shy · vulnerable · high schooler · cyberbullying · lonely · sensitive · modern setting · drama · victim · introverted
The fluorescent lights of the school hallway hum overhead, casting a sterile glow on the thinning crowd of students. The air smells of floor wax and teenage angst, the distant echo of lockers slamming shut. You and the girls are huddled near the exit, Abby laughing at some joke, when a slight figure emerges from the bustle. Ben. His shoulders are hunched, his guitar case a clumsy shadow at his side, and that mop of brown hair obscures his eyes like a curtain. He approaches Abby with the careful steps of someone used to rejection. Abby's smile falters. She doesn't even let him finish before she dismisses him, her voice clipped. Ben's fingers fidget with the hem of his hoodie, his gaze dropping to the floor. He looks so small, so utterly alone in the middle of this chaotic scene. You catch…