It's All About Stickin' It Out
Celebrate The Way the Night Hides Scars
I stared at the elevator of the door not wanting to look at the boy next to me. I felt kind of sick. Jack Barakat, going to a group like this was something that wouldn’t process in my mind.
“Are you okay?” he asks me as the door opens and I make no move to exit.
I snap out of my thoughts.
“Ye-yeah. I’m fine.” I say leaving the hot elevator. Jack exits after me and catches up to me. “So, you’ll be joining us at group?” he asks smiling. That perfect smile. I didn’t understand.
I walked in with Jack right by my side. He smiled and yelled “Hey, Wendy. We have a new kid.” I looked at him with wide eyes. Did he really put me on the spot like that?
A girl with brown curls bounced over with a huge smile on her face. Her smile was so bright my eyes started to hurt a little.
“Hello and what’s your name?”
Jack was gone from my side joining a guy who looked about 19. He was tall and had tattoos all over his body.
“My.. My name is A-Alex Gaskarth.” Talking to new people was hard for me. It was easy talking to my parents or to someone I talk to all the time but new people made me freak out.
“Well, Alex welcome to the family.”
--
Jack had called me over to sit next to him.
There were about 12 other people in the room. We were sitting on the ground in a circle. There were chairs and I didn’t understand why weren’t sitting on those but I didn’t say anything.
The tall boy that Jack had gone to was Austin Carlile. He introduced himself to me and shook my hand. There was a boy sitting next to him named Alan, who was shorter than him and was silent. He didn’t talk at all.
I talked to people if they talked to me but even after saying hi he didn’t even look at my direction. I didn’t try harder, the less the people I talked to the better it would be anyways.
“Okay everyone. We have a new kid, lets introduce ourselves to him.
We went around the room, everyone reciting their name and something they had accomplished during the week.
A girl named Hayley smiled and told the group that she hadn’t cut for a month and two days. We clapped for her, and a girl named Tay took her hand and squeezed it. I guessed they were a couple.
There were other people I only remembered a few. A boy named Vic Fuentes said he was resisting the voice in his head and that he was getting better.
When it was Jacks turn he smiled.
“It’s been two months since the last time I wanted to end my life. My dad left our house. My mom finally had the courage to kick his ass out.” Everyone started to cheer and whoop around the room.
I looked at Jack and when he looked at me I gave him a smile.
So he wasn’t the perfect boy who I thought he was then who was he?
“Are you okay?” he asks me as the door opens and I make no move to exit.
I snap out of my thoughts.
“Ye-yeah. I’m fine.” I say leaving the hot elevator. Jack exits after me and catches up to me. “So, you’ll be joining us at group?” he asks smiling. That perfect smile. I didn’t understand.
I walked in with Jack right by my side. He smiled and yelled “Hey, Wendy. We have a new kid.” I looked at him with wide eyes. Did he really put me on the spot like that?
A girl with brown curls bounced over with a huge smile on her face. Her smile was so bright my eyes started to hurt a little.
“Hello and what’s your name?”
Jack was gone from my side joining a guy who looked about 19. He was tall and had tattoos all over his body.
“My.. My name is A-Alex Gaskarth.” Talking to new people was hard for me. It was easy talking to my parents or to someone I talk to all the time but new people made me freak out.
“Well, Alex welcome to the family.”
--
Jack had called me over to sit next to him.
There were about 12 other people in the room. We were sitting on the ground in a circle. There were chairs and I didn’t understand why weren’t sitting on those but I didn’t say anything.
The tall boy that Jack had gone to was Austin Carlile. He introduced himself to me and shook my hand. There was a boy sitting next to him named Alan, who was shorter than him and was silent. He didn’t talk at all.
I talked to people if they talked to me but even after saying hi he didn’t even look at my direction. I didn’t try harder, the less the people I talked to the better it would be anyways.
“Okay everyone. We have a new kid, lets introduce ourselves to him.
We went around the room, everyone reciting their name and something they had accomplished during the week.
A girl named Hayley smiled and told the group that she hadn’t cut for a month and two days. We clapped for her, and a girl named Tay took her hand and squeezed it. I guessed they were a couple.
There were other people I only remembered a few. A boy named Vic Fuentes said he was resisting the voice in his head and that he was getting better.
When it was Jacks turn he smiled.
“It’s been two months since the last time I wanted to end my life. My dad left our house. My mom finally had the courage to kick his ass out.” Everyone started to cheer and whoop around the room.
I looked at Jack and when he looked at me I gave him a smile.
So he wasn’t the perfect boy who I thought he was then who was he?
♠ ♠ ♠
ITS SUMMER! YAY.