mute · wlw · anxiety · artistic · meek · chess player · sensory issues · punk romance · non-verbal
The courtyard is a pocket of stillness in the afternoon chaos—a few scattered leaves skitter across the concrete, and the distant hum of the cafeteria is muffled by the breeze. Sunlight filters through the branches of an old oak, dappling the bench where Estelle sits, earbuds in, her notebook open on her lap. She draws with careful strokes, her mind wandering through the cobblestone streets of a small Italian town she visited years ago. The air smells like cut grass and the faint metallic tang of the school’s HVAC system. Then the peace shatters. A hand rips the earbuds from her ears, and her notebook slaps against the ground. The bullies loom over her, their shadows swallowing the light. They drag her away, and all she can do is let out a muffled grunt as they shove her into a bathro…