[my name 😋]
Mrs. C. K-—-
Writing Workshop
19 Oct. 2022

                                                      Will Things Ever Go My Way?
          "I mean, they HAVE to believe you!" Karter's friend, Waylen, exclaimed, following his best friend in the school hallway. "They gave you a black eye, Karter! And your parents don't believe you!?"
          Kart opened his school locker. "Mum and Dad think that I tripped on my way home," He said in his squeaky, high-pitched voice. "Now, I have to get to math class before the bell rings and I'm late," He started jogging to a classroom up ahead, trying not to bump into anyone. "See ya,Waylen!" The long haired brunette waved.
          "Later, Shopping-Kart," Waylen sighed and started heading to Science class. As he sat down in his seat (and surprisingly didn't get tripped), Karter got out his math booklet and a pen.
          "Alright, time for attendance!" The math teacher, who had her long, reddish-orange hair in two space buns, said excitedly as she closed the classroom door and took a seat at her desk. After a couple names, she got to Karter. "Katlyn? Is Katlyn Whitlock here?"
         "Oh, uhm, here!" He stuttered, now becoming aware of the snickers that lingered behind him. He turned around to glare at 2 football players and a cheerleader sitting beside each other at a group of desks.
          "Oh, how wonderful for ya to join us today, sweetie! Though, you should wear more girly clothes! Don't want ya bein' mistaken for a boy!" The teacher said sweetly and continued on with attendance. The snickers behind Karter continued. He yelled at them in his head, but it was no use. People can't read minds. He yelled to himself. They didn't stop until he turned around for the second time and glared. Karter sighed as the teacher asked for the class to get their homework out, which they did as told. The name repeated in Karter's head.
Katlyn. Katlyn. Katlyn.
          A few hours later...
          "Can you PLEASE stop talking about random fanfictions from the 2000s??" Waylen begged, getting his sandwich out from his lunch box. Yelling kids could be heard from everywhere in the giant cafeteria. Lunch time was always so noisy. Karter was rambling about cursed fanfics that were made in 2007 (totally NOT what I do).
          "He drank a cup of milk and got sent to a mental hospital." Karter said, pointing to his notebook with a drawing of Yakko Warner. Waylen sighed.
          "Well well, look who's here." One of the football players from math class said. The other football player and cheerleader followed behind him. "Do you have any lunch money for today???" He asked.
          "You DO know that you're not in a high school Disney movie, right?" Karter asked, slightly concerned for the bullies' grasp on reality.
          "Well, DUH!" the cheerleader replied offensively.
          "We're not stupid." The other football player who was next to the cheerleader said.
          "Right.." Karter "agreed" in a sarcastic tone, which just made the three even more irritated.
          "Just, do you have any of the money?!??! We don't have time for you dumb banter." The main bully asked, his blonde hair swaying when he shook his head in annoyance.
          "First off, no," Karter started. "And secondly, why would I give any to you?? You don't have a reason to use it, just whine to your parents and they'll give you half of their bank account." Karter rolled his eyes, which made the main bully even more angry. Rage showed it's presence in his eyes.
          "It's not my fault that you're poor!" He snarled. He looked like he was about to attack Karter when he noticed a teacher eyeing him with suspicion. "You're safe for now." He glared as the three walked away.
          Karter just looked at Waylen (who was basically shaking in his seat), shrugged, and went back to drawing. When Waylen was sure that the three bullies were gone, he sighed in relief.
          After school, Waylen decided to tag along with Karter and walk home with him. "Oh, I know we shoulda taken the bus home!"
          "You WANTED to walk home with me!" Karter replied to the worried Waylen. "My house isn't that far, we'll be fine," As the universe would have it, the 3 bullies appeared when Karter said that everything would be fine. "Never mind. You know what? It's to early in the day to deal with this," Karter tried to walk past the 3, but was stopped.
          "Oh, it won't be that easy. I said you would pay," The bigger of the three bullies said. Later..
          "Oh my gosh oh my gosh oh my gos-" Waylen screamed, rushing into the house, grabbing the first aid kit from the bathroom.
          "Waylen, I'm fine," Karter said. "Don't worry so much." Waylen rushed Karter into the bathroom and started to clean a wound that started to appear on the other's arm. "Dude, it's ok. They always do this, it's fi-"
          "THEY ALWAYS DO THIS!?!??!?!?!?!?!??!?!?!?!" Waylen screamed, which startled Karter.
          "Quiet! You'll make your parents upset with all that yelling!" Hushed Karter. Waylen started to put a bandaid on his wound
          "Don't worry, they're still at work, we're fine," Waylen reassured the other.
          "Alright, then," Karter replied, touching the bandaid on his left arm. He then looked down to see a drop a blood on his blue shorts.
          "Oh gosh, uh, here," Waylen handed the other some toilet paper. Karter then took a piece off of the roll and put it up to his nose. "Hey, if those bullies always beat ya up like that, how come the injuries don't show the next day at school?" Waylen asked, finally calming down.
          "Oh, I just hide it with makeup. Y'know how mum always gives me those makeup kits for Christmas, right?" Waylen nodded as he remembered those cheap makeup kits his friend complained about. "As if I'm ever gonna use them," Karter scoffed. Waylen started to clean the bloody scratches on Karter's legs from when he scrapped his knee on the ground.
