“It was a few years ago. Before me and Noah became friends. I finally decided to come out to my parents. When I told my mother she was perfectly fine with the idea. She said that as long as I was happy, she’d be fine with it! But, when I told my father…

Selena can remember everything as she tells her story. From the nice and peaceful day that it was, to the calm and crystalline water.

*

The wind is gently hitting Selena in the face as the boat moves slowly on the water. The emerald-green trees are dancing all around her. Selena’s father is in front of her. He throws his fishing rod into the water. The sun is glowing above them and the birds are singing a happy tune.

“Any fish yet?” Selena asks.

“No.” her father says. “Hey! Want to try?”

“Of course!” the girl answers exited and takes the rod.

Selena watches the water carefully until she sees a little ripple, then, immediately, she starts to rill it in. The fish is strong, but she doesn’t give up. Her father helps her, but even with two, it is hard.

“Woah! This fish is putting up a fight!” Selena’s father says.

Finally, a fish is thrown in the air, sparkly water creating a small storm over the two. Selena catches it and her father pats her on the back.

“I’m proud of you!” he says and hugs his daughter.

Selena smiles and gives him the fish and the rod. He puts the fish in a bucket and then throws the rod again. When he doesn’t look, Selena grabs the fish from the bucket and liberates it. After that, she sighs. She told her mother about being bisexual and everything was fine. But her father was a little… Different. He did nice things and gave her compliments only when she achieved something he wanted. He never really cared about what she liked or what she wanted to do. Even now, he was so nice because she passed an exam. Usually, he would just ignore her. But still… He is a busy man, that must be why he doesn’t give her attention unless she does something extraordinary. He still loves her! She is sure of it! So he will still be proud of her even after she tells him her secret. It is time! Selena brings up her courage and says:

“Father… There is something I’ve been meaning to tell you about.”

“Sure, go ahead.” he says in his usual uninterested tone.

“For a while, I have realised something about me. Something that makes me different. I’ve seen that I like girls just as much as I like boys.”

Her father freezes. He looks at her, his expression turning to rage. He stands up and starts walking menacingly towards the scared girl.

“Don’t you dare! Don’t you dare say you’re like those crazy people!” the man shouts.

“Father! I…”

“You’re a freak! An anomaly!”

Selena starts to cry as the man reaches her and raises his hand. He tries to hit her, but she dodges and his hands land on the controls of the boat. Suddenly, the motor starts up and the two are thrown to the ground as the boat rushes towards the shore. Selena looks terrified as the trees start to get closer and closer, until… Everything goes black… Selena wakes up in the wreckage of the small boat. Pieces of wood have fallen on her and her dress is torn apart and wet. She can feel blood from a cut on the arm. Her beautiful dark hair is full of mud and leaves. Scared, she looks around her. Then, Selena sees her father, standing in front of her, blocking the light of the setting sun.

“Please… Help!” Selena manages to say with a weak voice.

Her father spits on the ground and gives her a look of disgust and hatred. After that, he turns his back on her and leaves.

“Father?! Father! FATHER!” Selena shouts, but the man ignores her completely.

Selena pushes the wood off her and tries to stand up. She gets a little dizzy and she leans on what remains of the boat. Selena rips a piece of her dress and covers the wound on her hand, then she falls to her knees, crying.

“Father…” she says full of sorrow. “No… I can’t let it end like this!”

Suddenly, Selena gets up, and, with the little strength she has left, she runs after her father.

*

“When I caught up with him, he again tried to hit me, but Noah saved me. After that, he divorced my mother and left us alone. My mother remarried. My stepfather is very nice and I love him to bits! All seemed to go well, until… My real father came to teach chemistry at my school…” Selena says with tears in her eyes.

“What?” I ask, shocked by what I hear.

“Yes. He is my real father. That’s why he hates me so much! And by becoming friends with you two, I’ve made him hate you too!” she says through tears.

“No! This is not your fault!” I say.

“Yeah! It’s not you who did this! He’s the one who is full of hatred. Hatred will always exist, that is why we must never listen to it!” Rafael says.

“But, he’s my father… Aren’t you mad at me?” she asks, her eyes getting red from crying.

“Of course not! Where did you get such ideas?!” I ask and hug her.

Rafael hugs her as well.

“But I’m the source of your pain. Just like he is!” she continues.

