A School Boy's Tale

Well, this is something different. Yeah, I know Romance isn't that respected in these parts, yet I thought I'd incorporate it.


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The alarm clock vibrated and beeped loudly. The orange curtains were parted slightly down the middle, and rays of sunlight were shining through the gap onto the messy bed. It was empty, yet showed signs of someone sleeping in it hours before. On a seat beside the bed sat a boy, he wore dark blue jeans which held the Flip logo, a plain white shirt, and a pair of Black and White chucks. His hair was bright blonde and very untidy. He sighed and stood up, rubbing his face and picking up his school bag. Another day in the hell of school.

As he headed out the door of his house, putting both straps over his shoulders, a voice called out behind him. He turned to see a girl running towards him, she was about the same age. With long brunette hair, and a white mini skirt with a denim jacket. She stopped beside the boy and hunched over, breathing in.
"God Leigh, you need to slow down." She wheezed, playfully punching the boy on the arm. The boy smiled and pretended it hurt, rubbing the spot she had hit.

"No skateboard today?" The girl asked as they started to walk. Leigh shook his head and walked on.
"Not very talkative?" She asked, her voice layered with concern.
"Yeah, you know how it is. Had a heap of homework, took me all night to do." Leigh replied as they turned the corner in the road, looming before them was a large school.
"Do it all?" The girl asked as they neared the gates.
"Yeah, its given me a mean headache though." Leigh replied, walking in the gates.

As they walked through the gates a girl called out, and Leigh' friend jogged off towards a group of chattering girls. Leigh strolled up the cold stone steps and pushed open the heavy wooden doors. The halls were filled with talking groups, all of which ignored Leigh. He went all the way to the end of the corridor, then turned into a classroom. Inside were four boys, all holding skateboards and talking.
"All right Leigh?" One of them called as the door closed behind him. Leigh nodded and sat down at a desk.
"Yeah, I'm good."

The bell rang and school started, everyone filed into the room and took seats around the room. After about five minutes the teacher walked in, fiddling with his suitcase as he walked in. Two boys sat in front of Leigh, talking to each other and making gestures towards people in the room.
"Alright kids, today we will be studying The Frontier." The teacher said, pointing at Leigh with his right index finger.
"Leigh, plan on causing any trouble today?" He asked, glaring at Leigh.
"No, sir." Leigh replied, holding his pencil in his right hand.
"Homo." Hissed one of the boys in front of Leigh, and turning to face him.

"Hey, its true. People really do look like they're pets." Leigh said, referring to the boys pet dog. Which was deformed. The other boy stood up, pushing his chair back and started to advance on him. Leigh stood up also, clenching his fists by his side.
"You want to go?" Leigh hissed, stepping forward towards him. The teacher was suddenly between them, pushing Leigh to his seat.
"Sit down, both of you!" He shouted, everyone went silent.

Leigh rested his head on the desk, listening to the teacher speak about respect and non-violent behaviour towards other students. When he finished his speech the bell rang, and Leigh stood up like everyone else in the room. He followed a knot of girls out, who were all talking about how brave some boys were. As he turned the corner and got out of view he took a peek at a passing girl. He couldn't take in much of her appearance, as a hand was placed on his throat and he was slammed into a locker. His head was pulsating with pain, and as his eyes focused in one his attacker he swore in his head.

Four guys were standing around him, with one of them holding onto him. These were all Jocks, all in the Rugby team. They were all stocky, and not people to be taken lightly.
"You again." One barked, giving a menacing stare. Leigh felt the hand around his throat tighten, and his airway was blocked. After a few seconds he felt his eyes roll back, and everything go blank.

He awoke on the floor, taking in a deep breath and coughing and spluttering. It seemed he had been rescued, two of the Rugby players were gone, while the other two were in a fight. Donny, a skater from earlier, was holding a Jock by the hair and ramming his knee into the boys face. Blood was leaking down his face, and his gum was torn in various places. The other rugby player was slamming his fist into the stomach of a skater. Leigh stood up slowly, and clenched his fist. Lifting it above his head and slamming it into the Jocks head. He slid forward across the floor, shouting in pain.

Donny grunted as he dropped the Jock and turned to Leigh.
"What happened?" Donny asked, rubbing his knee in pain. He brushed back his long brown hair and sighed.
"They just cornered me. One was choking me, and I blacked out." Leigh replied, his throat aching from the lack of air. Donny nodded and patted Leigh on the back as they headed out together, the three skaters.

Leigh woke with a start on Saturday morning, stretching in his bed and sitting up slowly. His skateboard was propped against the wall, lonely and unused for the last few days. He yawned and grabbed his cell off the bedside table. His hair was untidy, hanging down around his face, he flicked it out of his face with a simple movement of his head. He punched in a number and lifted it to his ear.
"Donny here." Came the reply over the network. Leigh grinned and replied.
"Alright Donsta? Keen for some skating?" Leigh asked, rubbing his eyes.
"At the skatepark? See you there in twenty." Donny replied, hanging up and leaving Leigh.

Leigh pushed open the front door and stepped out onto the sidewalk, his skateboard was held under his arm while he slid his wallet into his pocket. A girl shouted from behind him, and he grimaced. What the hell could she possibly want?
"Leigh, where are you going?" The girl asked, running up to him. Leigh glanced at his watch and looked up.
"Out, jesus. Have you come to stick up for that moron in class?" Leigh asked bitterly as he continued to walk towards the skatepark.

The girl stopped, obviously offended with her eyes watering.
"Leigh, your an arse." She said, sniffing and turning around. She ran home, leaving Leigh to walk along on his own. In a few minutes the skatepark came into view, and he could see Donny standing by the public toilets. Between his teeth was a cigarette, which he would take a drag from then blow away at regular intervals. He nodded towards Leigh as he approached.

"Alright man?" Leigh said, smiling and shaking his hand. Donny threw the cigarette on the ground and stomped it into the ground. He dropped his skateboard to the floor and hopped onto it.
"Game of SKATE?" Leigh asked, jumping onto his own board with a grin. Donny smirked and performed a 360 Kickflip off a ledge. He landed it perfectly and winked at Leigh.
"Beat that."

Leigh smiled and climbed onto the same ledge, and looked at a ledge about a meter away. He moved back a few feet and sped up on his board, Heelflipping over the gap. His back wheels barely touched the ledge, and almost caused him to fall off. He Acid Dropped off the ledge and punched Donny on the arm playfully. Donny started to climb onto the ledge, seeing as it was an easy way for good tricks, just as something grabbed Leigh from behind. He felt cold steel press against his neck, and suddenly went pale.