Chương 3: The Bullies

There are several people in my class that you should avoid at all costs. First, Theo Parker. He's the lead bully in my year group. He sometimes does the most unthinkable and stupid things, and he once got suspended for punching a kid in a younger year and breaking his jaw. He had been sniggering quietly to himself upon Cayman and Ellie's arrival. Then there's Ben Oxley. This thug is always with Theo Parker, and together they terrorise the school like it's their own personal playground.

He had spat on Cayman's shoe when he walked down the aisle. Thinking about Cayman's extreme desire for revenge, who knows what would've happened if Cayman had noticed? To me, someone who always kept to himself, those two were known as the bullies. Because they were bullies. Some of the school's most feared bullies. It was lunchtime, and I sat on a bench in the shade to read a web novel. That was what I usually did during break and lunch.

I wanted to read Night Hoppers again for the eleventh time to try and deduce the reason for Cayman and Ellie's presence. The main goal for the two, who were twins, was to collect as many items as they could to create a skill which would allow them to turn back time and save their mother from eternal suffering on some unknown planet. They had superhuman skills which defied Earth's laws of physics. They had access to magic. So why were they walking around on Earth acting like normal people?

What would happen once normal people find out that those two could use magic? There could be an uproar. I took a deep breath, then started reading the first chapter. Cayman and Ellie Grace. They were a complete enigma. One arrives almost contradicting the personality given to them in the novel, whilst the other appears exactly like how they were described in the novel. How could that be possible? I thought about going to the doctor after school and getting my delusions checked out.

"What have we got here?" I looked up. It had only been thirty seconds since I started reading, and that was when I realised I had made a mistake sitting out in the open alone to read the novel. I usually wouldn't sit out in the open like I did that day, and the reason why I did was because my usual spot at the back of the school grounds was already taken. There were two kids standing in front of me, a tall kid and a shorter kid.

"It's that kid at the back of the room, right?" Ben Oxley, the shorter kid, said to Theo Parker, the taller kid. Theo was tall, about six-foot two inches tall, and had slicked back blond hair. He was a menacing figure who towered above me, casting his shadow on my face. On the other hand, Ben was about an inch or two shorter than me and had a buzz cut. His face displayed a permanent scowl.

"It sure is," Theo replied.

"The one who doesn't care about anything but online novels. Rob Ryan."

"Who does he think he's robbing this time?" Ben chimed in.

"Will it be Ryan in our English class? That would be fitting, wouldn't it? You would be living up to your name!" Theo and Ben burst into a fit of laughter.

"We better protect Ryan from this guy. He could be dangerous."

"What will he be stealing? A pencil from his pencil case? There's not even anything valuable in that guy's pencil case to steal!" What were they saying? And what was that lame pun about my name? It's true that everyone used to call me 'Rob Ryan', but so what? That joke is over now. It was over many years ago. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"Let's see what this bastard is doing," Ben continued.

"Why is he always by himself minding his own business? Has he even got friends?" No, I don't have friends. But I like it that way.

"Is he reading one of those stupid novels again?" Theo asked Ben. It was clear they intended it to be a rhetorical question, since they grinned and sniggered at each other afterwards.

"You bet," Ben sneered, turning to face me and glaring at me.

"Let's see what it is then," Theo said.

"Gimme that." He snatched my phone out of my hand.

"Let's see what's on this piece of crap," Theo said, scrolling through the first chapter of Night Hoppers, scrunching up his face in disgust.

"Night Hoppers. 570 chapters. A thousand monthly readers."

"Ugh," Ben said, also disgusted.

"A thousand readers? Who the hell reads this bullshit? Just read paperback books instead, dummy. It's better for reducing screen time." He kicked my shin. Ow, that really hurt! I couldn't say that aloud though, otherwise the message that I was weak would be carried through and those two would just hurt me even more.

"Author, DND," Theo continued reading.

"Cayman and Ellie Grace are travellers who travel to different dimensions to find their mother. Wait, Cayman and Ellie Grace?" Theo began nodding.

"Didn't these two show up in maths class this morning?" Ben nodded. Oh dear. I thought I was done for, since those two were smart enough to make stupid deductions about Cayman and Ellie. Once they find out that those two were just characters, who knows what would happen then? I would be exposed. The most stupid rumours ever would be made about me. I would have to isolate myself from the outside world even further. I braced for impact. But-"Night Hoppers my ass," Theo added, and my breathing rate calmed down.

"Get a life away from your phone. Do something useful for once. Maybe listen to Ben's suggestion and read real books, unlike this Night Hoppers bullshit online. There are so many great books out there that you may like that can take your eyes away from your damn phone." An ordinary person would believe that Theo and Ben were giving genuine suggestions to me, but I knew straight away that they were only giving suggestions to mask the fact that they were bullying me. I couldn't take it anymore.

At that point the bullies were insulting my pride. They were insulting my love for reading web novels. They were insulting the community of web novel readers. They had my phone, and they could do anything they wanted with it. They could look at my search history, as well as the messages I send to my mother. I had to act.

"Hey! Give me my phone back!" I shouted. They were bullies after all.

"Looks like the little reader wants his phone back," Theo snickered.

"Come and get it." I reached out for my phone, but my five-foot nine body couldn't reach those long athletic arms of Theo's. Theo was someone who had managed to make the school basketball team in the past, so I, someone who had never stepped foot into a gym before, stood no chance against him.

"You ain't going nowhere," Ben shouted, suddenly punching me in the face. Bam! The impact sent me flying to the floor. I tried to get up, but the pain was insurmountable. At least I wasn't on a concrete surface. Theo grabbed hold of my phone while Ben continued punching me in the face until I bled. Bam! Bam! Bam! My vision was blurred; I thought I could see a small pool of ruby-red blood in front of me. I thought my nose was bleeding. I thought about Cayman and Ellie.

They had a whole plethora of supernatural skills that could be used to teach those bullies a lesson. They could surely save my butt from those two. But then I thought about what happened in maths this morning, and how I publicly embarrassed myself trying to start a conversation with supposedly my favourite protagonist ever. They were not going to help me after that incident. Surely not. If I shouted 'Cayman! Cayman!'

in the middle of the school grounds that could end up being an embarrassment to not just me, but also my favourite ever protagonist; my idol. That might make him hate me even more.

"Teacher," I wheezed, completely out of options.

"Teacher. I need air." Blood flowed down my face like a waterfall of red paint.

"Don't worry, little Rob," Ben said menacingly.

"These are just little punches, they won't hurt badly. It's not like I'm out for vengeance, wanting to deliberately hurt someone like a certain someone who had to unfortunately sit next to you." That was the last straw. That was a direct insult to Cayman and Ellie as well. I didn't want them to hurt my favourite protagonists too. Maybe this sacrifice was needed for the good of the protagonists.

Maybe they were on a mission, like they always were in the novel, and maybe they needed something from this world, and that something was here in Woking. Maybe I didn't need their help, and maybe they didn't need my help either. I should just leave them be and let them do what they need to do. I was just a helpless, weak boy with a strong passion for reading web novels. At that moment, I wished for a miracle to happen.

That something, or someone, apart from Cayman and Ellie, was going to save me from the horrors of Theo Parker and Ben Oxley. I wished for the ever-growing pain to subside. I wished to be at home, sitting comfortably on my bed with my brain drifting off to the world of Night Hoppers, away from this shitty reality. I wished to not go to school and end up being a victim of extreme bullying, not just from Theo and Ben.

I didn't know it at the time, but that day, in just a few hours, my wish would come true and my life was going to change forever.