RISING ABOVE THE SHADOWS

"I'm freaking tired," Jack said. He had been training for the past few hours, and even though his master wasn't with him, far behind him, his master was watching him practice with zeal. His master grew a kind of love for the young boy. "Hogh!" he heaved as he sat relaxing on the pillar. He sat there and started reminiscing about his past. Back then, when he lived with his loving family, he could still remember when he was treated special among all his siblings because he was the only boy and he was the 2nd born. Every day, they went to the school they all attended the same school. Jack only had one friend named Jimmy, a quiet boy who sat next to him. Jimmy had a girlfriend named Lisa, a pretty girl, so the three teenagers always walked together. Their friendship was good until a new girl came into the class. She was very beautiful and reserved. "Hey, class, let's welcome our new student," Mrs. Victoria the class teacher said. "Welcome, buddy!" everyone chorused. She was shy, she could only waving back at them. "So, what's your name?" Mrs. Victoria asked. "My name is Jane," she said, looking down. "That's a nice name. Go look for a seat," the teacher said. She went to the back and sat next to Jack. 'cause the next seat close to Jack was vacant now Jack was sitting between Jimmy and Jane When the girl sat down, she couldn't look up, she was shy because she discovered all eyes were on her. "Hey, Jane," Jack said. "Hi," she replied, looking towards him. "Are you okay?" Jack asked, noticing she wasn't free. "Yeah, I'm good," she replied and opened her backpack to bring out her notebook. "Hun," Jack said, looking at Jimmy, because Jimmy had hit him with his shoulder. Jimmy looked at him, winked, and smiled. Jack became aware of the gesture and smiled back. It was time for lunch; the three teenagers headed out, but the girl stopped Jack. "Hey, sorry for disturbing you, but can you show me around the school?" she pleaded. "That's not a problem. Let's go," Jack said and met up with the rest of them. "Hey, guys, our new student asked me to show her around the school. Can we do that together?" Jack asked. "Sure, let's go," they all said. "The school library is huge," the girl commented. "Yeah, it is. We can always come here to read," Jimmy said. "This school is huge compared to my former school," the girl said. "That's incredible," Jack said. After many walks, they went back to class, and all eyes were on them. Now it was time to head home. Many guys wanted to seize the opportunity, but the four teenagers were together, making it impossible for them to talk to the girl. Since that day, the girl became friends with the trio, and they were always happy together, making others jealous. "Hey, dude, what are you up to?" Billy, the class bully, asked Jack. Jack was short of words but finally spoke up. "What are talking about?" he asked, still confused. "Oh, you wanna act up right? Just wait," Billy said and left Jack in confusion. "Hey, what's up with you?" Jimmy asked, with the two girls behind him. Jack snapped back to reality, startled by the sudden voice. "I'm good. Nothing's wrong," he said, faking a smile. "Hey, are you sure?" Jane asked. "I'm alright. I'm good," he said, nodding to assure them. Just as they were about to leave, the bully came with his gang. Billy hesitated because Jimmy was there. "Hey, Jack, let's talk," Billy said. "I'll be right back," he told his friends. "Now I'm gonna make it clear: stay away from Jane, or you'll regret it," Billy said. "If you think you're tough enough, try us," John, one of Billy's gang members, added, lit a cigarette, drew in smoke, and puffed it on Jack's face. "You can go now," he said Jimmy was furious at what he saw and came into the scene. "Hey, what's happening here?" he asked, furious. "Hey, bro, stay out of this, or you'll blame yourself," Billy said. "Hey, dude, I'm right here, and I'm involved in this," Jimmy said. "Okay, then game started," Billy said. "You can't do more than my footwear . Get that into your empty skulls. All you know how to do best is to cause troubles around the school. Aren't you ashamed?" Jimmy said. "You can blab all you want, but all I know you two shouldn't cross my lane and stay away from Jane, but if you insist,then accept your fate" Billy said. "Oh! now I get the dirty trick," Jimmy said. At this point, Lisa and Jane showed up. "What's going on here?" Jane asked.