The Bullied  

[Shizu]

"Augh . . . it's so hot . . . are they going to keep us here?"

"If I know the teacher is absent, I shouldn't have come to school. At least in the house, there's air-condition."

"It's blackout."

"We have generators."

"I told you we should open the window."

"It's going to be hotter if we open it."

"At least there's air."

"Agh! I can't stand it!" Leon shot to his feet and raced to the window. He was now on his sleeveless undershirt, but even that was soaked with sweat. He wasn't alone with his new get-up, as more than half of the boys were in their undersleeves.

Leon opened the window, and the hot air burst inside the room, eliciting another round of complaints.

"Agh! My eyes!" Leon burst out crying, rubbing his eyes and stumbling back.

"That's what you get for being so damn loud!"

"See, I told you it'll be hotter!"

"Close the fucking window!"

While the others were restless, and some had gone outside to escape the rising heat in the room, Shizu remained in her seat, unmoving and praying that Jennie and the others would leave her alone because of the heat.

But her prayers went unanswered like always when she felt a hard thud on her seat, and she flinched. Her heart sank to her stomach when she heard Jennie's voice near her ear.

"Go fetch us something cold to drink," Jennie ordered.

Shizu felt like mud was lodged in her throat, and when she spoke, she could barely hear her words. "I . . . I don't have the money."

Hilde snagged her hair, and Shizu's head was yanked to the side. A sharp, intense pain radiated from her scalp.

"What did you say?" Hilde asked, eyes narrowing.

Feeling trapped and humiliated, Shizu shrunk back into the comfort of her bag and shuddered. "I . . . I'll go now."

Hilde's tight face loosened, and she broke into a smile. "That's what I thought."

"I want strawberry milk. And bring some ice along with it," Kelly said. Her face was slick with sweat, and her makeup was starting to run. "God! Why is it so hot?!" Desperate to find some relief from the heat, she reached into her bag and grabbed her powder. She started to apply powder to her face, her neck, and her back, emptying it in an attempt to control the shine and sweat, trying to cool down and feel more comfortable.

However, seconds pass, and there was sweat on her face once more.

"Should we just ditch school and go to the mall?" Hilde no longer cared about appearances and opened a few buttons of her shirt, exposing the fake cleavage she often used as a weapon against men.

"Good idea," Jennie answered. She was faring well because of the portable fan around her neck, but it wasn't enough to keep the sweat out of her face. The room kept heating to the point that it was no longer comfortable.

Kelly shifted uneasily in her seat. "But . . . what if the teacher suddenly comes?"

Hilde rolled her eyes. "In this blackout? I doubt it. I wouldn't be surprised if the teachers themselves have already left first."

Jennie then noticed Shizu and spat, "What are you still doing here? Get going!"

Shizu felt the eyes of the other students on her, watching as she was belittled and made to feel small. At that moment, she wished that she could disappear or that someone would come to her rescue.

But it was unlikely to happen. She had suffered bullying for months now, and no one dared to help her. She tried to avoid Jennie and her gang whenever possible, but they always seemed to find her and make her life miserable.

As Shizu walked to the store on the ground floor to buy the drinks, she felt like she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. She wondered why Jennie and her friends were so mean to her and why they enjoyed making her suffer. She felt like she would never be able to escape from their torment and that she would be stuck in this endless cycle of abuse forever.

Shizu sniffed and wiped the tears in her eyes, not even bothered by the blistering heat that made her skin crawl. At that moment she didn't notice a huge figure and bumped into him.

Shizu stepped back and fell to the ground, butt first. "Agh . . . s-sorry," she said and fixed her glassed. As she looked up, she realized with a start that it was her teacher, Mr. Henry. But something was off about him.

Wasn't teacher Henry supposed to be in the hospital?

At first, Shizu couldn't quite put her finger on what was wrong. But as she looked closer, she saw that Mr. Henry's face was twisted into a terrifying grimace, and his eyes were clouded over as if in a daze. His skin looked like it was melting from the heat, and he seemed to be sweating profusely.

Suddenly, it dawned on Shizu that something was seriously wrong with her teacher. She could hear strange groaning noises coming from him, and his movements were jerky and uncoordinated.

Fear gripped her, and Shizu scuffled back away, couldn't even stand from the shaking of her legs.

Teacher Henry seemed like he didn't see her. He squished himself through the hallway and disappeared into a corner.

"What was that?"

Shizu heard the other students say as she pulled herself together.

"Isn't that Teacher Henry? Isn't he supposed to be in the Hospital?"

"He looked so . . . so . . ."

"Dead?"

"Worse than dead. He looked like a fat pig being skewered over a fire."

"Did you see his skin? They were full of blisters and popping. It's so gross."

Shizu quickly snatched her wallet from the floor and trotted towards the cafeteria. If Teacher Henry was here, then the class would surely resume, and she got to hurry if she wanted her attendance checked.

Shizu shot one last glance to where Teacher Henry had disappeared before she entered the mess hall. She stopped when she noticed something. Teacher Henry was going in the opposite direction from their room.

Wasn't he going to our class?