Frisk looked both ways, then dived through the crowd of kids until she was amidst them. They were all so much taller than she was. She hunched over and walked quickly, ignored by all of them. She hoped… she hoped… not today… not with so many books… it would hurt this time… When she was outside the doors, she tried not to run to her bus. They would notice her then. Regardless, she walked fast. She took a deep breath. It wasn't really like they wouldn't follow her… But at least she might be able to get into a good seat… it was a long ride home… she might as well find a way to give herself enough room to open up that book again…

Frisk came near her bus, and walked along side it… There was a rush of movement out of the corner of her eye, a blur, and she jumped back. "Hey worm!" A fat pudgy arm put itself between Frisk and just approaching the door to the bus entrance. "Trying to get away from me, are you? Trying to make me fail? You get that done yet?"

"Weeeeell, I said I wasn't very good at math, but…" she fished around in her jacket, "I did finish it. Unfortunately, I did it on the run and couldn't properly fold it away. I apologize." she dropped the wad in his outstretched hand.

"Is this supposed to be funny?" he glared.

Frisk blinked. "The answers to the questions?"

"The teacher isn't going to accept this, you know that, right?"

"Uh… copy it?" she shrugged. The glaring got worse.

He scoffed. "You're telling me… you made me work?"

Man, your breath stinks… her nose twisted distastefully. "Oh no… no, I'd never do that."

He shoved the paper back into her hands. "Finish that and give it to me tomorrow morning. Meet me at the doors by the gym. If you don't…" he slammed his hand into the bus, making Frisk flinch and look away.

The other dude, not much taller than Frisk, with a squarish face stepped forward. "What about my paper?" his grey eyes were cold, but almost unsure. Of what?

"It's just writing…" she waved a hand, "Don't worry, it'll be done."

"It's not done yet?"

"What, did the teacher change the due date?" and then she added under her breath, "Leaches…"

"Hey!" pudgy slammed his hand into the bus again. "What was that?" he looked up, seeing a kid looking out the window at him. He flicked off the kid.

Frisk flinched, watching Pudgy smile. "Get it done. Work is due tomorrow." He dragged at her hair as he walked by, and she fell at the base of the doors.

"Frisk, get up already. Why you keep trippin anyways?" the bus driver groaned. "Learn not to trip over your own feet, please."

"Yeah… wouldn't that be nice… my feet are so clumsy." She clambered to her knees, grabbed her books, and scurried up the steps.

"You have even more books today!" a little boy exclaimed from the front seat. "How do you even carry that?"

"You're much stronger than you look!" trilled the voice of a girl with pigtails said to the right. Frisk passed three kids who looked up at her and asked:

"Hey, what does this mean?" a kid, the same kid that had been watching the bullies, held up his middle finger.

"Uh-?!" Frisk jumped back, waving a hand at them to stop. "Don't do that. Its bad. Its mean. Don't annoy anyone who does that to you, basically… They'll hurt you. You'll get in trouble."

"Oh." Eyes wide, they sat back, apparently educated.

Frisk made her way to the middle, where someone called: "Hey, sit here!"

She walked on and approached the empty seat, but a boy threw himself across it and propped his feet up so she couldn't pass. Moron. She took a step back, unable to effectively turn because of her backpack, but ended up crossing another leg and a foot and fell back. Sharp edges dug into her shoulders, and her senses jarred from the tense fall she was unable to block herself from feeling. "Ow…" she grit her teeth, sitting there for a moment.

"Frisk, you can't sit on the floor."

Frisk scooted back, and into the mostly empty space next to the door in the middle of the bus. She sat her backpack there and curled up beside it.

"Frisk!"

She didn't answer. She grabbed her book and started reading while paper wads were thrown at her.

"Kid, I'm gonna call your parents!"

"Good luck with that. He's always losing his phone." she called up the aisle, seeing the Bus drivers' reflection look away and frown. She sat down, made sure her bag and books to the left of her near the wall of the bus were secured and between her feet, because they might slide, someone would ruin her books again… steal her stuff… Frisk unfolded her book, but even if her eyes moved across the words, she just couldn't make any meaning of them. It was so hard to concentrate with all the people around her singing, and screaming randomly, and jeering at her to catch her attention. She wished she had earphones… but the last time she had used them on the bus, someone had stolen them. And then they had tried to steal her phone… but she'd run away.

"Whatcyha readin?" the voice came from the seat next to her, a high schooler with a lopsided grin, sweaty shirt, baggy pants struggling to stay up. He was chewing gum loudly.

"History." Frisk answered dully.

"What kind of history? World war stuff?" there was a stupid smirk on his face. Slander of history loading.

"Native American history. Old legends of Mt. Ebott." Frisk put simply.

"Mt. Ebott has history? Though it was just a pile of cow poop. Lots of farm country."

"No… it's a park."

"Oh, haha!" he punched another dude on the arm and they started a conversation on cow poop and farms.

"Idiots…" Frisk mumbled as she went on reading. Although at this point she was having a hard time concentrating without marveling at how hopeless these people were. Those little kids in the front… poor things had terrible influences. These people had no common sense. She looked out the window and let her thoughts wander till they settled, she wasn't going to get any reading done… not here amidst this madness.

YOU UNDERSTAND

Frisk jumped, and looking around, expecting to see someone… she could have sworn she had heard the same voice from last night… Blinking as she thought, she wondered at what it meant. There was no way this could be real. Taking a deep breath, and wiping her eyes, she opened up her book again, determined to distract herself.

The words began to disappear, and then rearrange themselves:

IF YOU WISH FOR SILENCE...

The edges of the book began to fade into darkness, and Frisk felt a greater heaviness behind her eyes. Panic made he heart race, and yet somehow that did nothing to keep the sleep from closing around her mind like claws...

SIMPLY SLEEP