MY POV:

  School is only 4 blocks from my house, which I am eternally grateful for because that means I don’t have to ride the stinking school bus and get bullied more than I already do.

  Just as I entered the old three-story building, the bell rang. That was close! I hurried to my first class of the day.

  Hooray for science. I thought sarcastically, as I plopped down in my assigned seat at the back of the class. Stop Stop It by GOT7 drifted through the one earbud I left in, hidden underneath my hair so I could still hear the teacher if he happened to call on me. I prayed to God he wouldn’t. Quietly exhaling a tired sigh, I caught the attention of the queen bee of our high school, Elizabeth or Liz as she likes to be called. She sneered at me from her desk across the aisle. And so it begins. Kill me now.

  The lesson was so boring. Who cares about the life cycle of cicadas anyways? I felt my heavy eyelids attempting to close. Suddenly, my chair was kicked, startling me out of my fog. I looked around for the source.

  Jared. I should have known. The head jock who is actually more of a head jackass than anything. He was grinning from ear to ear like he had done something he was proud of. Elizabeth….excuse me, Liz...was hiding a giggle behind her hand. He sent her a flirty wink and she giggled some more. I tried to repress my gag reflex as my eyes rolled at the sight of their ridiculousness.

  Checking the time on my wristwatch, I was sorely disappointed to discover that it had only been one hour since I had arrived. Lovely. This day is just flying by. How much longer must I endure the cringyness of the mating rituals of cicadas and high school hotheads? Just as I was about to give up hope, the teacher finally dismissed us and I was set free!

  Next class should be better. English Lit is one of my favorites; being a total bookworm. We’ve been studying Romeo and Juliet. Cliché, I know. But I never get tired of it. I’m a hopeless romantic at heart.

  Also...my crush is in this class. His name is Micah. He’s five foot ten, has dark brown hair and crystal blue eyes and a smile that will make you weak in the knees, and the best part is he doesn’t even know I exist. I’m so shy I haven’t even gotten the courage to go talk to him even though we’ve had the same classes since freshman year. Pathetic, aren’t I? All I do is sit in class, fantasizing over him playing the part of Romeo. But when I imagine myself as Juliet, it’s a bit like imagining a giraffe in a clown costume. Humorous, and totally implausible.

  I set my books down on my desk and slid into my seat, peeking a glance sideways in Micah’s direction. He was chatting with some of his friends in the corner. He looks so handsome today. I didn’t realize I was staring until someone shoved my shoulder, shaking me out of my daydream. I noticed a hand holding a tissue out in front of me.

  “You’re drooling.” Katrina, one of Liz’s minions, condescendingly gazed down at me with a haughty smirk. “Give it up. A boring weirdo like you will never be with someone like Micah.”

  Whoever coined the phrase, sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me apparently never went to high school.

  Ignore her; play dumb. This is the best route for now. I told myself, just as class started.

  Even though English Lit is one of my favorite subjects, I found myself distracted during class. My head was propped up on my hands as I half listened, half daydreamed about Micah.

  Then my mind started rabbit-trailing onto the strange matter of the messed up belongings in my room. Picturing in my mind every move I made the prior night, I came to the definite conclusion that someone had been in my room. But who? And how? My bedroom is on the second floor. Someone would have to climb a really tall ladder just to reach my window. The whole idea of it baffled me.

  Before I knew it, class was over and everyone around me was packing their books to leave. I followed everyone out the door and headed for my locker. It was almost lunch time, my favorite subject of the day. The menu said there would be fried chicken and french fries today! My mouth watered just imagining it.

  As I shoved my books out of sight into my locker, my bully radar picked up on some girls walking down the hall. They saw me and smiled, not in a good way. As they got closer, they whispered to each other and laughed, turning in my direction.

  “So if Micah asked you out on a date what would it be like?” One of the girls called out. High-pitched snickering followed as they disappeared into the girls bathroom.

  Dang it. My secret crush wasn’t a secret anymore. I should have known I wouldn’t be able to keep something like that to myself.

  Just then Liz appeared. If she held her head any higher she would drown if it rained. I rolled my eyes and closed my locker, making my way to the cafeteria.

  “Hold up.” She called out to me.

  Oh no. This can’t be good.

  “So I hear you have a thing for Micah.” Her irritating voice was dripping with disdain. “Back off. He’s mine.” She said forcefully.

  That caught my attention. “Back off?” I wondered aloud. “You see me as a threat?”

  A bit flustered, she gaped at me. “No! Why would I see an ugly wallflower like you as a threat?” She looked me up and down, making me feel inferior.

  I felt about the size of a flea right now. If I was a flea, I would definitely bite her and then lay eggs in her hair. A chuckle escaped me as I imagined my revenge.

  “What are you laughing at?” She glared at me. “You think this is funny?”

  Shaking my head, I tried to back away quietly.

  “Oh no you don’t!” Liz lunged at me. Her angry fingers caught hold of my long wavy mane and yanked as hard as she could, bringing tears to my eyes.

  I flailed, hoping my arms would come in contact with something, anything as my eyes screwed shut in pain. I felt my hand collide with something but I wasn’t sure what it was. Then I heard shouting and felt arms pulling me backwards. And that’s how I ended up in detention.

  After picking up an ice pack for my sore head at the nurse’s office, I was instantly sent to the principal's office, where I was assigned 3 days worth of detention. But so was Liz. She always worked really hard to get A’s in school, so it felt rewarding to watch her squirm.

  “My dad’s gonna kill me…” She wrung her hands.

  “Should have thought of that before you got us in trouble.” I mumbled back.

  She hissed at me. “Shut up!”

  I never even got lunch. Perfect. I wasn’t that hungry anyway. My stomach growled, challenging my lie. I wish today was over.

  As I sat alone outside on the front steps during break, I thought about my life. My head throbbed. My self esteem had been shattered. My pride had been dragged through the mud. I was tired. Tired of being hated on. Tired of dealing with stupid people. Tired of being myself. So right then and there, I decided to skip school.