“You’re not the source of our pain, but our happiness. You’re the one who brought us together!” Rafael says.

“And you are not responsible for his actions! You are a good person who cares about people and who always helped them when they were in need!” I say.

Selena smiles and says:

“Thank you, boys! I really needed to hear that!”

We all hug for a few minutes, after which, she gets up with determination in her eyes.

“Let’s bring him down!” she says.

“Yeah!” me and Rafael shout together.

We all run back to our homes and dress in new clothes, as the ones we wore were wet from the rain. After that, we go back to school. We already have a plan! When we get there, Ms Smith awaits us at the front door.

“I hoped you’d come back! Doctor Lily told me everything! I can’t believe how he blackmailed you all! It is time to stop that monster!” she says.

“Ms, we have a plan!” Selena says.

“We must get those papers and the classroom camera footage! Also, we need the sign-in book and Doctor Lily’s testimony!” I add.

“But how are we going to do all that without Professor Harold finding out?” Ms Smith asks.

Harold was the chemistry teacher’s name. We tremble a bit just hearing it. But we don’t have an answer to her question.

“If only the four of us do it, we won’t be quick enough.” Ms Smith continues.

“I know… But where will we find…” I start saying but I’m interrupted.

“Help? Don’t worry! It’s here already!” Andrew answers from behind Ms Smith.

“I’m so sorry we didn’t do anything! We allowed that monster to hurt you! But we were too scared! The whole class has talked. We all want to help! But we understand if you don’t want to see us again.”

The whole class was behind him. Anna even made a “We’re sorry!” poster. They all looked miserable.

“Yes, while you didn’t help us then… That doesn’t mean we won’t forgive you!” I say.

“Yeah, man! We understand! In life we all make mistakes.” Rafael says as well.

“We’re just glad you’re here now!” Selena adds and goes to Andrew.

“Don’t worry, I know how hard it is to say something when you’re scared… He is my real father… So I always put up with what he said as well.”

“Oh, no!” Andrew says and he hugs her.

“Don’t worry. It’s fine now! I’m ready to stop his control over me. Are you?” she asks the rest of the class.

Everyone nods with excitement and we tell them the plan as well.

“I’m good with both hardware and software, but I need some help. Does anyone know how to hack that camera?” Selena asks.

“I do!” Andrew responds seriously.

The two smile at each other and go towards our classroom. Anna looks at me.

“I could go and talk to Doctor Lily! Mr Harold will never suspect me! I always get an allergy from something!” she says.

I nod and smile.

“Good luck!” I say while she departs.

More of our classmates offer for different jobs that will stop Mr Harold from finding out our plan. A few of them stationed themselves throughout the corridors to tell us if he’s nearby. Some started to set up distractions in case he gets too close. And some are giving us ideas about getting those papers.

“Maybe we could open a window and the wind will blow them from his desk?” Georgetta asks.

“No! That will never work!” Alex answers.

“What about disguising ourselves and taking them directly?” Finn asks.

“That will show him we have a plan to destroy him!” Hayden answers, annoyed at his friend.

I watch them a bit amused. Why didn’t I try to get to know them sooner?! Finn and Hayden are best of friends, so now they squabble furiously about how bad each other’s ideas are while Georgetta and Alex are trying to find a different solution. One more plausible. But sadly, funny and creative as they are, their plans are not going to work. Andrew comes from the classroom to check on us. He seems tired. He has a bit of smoke coming out of his clothes.

“The camera exploded, but we were able to get the footage in time!” he says with a weak smile.

I pat him on the back and congratulate him. Selena comes right behind him. She punches his hand softly.

“Like it wasn’t you who cut the wrong wire!” she says with a grin.

“Hey! I’m no genius like you!” he says.

“Shut up!” Selena says and blushes a bit.

The two laugh a bit, as Andrew makes some funny faces. Me and Rafael look at each other and smile with meaning. Someone’s in love! Through Andrew’s antics, we all forget about planning, until Ms Smith comes to us.

“I’m sorry to inform you, but Harold will not be destroyed by laughter! We still need to get Doctor Lily and those papers!”

We all stop laughing and go back to thinking.

“We could throw something at him and get the papers while he’s unconscious!” Alex says with an evil smile.

“That would make us guilty too!” I say.

