After what felt like hours; days; weeks, the pain subsided.  Its release on my body found me on the floor, struggling to simply breathe.  The sharp burning that pierced the results of their merciless blows left me half-conscious, unable to stand on my own; unable to let the realization spread through my mind.  I let my weight fall upon the wall behind me, sinking to the ground, the pain too unbearable to withstand any longer.  Pitching my dignity, I curled in on myself.  It took everything I had to simply endure.

I was alone, and he and the rest of them had each other.  They acted as each other's support, while barreling down on me; the pathetic one who had nobody.

"You think you're the best?  You think you're the only one that matters in this group?  What a ing punk, thinking that you can just come and make us all look like ing losers.  Did your son-of-a- mother teach you that you will always be the best?  Huh? Did she?!"

His crazed, rough growl made my bones turn to ice.  I could take whatever he said about me.  But he had no right to insult my mother, the one had supported me up until this point.  The one who had given up everything just to see me stand on stage where I was truly happiest.

"And did your son-of-a- mother raise you to beat up people out of jealousy?"  I gazed up at him through the hair that fell upon my face, allowing a mocking tone to color my voice.

"You dirty- motherer!  You think anyone would be ing crazy enough to be jealous of a bastard like you?!"  His eyes ignited in pure anger and hatred, making my body freeze up in anticipation of the coming pain.  I couldn't move.  I couldn't speak.  I couldn't protect myself against one of the many people that made my life absolutely miserable.

I felt blood make its way up my throat and seep down and out of my open grimace as he converged on me once again and punctuated each of his blows with an endless stream of profanities.  The jeers of the others filled my ears, creating a curtain of insults and mockery that wrapped around my existence and suffocated me.

All I had wanted was to chase my dreams.  All I had wanted was to pursue my passion.  I had simply wanted to become one of the stars that I had always looked up to and aspired to be, as if I actually had a chance.

Now, I was paying the price for wishing something so ridiculous.