English Short Story By Matthew Thomas

Hurry up or well be late says Mum.

Its my first day at Lakeview High and I know that this school will be just like every
other lame school that Ive been to.
Why I ask dryly. Itll be just like all the o..o..other schools that youve p..put me
in. It wont ever change
No it wont. The principal himself has assured me she replies with a hint of doubt
in her voice. I pondered this possibility as I climbed the gray, cracked stairs leading
up to the school. I rule this out and start guessing on how long it will take for the
sympathy in people to leave to be replaced by the ugly, raw bitterness that lies
under the sweet sugar coating of most people. This thought jumps around in my
head until a loud voice snaps me out of my revere.
Welcome to Lakeview High, Jace. Im sure that youll have great year here The
voice says with says with a sweet voice but with a bitter undertone.
Thats l..l..likely I mutter before I tear my eyes off the ground to see a tall man
standing in front me who has such an air of power about him that makes me want to
do whatever he wanted you to do. This guy must be the principal. Anyway, he takes
us on a tour of the site which seems to take hours and by the time we make it back
into the entry hall its only 20 minutes to the lunch bell.
Come on Jace, lets get you settled in the principal says which sounds like a
command to me. By the time Im settled into math class the lunch bell goes. I
shuffle slowly to the door, every floorboard creaking as I pass over them, trying to
delay the thing that I resent the most in the world. Making friends.
I walk out onto the oval and I find several groups of people each from my own year
so I decide that Im, going to approach every group to see if they want to be friends
with me. As I walk to the first group nervousness sneaks up on me and tackles my
from behind but this only increases my feeling of dread because my stutter gets
worse when Im nervous.
H..h..h..hello I start until I get interrupted by a boy sitting at my feet.
Shut up stutter face he says, his words dripping with poison. I turn and leave to
approach another group but the same thing happens there. With each group I
progress to the taunts get worse with some people even mimicking my stutter. By
the time I grow near the last group my self-esteem is in tatters and Im just fed up
with this school and everyone in it.
H..h..hello, I..d like to h..hang out with y..you I say, doubt ringing clear in the tone
of my voice. This time the only thing they say is:
Does it look like we want a guy with a stutter to be our friend? they ask. This time
Im just so fed up with being rejected, I bite back saying,
Fine, Ill get out of the way of your large, ugly face then I say in an angry tone. At
this they say nothing but get up and make a circle around me. As they start to move
in closer, the circle constricting, the start yelling their taunts and begin to expose
the ugly bitterness beneath. I knew I had to make a move, soon. It was now or
never.

English Short Story By Matthew Thomas

I launched myself forward and blindly struck out, my foot connecting, hearing a
hurtful cry as I raced out of the circle. I didnt look back but I could hear the
pounding of feet racing after me. I keep running until my chest felt like it was going
to explode and my legs were burning. As I looked around I became aware of my
surroundings. Im in a distant corner of the oval which is almost invisible to anyone
who didnt know it was there. As I turned around to leave I heard a loud rustling
noise in the trees next to me. Just as I stepped back the whole group of bullies
walked out and cornered me against the fence. A tall, heavily muscled boy stepped
forward and I knew I was in trouble. He opened his mouth as to speak but he
apparently thought the better of himself and closed it with a snap. He stepped
forward, so close to me now that I could feel his breath on my cheek. After about
twenty seconds he came up with an uppercut to my jaw. I fell back, my jaw severely
dislocated, with my mouth filling with bitter, metallic blood. After this first taste of
blood the rest of the people in the circles vacant look turned to that of laughter.
Each person in the group stepped forward, one after the other, punching and hitting
me in the face. By the time the first person that hit me comes again I have 4 loose
teeth, a broken nose and a severely dislocated jaw. I peer over his shoulder and
distantly see a group of kids running in my general direction. I start to contemplate
whether or not I should call out to them to try and get their attention but old
dummy face in front of me apparently has some brain cells left and figures out what
Im about to do. He comes around with a side punch at my head and before I can
yell I slump to the ground with the sound of raised voices, all around me.
When I come to I sit up as a blinding pain shoots into my vision and I lean to the
side and retch. When my mind makes me stop because theres nothing to come up
so I put my head in my hands and start to shake, convulsing in agonizing spasms
that last for about ten seconds each. After the spasms wear off, I become aware of
people all around me. A boy comes up to me and puts out a hand to help me up; I
cant see his face as my vision is blurry.
Why are you helping me I say, trying to put every ounce of gratitude into my
voice that my weak voice can muster with my body throbbing with so much pain
that black spots are already dancing after moving my mouth for just a little bit.
I went through the same thing because of them but is what happened to you is
much worse than what they did to me. Think of me, um, as a friends through shared
experience who are joining together to stop those that have cause so much sadness
in their lives He says. I ponder everything that has happened since I was born up
until this very moment. This very moment I will remember for the rest of my life.
The first bit of kindness that someone other than my family has shown me. I
suddenly think back to what I said to him as the sudden realization hits me. When I
talked to him I didnt stutter.
MY STUTTER HAS GONE! I yell to myself inside my mind. Whatever the bullies had
done to me had cured my stutter. My happiness overwhelms me, like the raging tide
at a king tide, and I laugh to myself which turns out as a strangled cry but I dont
care. All I can think about is the torrent of new opportunities that have opened

English Short Story By Matthew Thomas

them, up to me. The thought takes over me so much that I dont see the tall guy
that hit me first is running towards me.
YOU WILL PAY FOR WHAT YOUVE DONT he cries. He pushes me to the ground and
kicks me so hard that I know that its all over.
As I lie there, feeling my heart beat slowdown in my chest, my whole life flashes
before my eyes. I think of everyone who has loved me and cared for me over the
course of my life. A horrible sadness sweeps over me. All I want is to see them all
again and thank them for all theyve done but just as I think that a new series of
images flashes before my eyes. With a jolt I realize that its the future and I see that
all that I care for will have a full life and that they wont ever forget me.