My body was weak; I tried to react, but I had no strength. My stomach hurt too much to get up.
I tried to shield myself with my arms, but two hands opened up, and again, an intense pain in the stomach. The hands let go of me, and my vision was blurry.
"Congratulations!" I heard, but I couldn't identify the voices; there were at least three male voices.
Biff!!
A punch to the face. I had no strength left. I started to give up until I felt a slight burning sensation.
"Hahaha, it's going to leave a mark!" I heard from my left, like a joyful shout from a blur slightly larger than the other two.
"Come on, put the glasses on him! He needs to look good for the photo!" I heard from the right, and a third person put my glasses on my eyes.
When I heard those words, I started to sweat cold. My hands were cold, and when I looked forward, a flash.
My beaten body was photographed to humiliate me before everyone.
"We're your only friends, aren't we? What would you do without us? Hahaha!" One of them, who was smoking a cigarette, laughed while taking more pictures of my terrible condition.
My face was dirty, my head was bruised and scraped, my shoes were taken off, and my feet had been beaten with stomps.
My stomach was kicked, and a cigarette was extinguished on one of my arms.
TRRRIINNN
"The class is over; let's go," one of them said, leaving me on the ground after being beaten. "History class. The teacher is boring; we better run."
I stayed there on the ground, without the strength to get up, my feet injured. Trying to get up, I fell.
The adrenaline had already passed, and the pain began to hit all my bones. As I tried to get up again, I heard laughter from nearby windows.
"I feel bad for the loser." "They must have made fun of him again." Those were the voices of girls who watched the whole scene. I couldn't see their faces, but their voices were familiar.
Stop laughing, please, I can't take it anymore.
"Loser!" A shout. "If it were me, I would have killed myself by now!"
Please, don't laugh at me.
[I want to die... do I have to go through this?]
The warm blood on my hands was slowly dripping. Sitting with my back against the wall, I closed my eyes slowly as I felt all those emotions.
Days when I was constantly beaten, days when my only good moments were when I was asleep because reality hurt me just by breathing.
[What is it like to die?]
These cursed thoughts wouldn't leave my head anymore.
[Kill yourself; it will be better for everyone.]
Get out of my head.
[You're worthless.]
Please, leave me alone.
[You're useless.]
Go away.
The voices stopped for a few seconds. My cold body began to rise; I felt all the pain again. When I looked ahead, the whole world started to catch fire, a fire as black as the darkness of my thoughts.
I looked, admiring the sight, but my own voice passed through my ears, a whisper filled with regret, resentment, and sadness.
[Die.]
The darkness consumed the entire world that passed through my eyes until it finally reached me.
WOOF!
I quickly got up and looked ahead; I saw a small, strangely beautiful wardrobe, luxurious, to be more precise.
I rubbed my face; my hands felt the wet sensation as I touched it. "Tears in... it was a dream."
I looked around; my consciousness slightly returned to normal. I managed to remember who I am and where I was.
"I can't go on like this," I said.
"Hump."
"Hm?" I heard a slight complaint coming from my right side, and when I turned, I saw a familiar scene again.
A blue-haired girl hugged a teddy bear while sleeping on the floor rug.
"Why have a bed if you're always going to fall off it?"
She was sleepy, but she slightly woke up, rubbing her eyes with her hands and yawning. "Good morning, Dante," she said, and I just nodded.
"Good morning, Sleeping Beauty."
Dante got up; he looked at the clock and realized he was almost late for the first class. Coincidentally, the first class was outside the Academy rooms, in the greenhouse next to the arena where Sara and Dante almost destroyed during their previous battle.
Dante wasn't worried; he could easily get to class before it started. What mattered?
"What fatigue," he said as he stretched before heading to the shower.
Sara was still in bed getting ready, so he went ahead to the bath. He wanted some time alone to digest what had happened overnight.
Dante's expression changed completely, from a friendly face to a hurt, sad, and hopeless one.
"How long do I have to stay here?" Dante said as he sat on the shower floor.
Hot water fell over his entire body; the water soaked his red hair and left it completely over his face as he looked at the floor.
"What a depression..." He said with his thoughts focused on everything that has been happening.
"I'm sinking," he said again.
"Every step, every moment, every breath. I'm consuming myself every day with these complicated emotions, and my memories have been killing me softly."
"Damn it." Dante said getting up, and everything around him turned into black flames, and the water evaporated; his body dried, and his hair became completely smooth as always.
"This fire has been getting stronger every time I think of something bad; this is going to be problematic." Dante said looking at his hand completely in black flames.
His eyes closed, and the flames disappeared.
"I have to go to class." He said; then, flames consumed him, and the uniform appeared on his body.