[Naina]

I'm tough. I can take care of myself. Life didn't leave me much choice.

Taking care of myself is my daily reality.

It just gets a bit harder when six boys older than you gang up.

They pounced on me as a pack of wolves. I'd told their girlfriends things they'd rather stayed secret. The girls hadn't liked what I said. I made sure of that. But they believed me. I made sure of that too.

There went a few relationships.

That wasn't my problem. Until half a dozen bigheads decided to make it mine.

The only bad thing about secret-revealing? Everyone knows who's squealed.

I stood still as they approached me. These guys can smell blood and fear meters away. One move and you're six feet under.

And I have no intention of losing this fight. I can psych these kids out, make them back down.

I think.

The first one pounced after five minutes of this stand-off. The others joined in.

I curled into a ball and took it. Punches, kicks, the whole bundle.

That's when the leader took out a knife.

I grit my teeth. I knew what was coming. He was going to cut up my face - "Slit eyes for a snake" it's called.

If I had a make up kit for every scar I have, I'd be the envy of every girl in town.

And I may not have much vanity but I do value my eyesight.

So I lashed out and hit him where it hurt. Hard. He screamed like a girl and lay still. Pressure points are very powerful things.

So is rage. A caged animal is ten times more dangerous than one left wild.

In half a minute, they backed off and I scrambled into the school building to clean my cuts.

Making excuses for a bloodied face is so inconvenient.

It's class now. Getting bored out of my wits and blogging away.

Teachers waste so much time on trivial topics. Right now, the blithering moron I call my maths teacher is doing Pythagorean triplets.

As far as I'm concerned, nothing could be more obvious than the simple equation a^2 + b^2 = c^2. End of story. Bye bye.

But no. She has to go on and on and on.

75% of what teachers say is:

a ) Useless fluff

b ) Random reproofs for the normal kids

c ) “We studied this when we were your age.”

d ) “We know how you feel but....”

e ) We’re sorry, sensible remarks from teachers is currently not available. Please call back later or leave a message after the click. Click.

Not that my darling classmates are much better. Oh, look, they're whispering and pointing at me. I predict that recess will not be much fun.

It wasn't.

Water under the bridge. This is what happens everyday. Welcome to the Hotel Nainifornia. You can check out anytime you like but you can never leave.

The only thing that remains constant is the hate I face everyday, my hatred reflected in their burnished faces. Kids are unpredictable. I've watched these people swear to be friends forever. I've watched them declare war on each other.

I've watched them lie, I've watched them cry. Half the time, I wish I could watch them die.

None of this will last. None of this insignificant trivia. The only thing that really lasts is loneliness and death. That's what happens when you trust someone. When you let them in.

No one gets inside me. No one. No one ever will. I don't trust anyone and I'm happy the way I am.

In the end, it's just you against the world. And you'd better make the most of what you've got.

Or you'll wind up seeing how much you can make of it in a crypt.

[/Naina]

All my bags are packed, I'm ready to go...

Not quite.

I'm packing my bags for a trip on Thursday. Can't wait.

Houston, baby.

Incidentally, does anyone online live thereabouts? I'm planning to meet a friend while I'm there but I'd love to meet someone I know online too.