I Saw The Beast
Walking into the classroom I could see that most of the students seemed to be completely uninterested in who I was or why I was here. "You can have a seat next to Jeremey in the back," she said pointing to a desk in the back right of the room. The room was larger then I expected, the room seemed to bend into a crescent shape with stair ascending upwards that lead to the student desk area. Everyone seemed to be preoccupied chatting among themselves to bother giving me a second glance, which I was thankful for the more I could fade into the background the better off for me. As I made my way up the stairs I could see the boy see was talking about though it was hard to get a good look at him, he laid with his head across the desk. I'm not sure if he was sleeping or just simple trying to escape from the ruckus the class was currently making, he was smaller in person then it seemed at first glance, thin is what I would say almost fragile like glass.
He looked as though a strong breeze would be enough to send him flying across the campus, his dark hair sprawled across the white marble of the desk top. I pulled out the chair and had a seat, as I sat down he raised his head and looked at me, his face eyes look red and swollen as if he'd spent the night crying himself to sleep. The sunken look on his face did not seem to belong to someone within the walls who should be enjoying a life of luxury away from the muck and grime of the outer city. It was a face I did not expect to see on someone with the walls, lifeless and helpers, then I noticed the split lip and the wrapped hand and now it seemed to all come together. Even here someone had to be at the bottom of the food chain.
"Quiet down!" The lady called from the desk below tabbing a stick trying to gather the attention of the students. "Welcome to History 101 where I was try to instill in you some measure of knowledge about how the world was and how it has become the dreadful place we have now, My name is Mrs. Woodland and if you are lucky enough you will hopefully only have to be with me one year." I'm sure that only applied to those whose parents were not "top-tier" and could line the pockets of the right person to make sure that even if they failed that their child would still by some "miracle" advance to the next grade.
"Well let's begin with attendance, I will be passing out bracelets to the class it will sync to your biometrics after you place it on your wrist, this is your lifeline here as this institution. This bracelet is how you will check in to each lesson, how you will use campus credits to pay for things like school lunches and for those who have read the student handbook should be aware of the curfew enforced by the school. The bracelet will allow the staff to check and make sure that all students are you in their designated dorms at the given curfew time."
My jaw nearly fell to the floor I had never even imagined that this place would be keeping track of the students whereabouts. She started going from student to student handing them small wristbands, as she handed them the bands she continued to explain how to use the check-in function. As she made her way to the desk where I was located her eyes shifted toward Jeremy but not once did she even begin to mention the bruises or the wrapped arm, she simply ignored it and explained how the bands worked and moved back to her desk. Jeremy did not seem fazed by her lack of concern, I took that as this was not the first time a student came to class bruised or beaten. I remembered what my father told me before coming here, keep my head down and ignore whatever I see. This was simply the art of survival, if the teachers were not worried about this then I would ignore what I saw and make sure I did not end up the one being beaten.
The end of first class came, with it the shuffling of students through the halls, and here I was following a group of kids who I overheard were headed to my next lesson. I tried to stay as far back from them as I could while keeping them within my sights so I was able to make it across the campus without getting lost. Luckily for me they seemed to be too engrossed in their own conversations to even realize I was shadowing them for a free escort to class. "Have you guys seen Aaron today?," someone had approached one of the boys I was shadowing. "You know he never was one to show up for first lessons, I'm sure he will be here for the next lesson", the boy replied. Who was Aaron??…. He could decide not to show up for first lesson on a whim?
As we reached what appeared to be the next lesson it became apparent that this Aaron was at the center of this clique. The boys I had been following all seem to be anticipating his arrival, as I made my way passed them and into the next classroom I could hear the one I found to be named Darius saying "Aaron said we can go in without him he's still getting dressed, apparently he just woke up." He seemed to be the makeshift leader in Aaron's absence, the tall athletic type with a ego to big for his small brain it seemed like. Marcus seemed to be the tiny joker of the bunch, making odd comments that I didn't seem to understand but apparently it was funny to them. While Andrew was the silent one, never really heard him speak more then three words in the time I was following them to get here, he seemed like an odd fit compared to the other two.
Well I guess I will get to see who this Aaron guys is, so I know who to avoid. If the company he kept was any indicator it was clear that the three boys I followed were not what you would call upstanding students, wearing the uniforms however they wish, tossing random objects at passer byers as they walked to class. I'm just glad they didn't seem to be on the bright side and realized I was trailing behind them. I walked into the classroom, it was identical to the previous one, crescent shape with a desk at the front for the teacher.
Seemed everyone was still not in class yet, since this class seemed to be less full then the other. I recognized a familiar head once again laid across the desk in the back. I made my way to the back of the classroom and sure enough it was Jeremy once again face first on the desk. " You should probably find somewhere else to sit," he finally spoke as I pulled the chair out. "Oh? He does have a voice, thought maybe you were a mute, but why do I need to find a new seat? Does someone seat here already?," he looked at me as if I had two heads as I sat down in the chair anyway. "Unless you want to end up being rejected by the class like I am you should really move and sit with someone else."
I had a feeling that was what was going on, from the way the class seemed to ignore him and the teacher did not mention the bruises or busted lip. Everyone seemed to already know each other, maybe from previous years of school but they seemed to all just simply ignore his existence all together. Now I had confirmed my suspicions but it had nothing to do with me, if being in this seat would allow me to get through this year without being noticed or drawing attention to myself. Though I feel bad for him I wasn't about to jump into whatever mess he got himself, my goal is to simply survive gain the skills I need to finally leave this place and never look back.
The class seemed to go quiet suddenly it went from constant chatter from this group and that group, to being able to hear even the wood in the teachers old desk breathe. I looked over to where Jeremy was sitting and I could see him shaking, clenching his fist so tight I thought he might draw blood from it. His eyes trailed down and he seemed to almost sink into himself, growing smaller by the second.
"Hey Aaron, you finally made it to class", I heard someone shout from behind I turned toward the front of the class and there I saw him. Stood at the door was a tall guy, had to be at least six feet tall with his blond hair slicked back and his backpack flung on the one shoulder. He seemed to even carry a scent that screamed arrogance yet still he seemed to have the charm to sway even the teachers to look at him.
"Hey Jeremy, who is this Aaron guy and why is everyone so excited to see him?", I called out to him, it seemed to wake him from his stupor at least long enough for him to say just one thing to me.
"A beast….."