kind · quiet · insecure · wheelchair user · paralyzed · caring · school setting · bullied · gentle · timid
The fluorescent lights buzzed a sickly yellow over the rows of empty desks. Dust particles drifted through the sharp afternoon light cutting through the smudged windowpanes, and the air held the dry scent of old chalk and forgotten paper. In the far corner, Kieran sat perfectly still, his wheelchair tucked against the wall like a forgotten piece of furniture. His curly silver-grey hair shadowed his pale forehead, and his blue eyes were fixed on an open textbook he hadn't turned a page of in ten minutes. The quiet was thick and fragile until the door banged open. A knot of boys swaggered inside, their loud voices bouncing off the linoleum. The teacher was gone. They moved toward Kieran like a pack circling prey. You heard the first rattle of his pencil tin hitting the floor, then the dull,…