Helplink: Razor

Jackson "Razor" Helms wasn't having a very good life at home or at school. A young eighth grader going to a very bad junior high school in a horrible, violence-filled district.

Jackson was 13 and went to Melon Hills Junior High. In sixth grade, he was shipped off to Melon Hills from his small K-8 school. He didn't think it'd be too bad.

Now, he wished he did stay there. Melon Hills should have been called Melon Hell. That's all it is, hell. He hasn't made one permanent friend since sixth grade. Poor Jackson.

Sixth grade stinks. Seventh grade hurts. And eighth grade just plain sucks. None of his teachers were there because either he didn't have any or they just slacked off and let them do whatever they went.

Maybe that's why he got moved from an advanced class to a normal class to a special-ed class. All because his teachers were slackers.

He was trying to apply to an elite high school. It was out of the low-class neighborhood Jackson currently went to school and in a upper middle-class neighborhood. It was on the other side of town but the school was pretty good, so it would be worth it.

One night, Jackson was on his computer on his bedroom. He was just messing around like usual. He checked his email. His inbox was as it was usually- mostly filled with spam and threatening messages from his classmates. He began deleting them.

Soon, only 3 emails were left, but one was unopened. The unopened email said " Need help and support?"

Jackson looked around as he thought " I sure need it. Maybe I can find something."

He opened the email. It said:

" Need help and support? Having a bad time at school? Being abused? Having difficulties with coming out? Log on to HelpLink, they'll help you!"

Jackson was excited. Maybe he can get help with trying to get out of Melon Hell. But then he froze. Jackson was 13 and he knew that if something was too good to be true, it probably was.

He clicked on the link. To his surprise, shock and delight, it did not lead to spam nor a scam. But the real thing. The HelpLink website. Jackson clicked on " New Request".

He began typing from there.

Request #7161

Status:

open

Department:

Support

Subject:

Education and Careers

Priority:

Normal

Creation Date:

Dec 21st 2011, 01:59am

Nickname:

Razor

Email Address:

Age:

13

Sex:

Male

Wed December 21st 2011, 01:59am

So I'm in the eighth grade and I want to try to apply to a elite high school. But there are a few problems.

My school is not in the best district nor is it the best school to be at. Let's just say I'll miss some people a lot more than others.

I was in a advanced class when I started school. After just two months, I got moved to a regular class. A week later, I was put in a special ed class. And I've been stuck there ever since. Just because the teachers are either absent or slackers.

My grades are not too good for a elite high school and because of all the insanity that goes on there, they're barely good enough for a normal high school. None of my teachers are vouching for me or willing to. My classmates have their own problems and my so-called "friends" are laughing at me and calling me " retard".

I really just want to be able to get into a great high school and leave this disaster of a school for good. But how do I do it in my current position?

Jackson then logged out of the website and turned off his computer. He heard a shout from his mom.

His mom shouted " Jackson, dinner!"

Jackson put the baseball down on the table and walked downstairs to eat.

The next morning, Jackson woke up 3 hours early. He couldn't go back to sleep so he decided to go do something. He stuck his head outside the door and looked both ways. Everyone was sound asleep.

He turned on the computer. The first thing he did was check his email like normal. One of the first new emails was a reply. It was HelpLink! Jackson was excited. Someone had actually taken time out of their own just to listen to his problem. He clicked on the email and began reading.

Wed December 21st 2011, 03:18am - Samantha (LovesBrokenDream)

Hey Razor,

I'm going to assume that the application for this elite school asks for the name of the school you are coming from. They will take the reputation of your school and your district into consideration. After all, they can't hold you accountable for an education that you were never given the opportunity to receive. They will compare your achievements to the place that you're coming from, and go from there.

Also, grades are usually not everything for applications like this. Yes, prestigious schools pride themselves on having students who receive top marks. But, they also want well-rounded students who will be an asset to both the school and the community. Focus on those parts of your application - the parts that show your interests and the things that make you the amazing, gifted student that you are. Stressing about the grades will only make it harder for you to concentrate on the rest of your application. So, put them out of your mind and allow yourself to focus on all the reasons you deserve to go to this school.

Good luck with your application!

Jackson smiled. Samantha was right. He should just focus on why he deserved to go to Calmson Tech out of all the other kids. Jackson turned off his computer and turned on his lamp. He began writing on his notepad. He was writing the reasons why he should go to Calmson Tech.

Jackson put on his clothes for the day ( T-shirt, jacket and jeans) before setting his alarm for 6:30. He turned off the lamp and carefully snuck back into bed. Jackson waited 3 hours before he got up.

Jackson waited an hour before he left the house. He was smiling.

" Maybe today will be better" he thought.

And that day was one of the best ones he ever had.