The Secret Circle

Derick

My mother glared at me heavily once we got to the school. I would have taken the bus, but they barely allow me on it either. Neither did I want to. The people in this town could be deranged animals when they wanted to be. 

"What?"

She shook her head, "I don't get how you came out so...disappointing. We did everything right."

I groaned as I stepped out of the car. Having my dad drop me off at school was better than my mother. At least he didn't say anything to me. But her? She always had to guilt trip me for being what I wanted to be.

"Goodbye Paisley." 

She didn't want me to call her mother anymore. Just because I didn't care what gender you were. Well that was fine by me. I couldn't care less. 

I slammed her car door shut after giving her a charming smile. That smile quickly erased when I turn to it. This piece of s**t was just...a piece of s**t. No one could change my mind. The kids here were stupid airheads. The teachers were dirty crooks who shouldn't be allowed to be around children ever. But yet, people still sent their kids here just to make them more messed up than what they were before they came to Fulmore High. For most of them, this was their safe haven. A place where they could do what they wanted. For me, it was hell here, it was hell there. I couldn't catch a goddamn break anywhere in this town. I was just ready to go. The quicker I graduated, if they thought to acknowledge me anyways, the quicker I was getting out of this evil town. 

"Hey d**k eater!"

My feet carried me faster into the school. I didn't want to deal with any of them.

Maybe I should skip today. I didn't have to come here anyways. I could always crash at the treehouse. 

"I know you hear me talking to you."

I was being pushed into a locker harshly. It wasn't strange or uncommon to look into Danny Poire's resentful blue eyes. His stupid goons had my arms locked in a tight position over my head. I've gotten used to the feeling. The pain. It was hardly nothing at this point. No one cared no way.

"Are you deaf today? Hmm?" He asked, pushing me into the locker again.

Danny wasn't a buff boy, nor was he a skinny boy. He was somewhere in between. That was why it didn't hurt as much as it would if a footballer or baseballer decided to pick on me.

"I don't want any trouble today. Is that what you want to hear, Danny?" I spat.

He sent a punch right in the center of my stomach, "Don't you get smart with me asshole. You're a disgrace to the human race." He punched me again in the stomach. "You should die. All of your kind should be burned at the stake. You prance around as if it's okay to desire men. It makes me sick. People like you make me sick."

Glad I didn't eat anything.

"Well..." I gasped, "i-if you....i-if you're not feeling well...just," my favorite cheeky smile spread slowly, "go to the doctor."

I saw the punch towards my face coming. 

"Didn't I just tell you to not get smart with me damnit? Who the f**k do you think you are? You're a f*****g asshole. A disappointment to God. Your mother should have aborted you."

"Heh." I tasted blood in my mouth heavily. Damn. Has he been lifting weights recently? "Really? I can't help but think of why your mother didn't do the same thing."

Another punch to the face, "Shut up!" He growled angrily.

Some of the students here watched, others passed us up. This was a regular thing between Danny and I. The first few days when this began happening in ninth grade, people were always worried for Danny-even though he wasn't ever dented-and wanted to break the fights up. But as time went on, they stopped caring. Even the teachers. Whenever I get beat up, no one cares. Not even my parents. They just believe that God is punishing me. Well, God is bullshit then. 

"Boys. He's had enough for today, don't you think?"

At this point, I wished that Danny kept beating on me. Coach Perry was the worst. He was the main reason why I was in the position I was in right now. On top of that-he was a straight pedophile. It didn't matter if you were a boy or girl, he liked you.

"No thanks?"

I scoffed, "You think you deserve thanks? The hell? f**k you. I'm getting out of here."

"Why so harsh?"

I ignored him. For some reason, he followed me.

"I think you should come with me. Your face is bleeding. I have some first aid supplies in my office."

"And why, on this green earth, would I follow you anywhere you pig?" I asked.

He blew a breath behind me. I turned. Coach Perry was eying a pair of girls walking by. I cringed on the inside. He was looking at them like they were pieces of meat. 

"Stop it." I said, clenching my teeth.

"I'm not doing anything. And to answer your question, I just don't want you to get....beat up more."

I sucked my teeth. Bastard.

"Look, I got it. I'm perfectly fine."

I wobbled away steadily. 

"No. Come to my office now." He had gripped my arm tightly. "Let me help you."

Coach Perry was basically dragging me.

"Alright. Fine. Just get your filthy hands off of me.

____________

He cleaned my wounds as if he actually cared that I was beaten up. He stopped them every time. The only thing that was out of the ordinary was this. Him cleaning me up like a nurse. I just didn't get it. I was waiting for him to do something wrong. I knew him.

"There. All better."

I got up from the chair, "Good, if you don't mind, I'll be going."

"Wait." He yet again, grabs my arm. "Sit back down."

"You cleaned me up. What the f**k do you want?"

His eyes trailed down towards my zipper. Disgusting. Repulsive.

"Just a little compensation for my help to you."

I twisted my arm out of his grip and backed away quickly. "You need f*****g help. Go get a f*****g girlfriend or something."

Coach Perry stopped sitting on his desk. He was tall as s**t so his footsteps to me weren't much. It took all of two seconds for him to trap me against the wall. 

"Maybe I don't want a girlfriend. Maybe I want something, like you."

What the absolute hell?! 

"Get away from me." I growled. "I'm not going to f**k you or give you a blow job. That's disgusting. People like you deserve to be rotting in hell."

