Chapter 1
I’m sitting in the front row and I’m having trouble seeing the board. I can’t believe I’m having trouble seeing the board from here! Maybe my teacher just has small writing. The writing looks fuzzy and smudged. They really need to get markers that don’t smudge so much. I try my best to avoid squinting, so no one will know I need glasses. I get teased enough already.
“Are you okay?” my teacher asks me. This startles me a bit. “I…I…I’m fffine, just waiting for hhhandouts.” I stutter. I often stutter at school. Mainly when I get called out in class.
When the handouts arrive I feel relieved. As I read through them I notice I have a headache. Damn allergies! As I’m trying to get my work done I get tormented by more headaches. Why do I have to get tormented by my allergies at school?
As I leave the class I’m cornered by Jeff. “Hhhhello,” he taunts. As I try to get away from him he lifts me up by the shirt collar and leaves me hanging. As I try to escape I just get more suffocated.
Eventually he gets bored and releases his grip. I fall down hard. My whole body is achy and twisted. When I recover I rush to my next class. My next class is a bit easier. I usually get help with from my neighbor Ben.
As I enter the class everyone stares at me. I notice Ben’s seat is empty. As I sit down Mr. Walton scolds me about being late to class and behind on my schoolwork. The whole class stares at me even more intensely.
I panic so much I can’t move or speak. I can barely process what’s going on around me. Next thing I know I’m in the principal’s office. I can tell he’s asking me questions, but I have no idea what he’s saying. All I can do is sit there.
“Talk to me!” my principal yells at me. “O…o…k,” I stutter back at him. After I respond to him I lose touch with my surroundings again.
Next thing I know I’m in the nurses office. The fluorescent lights make me very floaty. Eventually the lights turn off and I can relax.
I notice there’s light again, but it’s way softer. I look around the room and adjust to my surroundings. I feel normal again.
“What happened?” the nurse asked me. “I tripped,” I lie. “I can see you have quite the neck injury. What really happened?” “Jeff lifted me up by the shirt collar and just dropped me,” I say. “Oh dear,” she says.
“I’m just going to test your vision.” she tells me. I was pretty prepared for this moment. I’ve memorized the whole snellen chart. I can see the big E, but the whole chart looks fuzzy and smudged.
I guess that’s the problem with budget cuts. We have to deal with smudged writing at school. As she points to the different lines I recite what I’ve memorized.
“You memorized the lines, didn’t you?” she says. All I can do is smirk. As I walk close to the chart I realize the letters are completely different than a standard snellen chart!
I can hear she’s talking to my parents on the phone. She tells them that I should really get my eyes tested. As she hangs up I notice the time. It’s already 3:00! I walk home with a lot of thoughts in my head.
“You’re getting your eyes tested at 4:00 pm tomorrow,” my mom says. I’m really anxious about it, but I’m also a bit excited.
To be continued…
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