The next morning, Takuma woke up feeling refreshed, forgetting about yesterday's night because, according to him, life moves on the next day, no matter the troubles that went on the previous day. He took a quick shower and got dressed, lost in thought as he walked to school. The gentle breeze carried the whispers of leaves, and the warm sun cast a comforting glow on his face. He wondered what the day would bring, whether anyone would approach him, or if he would be left alone.
As he entered his classroom, he was greeted by the familiar sight of his classmates chatting and laughing. Takuma took his seat, trying to blend in. He pulled out his books and began to organize his notes, his hands moving with a quiet efficiency. The classroom was filled with the sound of rustling papers and muted conversations, a symphony of everyday life.
As usual, he successfully went through the first half of the school schedule, his mind absorbing the lessons with ease. He headed to the cafeteria to buy food, his stomach growling softly. He didn't have a problem with money since his parents wired him a lot, but he showed no sign of riches. He was non-flashy, and the only expensive things he owned were his desktop, laptop, iPad, headset, and books. Every other thing was at a regular price.
He picked out a meal he found healthy and headed to an empty table. He gently placed the tray of food on it to eat, the aroma of the meal wafting up to his nostrils. As he began to eat, a gasp erupted, and loud murmurs arose from the cafeteria. He naturally wasn't curious, so he ignored whoever was receiving so much attention and continued eating.
He felt heavy shadows behind him and hoped that it wasn't trouble. His heart beat slightly faster, a sense of unease creeping up his spine. He tried to focus on his meal, but his senses were on high alert.
"Hey everyone, it's the nerd with ghost friends. Eating alone, genius? Are your ghost friends here as well? Poor guy," a familiar sarcastic voice suddenly sounded from behind Takuma, making him feel uncomfortable. He let out a sigh as he gently turned his head to fix his gaze upon the school bully, Ogor, and his three minions.
Takuma's eyes narrowed slightly, his gaze piercing. Even though Takuma liked studying, it didn't mean that he could be bullied. There were times that he was bullied, but that was years ago. He knew how to match the energies of bullies. Takuma's eyes landed on Ogor's smirk, and he let out another sigh as a frown crept its way to his face.
Ogor had been trying to get to him for over a year now. He always ignored him. The only good thing was that Ogor couldn't lay a finger on him because it was strictly against school rules; the punishment was expulsion. Takuma stood up, standing toe to toe with Ogor, who had already gotten everyone to laugh due to his mocking statement towards Takuma.
"Do you love yourself?" Takuma simply asked, making Ogor get intimidated for a second. Takuma had removed his glasses and placed them into their case while staring with irises that had a dark aura. Ogor snapped out and weirdly looked at him, as well as everyone. This was the first time anyone confronted him; to think it would be Takuma was insane.
He gained his composure and smirked. "Huh, what was that? Everyone, did you hear that? The lonely nerd is in love with me, or perhaps wishes he was me. I'm heterosexual," Ogor said, as his friends and everyone present in the cafeteria laughed. Takuma wasn't having time for Ogor's unnecessary drama. He wasn't talking about sexuality, and he was amazed by how dumb Ogor twisted his words.
He moved closer to Ogor with his dark gaze fixed on him and smiled, showing his clean and white teeth. "Do you think you're special? If you love yourself, you wouldn't be comparing yourself to me. Unlike me, who actually puts effort into helping myself generally, you fail your exams regularly, you get repeated most times, nobody truly likes you, you have fake friends, you pretend to be rich, you act tough outside while being a nobody. You have the breath of God knows what. As a matter of fact, everyone hates you, Ogor. If you loved yourself, you would stop trying to compare yourself to me. I am better than you, and nothing would change that fact. You shouldn't be offended by this truth. I prefer to have conversations with non-existing ghosts than with a dumb human like you," Takuma whispered to Ogor in an extremely low voice.
Ogor was dumbstruck by Takuma's words. Nobody dared to say this to him, yet this nerdy, quiet guy who always had a numb expression suddenly changed to the devil. Ogor had no idea what happened next; he saw things blurry as Takuma walked past him and out of the cafeteria.
"I would kill him," Ogor whispered under his breath and formed a tight fist. His face was red with anger and humiliation. He couldn't believe that Takuma had spoken to him like that. Nobody had ever dared to confront him, and now this quiet, nerdy guy had torn him apart with his words.
The cafeteria was silent for a moment, with all eyes on Ogor. Then, slowly, the murmurs and whispers started, spreading like wildfire. "Did you hear what Takuma said to Ogor?"
"I know, right? Ogor got destroyed!"
"We all know that the nerd got some pretty good brain, but we didn't know he had guts too."
Ogor's face turned even redder as he realized that everyone was talking about him, laughing at him. He felt like he was going to explode. If only Takuma had just been a good boy and just shut up, he would have been spared. He brought Ogor's fury on himself now and the school bully was determined to break his bones. He stormed out of the cafeteria, his minions following closely behind.