“We need something in which he doesn’t get hurt and doesn’t find out in time that we took them.” Rafael says with a serious tone.

We think a bit more, and then, Andrew says:

“Wait! What if Ms Smith distracted him while we take the papers!”

“That is actually a good plan!” Hayden and Finn say in unison.

“And, if she pretends to hate us, he’ll be so overjoyed that he’ll be too distracted to check for the papers!” I say.

“That is brilliant!” Selena says and gives Andrew a small kiss on the cheek.

He blushes a lot! He can’t even talk anymore. Me and Rafael go to Ms Smith, who’s managing the rest of the class.

“Please tell me you’ve got a good plan!” she says.

“Yes! But we’ll need your help!” I say.

“I’m listening!” Ms Smith answers.

Me and Rafael tell her the plan.

“Hmmm. That has a chance of working, but it’s risky!”

“It’s the best we’ve got, Ms!” Rafael says.

“All right! I’m in! Let’s go!” she says and the three of us leave the group.

We go through the empty corridors. It is getting dark, and the storm outside is getting louder. It is a dangerous thing, what we are about to do. But we have no choice! Suddenly, we hear shouting. It is him! It is distant, but we can hear it coming from the end of the corridor.

“Class 10 B… He hates them almost as much as you!” Ms Smith whispers to us.

“Ms, what do we do if we get caught?” I whisper back.

“Then you’ll immediately go to Director Leon! I’ll hold him back.”

Me and Rafael look at each other. We know that Professor Harold isn’t above violence.

“Boys, I’m so sorry I didn’t stop him either!” Ms Smith continues. “I’ve tried countless times, but he always got away with an excuse. But this time he won’t! I’ll make sure of that!”

She smiles at us. We can see that she is determined but scared as well.

“Noah? Have I been a good teacher?” she asks suddenly. “I have always been afraid of becoming like… Him…”

I look at her. Rafael does as well. We hug her tightly and she looks at us surprised.

“The best!” I say.

She smiles, and a single tear comes from her eyes. She brushes it away gently.

“Thank you, boys! Now come on! Let’s bring that monster down!” Ms Smith says and we let go of her.

We enter the classroom 10 B. Mr Harold is screaming at a girl who got a sum wrong. Ms Smith goes to the girl and, with her back at the professor, smiles at her. Ms Smith wipes her tears, and the girl goes back to her seat. After that, Ms Smith looks at Mr Harold. He looks at her curiously, but she puts a disgusted face on.

“Professor! I heard what happened! I can’t believe that such good students turned into bullies! Please come outside! We need to speak about getting them expelled!” Ms Smith says.

“Of course, Ms Smith!” the chemistry teacher says and follows her.

He was so excited, that he forgot all his suspicions. Me and Rafael are left in the classroom, while the two teachers go outside. We smile at each other, then I whisper to the class to not make any noise. The two of us start looking through Mr Harold’s bag.

“Pretty good acting!” Rafael says while searching.

“She used to be an actress before becoming a history teacher.” I say with a smile.

I see that the class looks at us curiously.

“Professor Harold set us up!” I say. “And if we can prove it, he’ll be gone! But we need to find three papers!”

The whole class smiles at the idea of him being gone, then starts cheering us silently. Me and Rafael search everywhere. We can’t find them! It’s like they were eaten up by the bag! Or, put it into the lining! I look for an opening in the material. Yes! Found it! And, just as I expected, the papers are there! Me and Rafael look happily at each other. Overjoyed, he ruffles my hair. I laugh a bit. The two of us get things back in order and then move away from the bag. I hide the papers in my back pocket. After a bit, Ms Smith and Mr Harold come back in. He smiles at us evilly, then goes back to teaching. Ms Smith takes us out as fat as possible, and, once we’re in the hall, she asks:

“Did you get them?”

“Yes!” I say and show her the three papers.

“Then let’s hurry back!” she says and starts going faster.

I grab Rafael’s hand and the two of us follow her. When we arrive back at our classroom, we find everyone there! Even Doctor Lily. They all clap and, together with Rafael, I bow. The whole class congratulates us. Ms Smith goes to the teacher's table and sits down. She makes a phone call.

“Director Leon? I have some interesting news. Could you come to class 12 C? Perfect!”

When she puts her phone down, she smiles.

“I think we’ll win this time!” she says.