The morning was grey a perfect reflection of Jack's life. He walked through the college gates, a ghost, in plain sight. People didn't just ignore Jack; they avoided him. To the world he was a "background character".
A scrawny, bamboo thin kid with a face mapped in acne and clothes that looked like hand me downs from a thrift store bin. Those who speak to him usually did so with a voice dripping in pity.
He wasn't charming or extroverted; he was just there. The irony was that Jack's mind didn't match his reflection. While he looked like someone who just crawled out of a gutter, his thoughts were sharp, complex, and observant.
He didn't hate college for the sake of books; he hated it for the people. Specifically he hated Daniel or " Denial" as Jack secretly called him. It was a petty name for a shallow man " oh look who it is" a rough jagged voice cut through the air. "jack where did you crawl out from today? The local dumps or the garbage bin?
Daniel's laugh was loud and hysterical. Behind him, his " friends" joined in like a well trained choir. They didn't laugh because the joke was funny; they laughed because Daniel was rich. And in this world wealth was the only power that mattered.
Jack's stomach tightened. He didn't have guts to fire back. He remembered the last time he'd tried, the taste of blood and feeling of grave against his skin as he was beaten to a pulp lingered in his mind. He lowered his head, trying to slip away, but Daniel wasn't finished " Oi dipshit where do you think you are going?" Daniel stepped in his path, pointing at his pristine leather loafers. " My shoes are looking a bit dull. What else is a peasant good for if not serving the king? Get down and polish them ".
Jack froze. He could take the insults but this? This was humiliation. His teeth drifted together, grinding in silent fury. For the first time, a spark of self respect flickered in his chest. He began to look up. His fists clenching, " You call yourself a man?" The voice was sweeet, like honey, but it carried a sting of a thousand bees.
Jack turned standing there was jill, Her long black hair swayed gently in the breeze, framing a face that didn't need a drop of makeup to shine. Her eyes were like twin stars captured behind glasses. She was the perfect contrast to Jack. While he shrunk away from the world she commanded it.
She carried herself with the grace of a woman who knew her worth. Jack felt a pang of bitter irony. He was in love with a girl who expected a man of strength, and he was currently anything but that.