He chuckled lowly, dipping his thin lips towards the crook of my neck. How am I going to get out of this?

"I know."

My gut flipped upside down. I was seriously trapped. One of his hands slithered down towards my belt.

"Get the f**k off of me! You f*****g pedophile!"

"Listen here, boy," Coach Perry squeezed my face harshly, still trying to undo my belt with his one hand, "shut the fu-"

Knock, knock, knock. He stopped reaching for my p***s and got off of me. I took a long, thankful breath. Don't EVER follow this f*****g psycho ever again anywhere. That goes for you bleeding to death.

"Mrs. Thinnern." Coach Perry greeted.

I took that as a window to get out of his dingy office. There is literally no telling how many people he has wronged in this office. I was so close to being next.

"Oh, you had a student?" Mrs. Thinnern asked as she set eyes on me.

"Yeah. He-"

"Was just leaving." I butt in hoarsely. "Excuse me, Mrs. Thinnern."

The chubby lady barely moved for me. I knew she didn't like me because of what I preferred. The look of disdain on her face said it all for her. Though I didn't care what she thought of me. All I know was that I was grateful for her barging in when she did. 

_____________

I covered all of my tracks and made sure no one followed me. It was imperative that this spot remained secret as possible. Even though it took three hours to get here by foot from the school and no one would walk that damn long anyways, we couldn't afford for people like Star snooping around. This was where we relaxed and let our issues out to the world. We couldn't do that if it wasn't secret.

The smell of the woods were always comforted me. It was how I found here. Just wondering around one day, exploring. I stumbled upon this magnificent piece of art. It was sturdy. I didn't know if someone lived in it or if they abandoned it so, I watched it. It stood unbothered for a month. No one came in or out. There were no footprints in the dirt to signify if anyone had been there while I wasn't there to watch. I figured it was good to look into. The climb was high. The tree was humongous. The tree house was almost the size of a regular house. It almost seemed selfish of me to claim something that I know took time, blood, sweat, talent, and pure hard work, but I knew when I set my foot in it that we had a connection. It took me months to clean it and put some decor, along with furniture. I even shrouded the top of it with rain protectors and pretty sheets.

"Whoa," I let out a startled scream whenever I got to the top. I didn't see Nani sitting in the corner silently, "long day for you too?"

"f*****g hell man. It hasn't even been the first half of the day. What happened to you?"

Nani threw his head back against the wooden wall of the treehouse. "I really don't want to talk about it."

"Yeah. Me either."

He opened one eye and looked at me. He didn't say anything about my band-aids or bruises. He never did because he knew I didn't want to talk about it. 

"How much you want to bet that Garrett is coming after you?"

"Oh, I know he is. After one too many "prayer groups", he's definitely going to roll in here and scream."

"Ha, ha, guys!"

I laughed. Garrett came earlier than usual. It must have been bad.

"How bad was it?!" I yelled down to him once I peaked down to the ground.

Garrett was a little speck from up this high. Even when he was climbing.

"I do not want to talk about it! My dad's already going to chew me out for not staying in school the whole damn day!"

He was right. His father was always on his back. I didn't know if I would kill for that or not. But then again, his father hated me. He wouldn't even let my family back in the church. Some pastor.

"God if I hear one more person ask me to pray for them, I f*****g swear." Garrett whined.

"Just be glad that they were just asking you of something so simple. What happened to me today was just horrific. I don't know if I'm going to school for the rest of the year."

Garrett huffed. I laid flat on my back in order to gaze at the sheathed top of the treehouse. We all must have had a bad day. Though I doubt that Kacey would be here today. She would have to go home today. She missed all of her days because she was here at the treehouse consoling us and our issues.

"Do you think Kacey is coming?" Garrett asked. "I could really use a song. Or two. Or three. Or four....five?"

"No. She said that she would have to go home." Nani muttered. "Her mother would be mad."

My heart clenched. I know everyone here thought they had it hard, but, we had to give it to Kacey. She had it the worst. She went through pure hell almost everyday. I knew she was the most hurt and broken out of all of us. She made up for it with her maturity and bravery. 

"Oh. Are any of you up for a game? Are shall we wallow in the depression of our messed up lives?"

I eyed Garrett. He was sitting with his legs crossed and a board game in his hands.

"Yeah, I'm going to wallow in depression for a little while longer." Nani sighed.

"Alright. Fair enough."

I closed my eyes and tried not to think about how Coach Perry almost....did what he was planning to do to me. It made me sick. What made me sicker was if I said anything, either no one would believe me or they wouldn't care. They would think I deserved it for being what I was. Though it wasn't even that serious to me. So what it didn't matter what you were? If I was attracted to you, I was attracted to you. I didn't see why that was such a problem to damn near everyone in this stupid town.

"So, games now? It's been a minute at least...."

I sat up, "No, it's been thirty seconds. But fine. I guess games will take my mind off of the horror I had to go through today."

Garrett clapped once on the box's top. Monopoly. Hmm. Must have been shitty today for real.

"Okay....what happened? You don't play Monopoly unless you're trying to basically forget everything."

"I want to be the dog." He said.

Guess he doesn't want to talk about it. At least we were all in the same boat here.

"Well then, give me the car and let me hand you this ass kicking." I responded.

"You're not going to win. You are definitely going down. I reign this game."

I just laughed. At least this would occupy our time.