Silas wanted to refuse badly, his entire body flushed with the urge to argue or fight. He knew it had to be related to the video they saw. Mrs. Adam is removing him from the seat and forcing him to sit in the back.
Like some kind of peasants. He turned his hands into fists, and he saw his teacher, Mrs. Adams's, eyes drift over his fisted hands, then a flash of a sneer curled into her eyes.
Silas knew arguing could get him into further trouble, and arguing would only lead him to detention or worse. He nodded with a stiff neck, and almost everyone booed him with a disappointed noise, not getting the fun show they hoped for.
Silas carried his bag with him to the end of the back seats, and he could see that some of the desks were older, uglier, and almost about to break down.
Silas took a seat and ignored the teacher, who was satisfied but disappointed by his lack of action. He fixed her red glasses on her nose and said with a sharp clap, "Student, turn to the page of one hundred thirty-one."
Each student had turned to the page she had asked for, and the sounds of turning pages echoed throughout the room like whooshing noises. Silas took out his large book from the desk, and he flipped through the pages.
His eyes widened in surprise at the topic. He looked at the psychology teacher, Mrs. Adam, who glanced at him with a flat expression, who read, 'I know you're guilty.'
Mrs. Adam speaks again with her booming voice, "Since we are going to cover the topic of domestic violence,. Someone, raise your hand and tell me what abusers have most in common."
Some of the students turned to stare at him with open eyes, curiosity, and dirty looks. Others who are far shyer only glanced at him through the corner of their eyes, like looking any more would get them cursed and beaten.
One of the braver ones in the room raised her hand with a righteous face, like she was doing the right thing. Silas rolled his eyes, 'Wow, they are all ganging up on me.'
The teacher looked in the girl's direction, and she nodded her head. "Mrs. Blue, what do they have in common?"
Mrs. Blue called and spoke, and she said in a confident, assured voice, "Well? According to research, eighty percent of them were abused as children, so when they reached adulthood, they would abuse others because they felt weaker and inferior as children."
Mrs. Adam nodded her head like congratulating her student, and she looked around the room with a raised brow. "Is there anyone else who wanted to say anything else?"
Another student raised his hand, and his eyes drifted over to Silas a few times. When Mrs. Adams permitted the male student to speak, he said in a low voice, "Most abusers have low self-esteem and try to hide their true selves like cowards—"
Mrs. Adams raised her brow at that.
The male student smiled like an innocent student, and he continued, "It's true! Because they can't control their emotions and are scared all the time, they resort to beating their partners to make themselves feel wonderful and valuable."
Silas couldn't take it anymore. It was too much. They were all targeting him, and he slammed on the table with anger rolling in his stomach. He looked in everyone's direction with a cold face.
He said in the calmest voice ever, "My bad. You are right about something. Abusers are terrible and horrible, but sometimes they are just human beings who made mistakes. Besides, not all abusers are abusers; some of them can be accused."
He shrugged with a fake smile, and his words were colder than any blades: "After all, it's the women's words that are counted more than men, but since we are pointing out all men's flaws. We should point out that women aren't only the innocent ones."
Mrs. Adams narrowed her eyes with an annoyed glint. She said with a forced smile, and her hands clenched tightly on the desk, "Please explain."
Silas knew he was provoking her, but his heart was completely annoyed. None of them were willing to hear his story or even ask from his perspective.
"Women often used men in plain sight, using tactics like love, affection, and promises to lure them in, and trapped them with an ideal love that's built on nothing but lies."
Silas knew he was speaking from personal experiences; his heart felt raw, his chest beating loudly like a drum.
His passionate words had drawn everyone's attention. Some of them had known Silas for a couple of years, but not once had they seen him lash out or hurt someone.
Some of them believed he was acting out for attention, while others, the smarter ones, could sense something. Something's off. Something about his face, his passionate words, and his heartfelt emotions fully exposed things, things that tugged on their heartstrings.
The teacher was silent for a moment, but the same look within her eyes remained the same. Cold and unfeeling, unwilling to listen, Silas shakes his head and thinks there is no way she is going to listen since she has already made up her mind about him.
Once they are convinced that you're a bad guy, your words don't matter until you prove them wrong.
Silas waited for the classes to be over and knew that the next period was lunch. He gathered his bookbag and waited for everyone to leave the room. Once he escaped the heated stare on him, he went to the cafe.
He heard an extremely familiar voice along with some other voices in the cafe. First he looked in the direction of his best friend at the same table they've been sitting at for a couple of years. He walked to the table and could feel a wave of heated stares on his skin, making it unbearable for him.
Before he could take a seat at his table, he saw a woman with strawberry blond hair sitting in the chair. His eyes narrowed at his former girlfriend and accuser.
Why is she here, sitting at my table where I sit with James?