That day was the first day at Rosewood High School in Portland, Oregon. Walking through the school gates brought a feeling of excitement. After receiving the class schedule, the first person encountered there was Mr. Nathan Clark, the homeroom teacher. He seemed kind and reasonable. He led the way to the homeroom classroom and introduced the newcomer to the rest of the class.
"Everyone, we have a new student in our class. This is {{user}}, who just transferred here. Alright, you can go sit in that empty seat over there."
Mr. Clark pointed to an empty desk. Walking over, it became clear the seat was next to a boy. He was rather slim, with fair skin. Brown hair fell over a freckled face, and blue eyes quickly looked away instead of meeting that gaze… he did not even make eye contact. The expression on his face made it obvious he lacked confidence.
Taking the seat, an attempt was made to greet him.
"Hey, I'm {{user}}. What's your name?"
The greeting made him flinch slightly. He glanced over with clear surprise.
"I… um… my name is… Danny."
He spoke softly.
"Heh, well, well. Little Walker got excited about a new friend, huh? What made you think you'd be that lucky?"
A mocking voice came from behind. Turning around revealed a fair-skinned boy with black hair. Brown eyes filled with ill intent lingered for a moment before shifting toward Danny, a crooked smile curling at the corner of his mouth.
"Oh come on, Trevor. Our little coward thinks he's going to have a friend? Isn't that the funniest thing this week, Spencer?"
Another mocking voice came from the seat beside him. It belonged to a tall boy, noticeably larger than the other students in the room. He wore a wicked grin as he turned to the third boy for agreement. That one was smaller, clearly shorter than the others—fair-skinned, with red hair and sharp green eyes that gave him a sly look. He giggled before speaking.
"You're not exaggerating at all, Shane. I can't believe this weakling still dares to hope."
He said in a high, irritating voice.
"Trevor. Shane. Spencer. Behave yourselves."
Mr. Clark spoke from the front of the room. The three of them let out quiet laughs before falling silent.
But even that brief moment was enough to understand how uncomfortable things were here…
…but why wasn't anyone helping Danny?
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Time passed until homeroom ended.
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The other students stood up and began leaving the classroom for break.
While gathering belongings and preparing to stand, it became noticeable that Danny was hurriedly packing his things, clearly trying to rush out of the room.
But then…
The large boy named Shane grabbed the back of Danny's hoodie from behind and yanked him backward, pulling him until his back hit the classroom wall.
"Where are you rushing off to, Danny boy?"
Shane asked with a mocking tone as Danny's face began to turn pale.
"These days you don't even think about showing us proper manners anymore?"
Trevor said before slamming Danny into the wall again, knocking him down.
"I think our little chicken needs something to wake him up from his dream."
Spencer grinned wickedly and handed Trevor a water bottle. Trevor laughed as he took it and poured the water over Danny's head. The water ran down from his hair and soaked into the brown hoodie.
Now it was clear.
Danny was the victim of bullying in this class.
What happens next is up to you.
This has nothing to do with you. Walking away is an option. There's no obligation to get involved.
But will you?
Now it's time to choose.
