I'll Be Here For You novel Chapter 2

We were supposed to read a document about the Meiji Restoration that took place in nineteenth century Japan. Before class, I didn't even know what the Meiji Restoration was.

"Louisa, can you please explain to me how the restoration of imperial rule in Japan had a positive effect on the country?" Ms. Burke asked me, waiting expectantly for me to answer.

I waited for a couple of seconds, trying to see if anything would come to me before I gave up and shook my head, "I'm not sure."

I could feel the heavy stare of Ms. Burke making the hairs on my neck stand up as the classroom filled with silence. If Ms. Burke thought I wasn't paying attention, now she thought for sure that I was. We were talking about the pros and cons of this for over thirty minutes, but I couldn't even list one. I was too busy trying to figure out what the event was first.

"See me after class, Louisa." Ms. Burke said with a sigh, continuing with her lesson as if nothing had ever happened.

After the longest four-minute talk of my life with Ms. Burke trying to explain why I couldn't understand the lesson, she finally released me so I could rush to my second period at the complete opposite end of the school. Before I even got there, I knew it would be hell.

Second period was the class that I shared with Cora, making it always the worst part of my day. Cora would always find some new way to torture me or pick on me in front of the entire class. I thought at one time that the class was always sick of her ways when one of the students told her to knock it off, but she kept pushing and he just left the matter alone. Today was no exception.

She called me a slut. In front of the entire class. First of all, I was not that type of person. Second of all, who just says something like that during class? And it wasn't until later that someone finally took pity on me and told me the rest. Cora took some sort of red ink and wrote the word slut all over my books. That explains all the snickers from the rest of the class when I tried to read for class without noticing the bright red letters staring right back at my face. Never in my life had I felt more humiliated.

I practically tore out of second without even hesitating to make sure I knew where I was going. If I was going to bump into something, so be it. At least it would mean that I would be away from Cora and all of the people laughing at me.

I was wrong. I ran smack into someone in front of me, and I scattered their papers everywhere on the floor.

"Oh my goodness, I am so sorry. I know I should be more careful..." My hands raced frantically across the floor tiles to put the pile back together and help the person that I ran into.

No matter how many times I apologized, the person in front of me didn't even say a word. The silence was filled with me practically talking to myself, every word coming out of my mouth like another mistake. It made me feel so much worse than if the person would've yelled.

After apologizing yet again, I continued walking to third period, a little slower this time and more cautious so I didn't make the same mistake of running into an unknowing student. I made it safely, but as I attempted to sit down into my seat, someone pulled out the chair from under me, and I fell hard. I knew it was one of Cora's cheerleaders, but I was too upset from them picking on me all day to care. While I waited for the break to end, I shoved my earbuds in and blasted my music, completely ignorant to my surroundings. Like they say, ignorance is bliss.

Everything was fine until the end of the period, when someone, again probably one of the cheerleaders, stole my walking stick and hid it somewhere in the classroom. With the teacher gone to go to the restroom, I had to stumble around, waving my hands in the air like a lunatic while looking for it. The teacher finally came back when the transition time to get to my fourth period was over. We found the walking stick, and I was late to fourth period.

I rushed to class, trying to explain to the teacher why I was late, but he still handed me a detention slip anyways. I sat in the back of the class, trying to act invisible to the rest of my peers. The rest of the period went without incident, until at the end Lulu 'accidently' tripped and spilled water all over me.

When I heard the bathroom door slowly creak open, I frantically swiped at the tears that surrounded my eyes. I sniffled once, trying to clear all the evidence that I had been crying, and turned away from the door to not show my face.

The door clanged shut. "Oh my god, are you alright?" A girl asked me, rushing over to where I was standing.

I didn't recognize the girl's voice, and knew immediately she wasn't in any of my classes. A part of me was ashamed to let a stranger see me as a mess in the bathroom, but at the same time, I was glad. It was the first time that someone had talked to me today without a condescending attitude. No, instead she sounded concerned.

I nodded, trying to play it off as not a big deal. "I'm fine." I said, lifting my walking stick to try and shuffle around her and make a quick escape. Although her warm voice made me feel infinitely better, I didn't need her sympathy.

"You're Louisa, aren't you?" I stopped in my tracks, listening to the girl who didn't lace my name with venom when she said it, "I'm just..." she trailed it off, shifting the weight of her feet, "I'm so sorry that this keeps happening to you. You don't deserve it."

"No one does." I stated, not turning around.

The girl continued, hardly missing a beat, "I know that it's your last day and all, but I would love it if you come ate lunch with me and some of my friends. Cora can be a bitch, but that doesn't mean your last day has to be entirely miserable." I could sense the hopeful smile radiating off her face. I liked this girl.