"You're late," a male voice drawled.
Lu Che stiffened, clutching the straps of his backpack tightly as if they were a life supporting machine. Right there at the center of the alley, stood a group of boys watching him with intimidating looks.
Their leader Fan Xiao,dressed in faded school pants with his white school shirt hanging loose, stood leaning against the wall smoking a cigarette. His brown hair locks were dishevelled, faded scars on his face, cheeks hollowing everytime he puffed. His five lackeys stood infront of him,their appearance messy but in a cool way. They were the typical delinquents,the infamous bullies crew; the kind that gave other students endless nightmares and seventeen year old Lu Che was one of their victims,always been since freshman year.
"Come here," the leader ordered, pushing himself off the wall and dropped the remaining cigarette , crushing it with the sole of his shoe.
Lu Che gulped hard,his tiny frame visibly shuddering under their malevolent gazes.
"What? Disobeying me now?" The leader taunted.
"I....uh," Lu Che stuttered,his lips quivering,his palms sweating out of fear. Then with slow robotic movement,the boy walked towards them ,his feet feeling heavy all of a sudden.
"Chief, he's wasting our time," one of the henchmen pointed out, casting a wicked glance at the timid boy.
Fan Xiao walked towards him with slow intentional steps,his lackeys trailing behind him. When they reached near the target,the leader grabbed a fistful of the boy's hair , yanking his head backwards.
"Getting a little bold, aren't you?" The leader jeered, stepping dangerously close.
He pulled the boy's hair harder,then without warning he pushed the boy with an impact that had him kissing the rough pavement.
Lu Che winced in pain. Fan Xiao then walked towards him with a wicked glint in his eyes like a predator. Lu Che raised his head slightly only to catch the sight of them walking towards him. He recoiled in terror, dragging himself across the alleyway towards the wall as if it would shield him from the bullies. He pulled his legs up,his knees touching his chest,face buried in his arms that were tightly pressed against his kneecaps.
Fan Xiao crouched in front of him,an evil smirk tugging at his lips.
"Look at me orphan boy," he commanded in a low dangerous voice.
Lu Che trembled vigorously like a leaf on a windy day.
"Not so obedient," Fan Xiao remarked, sounding ominous. He instantly pulled the boy's legs inevitably revealing his tear streaked face. Then he grabbed the boy's chin harshly compelling him to look up.
"You've been avoiding me all week," Fan Xiao said pouting,his voice strangely soft pretending to be hurt,"I missed you,you know,"he continued in a sickeningly sweet voice," Now that you're here let me show you how much I missed you,"the leader said with a sadistic smile before slapping him across the face,the sharp sound echoing in the alley. Lu Che immediately raised his hand to soothe the sting on his cheek but before he could do so, his wrists were yanked back and a tie wrapped tightly around them. Fan Xiao delivered several harsh slaps each echoing louder than the other. Lu Che screamed in pain and his cries only fuelled their urge to ruin him.
" Boys, it's your turn,"the leader singsonged and his lackeys stepped forward eagerly, brimming with excitement like hungry wolves at the sight of meat. They began kicking him everywhere, trampling and crushing him like an ant. Like many times before,he cried and begged and even hoped for some hero to pop out of nowhere and save him but unfortunately he wasn't that lucky. This group of boys had always targeted him for the last three years, beating him up, insulting and demeaning him and even making impossible demands. For three years,now being the fourth one he had silently endured it all because the school authorities could never take action against the boys. If they did the school would lose its strongest shareholders so even the principal didn't dare to offend them.
"Enough boys time's up," the leader suddenly announced,his sharp authoritative voice cutting through the air. With one final kick the quintet reluctantly stopped the assault.
Lu Che's body ached everywhere and worse of it all ,his hands were still bound by the tie. He lay sprawled helplessly across the alley,his vision hazy his eyes threatening to close,his body throbbing painfully. The last thing he heard before losing his consciousness was the fading sound of their maniacal laughs.
Cold droplets seeped through the fabric of his school uniform sending a chilling sensation down his spine. Lu Che blinked his eyes open only to see massive droplets of rain falling on him. The cold made his pain worse. His white shirt,stained with blood clung tightly on to his tiny frame. He groaned in pain as he tried to lift himself from the ground. Despite the unbearable pain,he managed to get up on his feet , fixing the straps of his backpack.
"No one came," he said in a melancholic tone dragging himself across the dark alley. There wasn't a single soul there,. He should have been afraid but the pain gnawing at him didn't give room for other emotions. His swollen face held no emotion. He was like a broken doll,too broken to feel. As he walked down the alley he spotted something that made his breath hitch involuntarily.