I reply and I actually recall my mum pulling me downstairs and making me chug coffee before getting in the car. As I open my locker i see a piece of paper that isn't normally there, must have been slid through the top, I open the folded piece of paper, Come to the boys toilet at 12 ill be waiting... I scrunched up the paper and shoved it back into my locker grabbing my books that I needed and went to my first class with Jordyn. English was first up, great, I think to myself, with all the homophobic jocks, just what I need to start my morning.

“I can’t believe that Oscar would do that, you trusted him and he blackmailed you just to try and get me.” Remi said, I just sighed, it was my fault not his. We were sitting at our little table near the oval which was also the place where the homophobic jocks sat, I looked at the time it was 11:30 I wonder if whoever left me that note will be waiting for me, I wonder why tho. I look over to see Connor looking at me, I immediately look away, under the table I start to do what I normally do when my anxiety gets bad, I pinch myself multiple times on my wrist.

“As soon as I said anything to you guys it was going to start coming out sooner or later.” I paused realizing I was doing it again, the pinching. “It’ll pass over eventually just give it time.” I say pretty much lying to myself, it’ll never go away, the anxiety, the fear, the rumors and most of all the judgement from everyone around me. I notice Connor walking into the hallway with Naomi, I can hear them talking and then she storms away and towards the cheer leading group. She sits with her best friend Khloe, she had blonde hair and blue eyes, her and Naomi could’ve been twins if Naomi didn’t have brown hair.

“Let’s head to the lockers and prepare for next lesson.” Jordyn suggested as she looked at the time, her and Remi went to the girls toilets, while Noah went and spoke to one of his teachers outside. I walked into the hallway near the lockers alone, as I turned the corner I saw Oscar and his friends, I was about to turn away when large footsteps got louder and louder, suddenly I was pushed against the wall and I was getting bashed, I got a few hits but they were nothing compared to the hits I was getting. I slid down the wall as they all ran away leaving Oscar laughing, he ran after them as he saw my bloody face. I looked up to see Connor and his friends all standing there, clearly they had all just walked in, I noticed that the bell had gone and majority of the school had seen me. I grabbed my bag and walked out the door, I could hear my friends calling after me and the teachers too. I kept walking, I walked away, not sure where I was actually going.

I went home and mum noticed my face, I was trying to escape to my room without her noticing.

“Aiden, what the hell happened.” She dragged me to the kitchen, I sat at one of the chairs at the island and she cleaned my face. There were bruises all over me, I ached, there was a cut on my face and my cheek was a little swollen, I also had a blood nose which didn’t last long.

“Just some kids at school, friends of Oscars.” I was trying to keep the details to a minimum I wanted to get to my room as quick as possible.

“Oscar was never truly your friend I’m sorry he did that to you.” My mum was always trying to support me as best as she could at home, as she knew what school was like. “No trouble from the homophobic jocks?” I shook my head, my family was surprising ok with he fact I was gay, dad was more caring than I expected but he’s never around much as he is now a 6 hour drive away from us, and the only reason he moved was for work. As soon as mum was finished I went up to my room and laid on my bed. I didn’t plan on eating dinner, i just wanted to go to sleep and forget about today’s events.