It should've been an average Wednesday. She should have gotten out of her last class, one that she shared with no one, headed for the center of the high school campus (home of the "hole"), met up with her favorite people in the world, and went to Topanga's. But yet, here she was, thinking about how what would've been an average Wednesday turned into a nightmare.
"You exist. You exist, and you're weird, and you get in the way of where I'm looking, so stop being weird and stop being happy. Nobody should be as happy as you. Stop being who you are or I'm going to put my foot in your weird, stupid face."
Riley could feel the dread rise to the top of her throat. She tried to recall in her memories what Maya had said of her middle school bully.
"Look Riles, the farther she goes, the smaller she gets."
However, the bully had gone one step farther than what her title behavior suggested and followed through on her threat. She stepped hard into Riley's face. They were alone now, and she was no longer a small retreating figure.
Riley could taste the dirt of her bully's shoe mixed in with the taste of metal. Riley realized with a dull buzz of pain that it was her own blood, filling her mouth. Riley shut her eyes, only grunting weakly as the bully delivered a few swift kicks to her ribs. Suddenly, she felt an offending hand yank her hair and head up off the ground.
A thick, too-warm breath hovered by her ear, "And don't even think about letting you little friends know about this, as far as we know you tripped down the stairs like your usual klutzy-self."
Riley trembled in agreement, and to her utter relief the bully left. Riley crumpled into a ball and sobbed herself into unconsciousness.