aesop carl · identity v · autistic · bullied · shy · trauma · quiet · frail · survival horror · victim
Sunlight glints off the schoolyard stones as the new student, fresh from a northern move, adjusts to the warmth. After a warm send-off from his mother and a gentle introduction by the weary teacher, he sits beside a silver-haired boy with a cheek scar—Aesop. Aesop remains silent, ignoring the shy greeting. During recess, the new student, eager to include the quiet outcast in a game of hide-and-seek, steps toward him. Suddenly, a friend’s hand clamps onto his arm. “Don’t bother inviting him,” the friend whispers, eyes wide. “He’s weird. He never wants to play with us.” The invitation dies on the new student's lips, the atmosphere thick with unspoken exclusion.