           "Oh, speaking of your parents, aren't they worried you aren't home yet? It's getting pretty late," Waylen realized.
          "Yeah, I guess so," Karter replied. "Better get going. Bye, Waylen!" Karter got up and started walking to the door, not letting Waylen finish aiding him.
          "Wait, but, your scratches-" Waylen ran over to Karter, still holding the first aid supplies.
          "Don't worry, I'll be ok," Karter reassured him, starting to open the door when Waylen stopped him.
          "Here, take these," Waylen stated, giving the other a tiny bag filled with bandaids and some Neosporin.
          "Um, you do know that I'm allergic to Neosporin, right?" Karter asked, looking into the small cloth bag. Waylen slapped himself on the face.
          "How could I forget?? What the heck. Well, there's also some small wipes in there to clean your scratches. Don't die!" Waylen said the last bit in a jokeful tone as Karter walked out of the house.
          "Bye!" Karter waved as he started walking down the sidewalk. He held the bag and looked down at his baggy, gray t-shirt. There were spots of blood where his nose was bleeding. He groaned and tried to not think of what his parents would say. They'll probably think that it was from juice from lunch. He thought to himself. They never listen to me.
           After about 10-15 minutes, Karter arrived at his house. He walked onto the porch and opened the door to find his mother. Normally she would be near the door, probably organizing the shoes or some other meaningless task she does everyday, but this time was different. Karter got home so late that she was starting to make dinner.
          "Hey, mom," Karter said, walking over to the kitchen and sat down at the table. He started to fiddle with the bandaid on his finger. The smell of chicken and rice flooded his nose.
          "Oh, how was school, sweetie? And why are you home so late?" His mother asked calmly, her back still turned while making dinner. "Do you have a secret job to earn some money that you don't tell me about?" She laughed.
          "No, I just went over to Waylen's house," Karter responded. "Those kids beat me up again," His mother finally turned around to face him. Her dark, curly brown hair was pulled into a bun, and a pair of big, red glasses rested on her face. Her face looked slightly upset.
          "Honey, I know you keep saying that, but those kids deny all of it. In fact, one of their moms tried to sue us for blaming her son," his mother sighed, the memory popping back into her mind. "Luckily, the cops said to her that it was pointless to sue,"
          "But, I'm not lying, mum! I promise," Karter whined, getting up from the table. "Look," he started to peel one side of his bandaid on his arm off, revealing a pretty gruesome scab. "They did this and much more to me! Why don't you believe me?"
         His mother looked at him sorrowfully and sighed. "I'm sorry, Katlyn," the name punched Karter in the gut. "But there's nothing we can do. Now go get ready for dinner, your father'll be home soon." His mother turned around to continue making dinner.
          Karter sighed and started to head up the stairs. When he got to his room, he sat down on his white bed sheets. Posters of tv shows and art from his notebook filled the tan colored walls. A desk with a fish tank sat across from him. A dresser sat next to it, and next to that was a 4 foot rat cage. He sat down at his desk and started to do his homework.
          At the dinner table, his dad talked about his work. The man had a stubbly chin and a black pair of glasses. He wore a blue button shirt and had little to none strands of hair on his head. "So, how was your day, Katy?" He asked.
          "Well, those kids started to bully me again," Karter started, and his father cut him off.
          "Stop saying that. You just want to get attention, nobody is bullying you, Katelyn," His father snapped.
          "I'm serious," Karter replied, starting to get irratated. "And you don't even believe me!"
          "That's because it's not true! Why would I believe someone who's lying?"
          "I'm NOT lying!!"
          "Go to your room young lady!!"
          "FINE!"
          Karter pushed his chair back, got up, slammed his chair back to the table and stomped upstairs to his room. His father scoffed as Karter slammed the door to his room shut. "Teenagers.." Karter's mother looked at her husband in disbelief.
          "They NEVER listen to me!!" Karter silently yelled to himself in his room. "At this point, those bullies should be in JAIL!" He sighed as he sat down onto his bedsheets. After fiddling with his shoulder-length hair, his eyes glanced to a pair of purple scissors on his desk. The kid froze as he got an idea. "I know.."
          "Okay, why am I here again?" Waylen asked after climbing through Karter's room's window about 30 minutes later.
          "You can cut hair, right?" Karter asked, holding up the pair of purple scissors.
          "Well, yeah, my moms been teaching me how since Iwas 12- wait," the dirty blonde looked at the scissors and froze. "No, absolutely not," He stated. "What would your parents say!?" Waylen started to panic for no reason.
          "Geez dude, you're more worried than I am," Karter walked over to Waylen and put a hand on his shoulder. "I'll be fine, okay? Don't worry,"
          "Ok, I guess you're right," Waylen sighed. "To the bathroom!" After about 7 minutes, the two teenagers had set up the area for hair cutting. Karter sat in a chair with a towel over his body to not get hair clippings all over himself. There were towels under the chair to not get the floor all messy. "Okay, so how do you want it?" Waylen asked.
          "Maybe like yours?" Karter thought. "Wait, no, like Finn Wolfhard's!"
          "Alrighty," Waylen pulled up a photo of the actor on his phone and started to cut the other's hair. After about 10-13 minutes, he was finished. "Done!" Waylen exclaimed. Almost instantly, Karter had jumped out of the seat and went to look at the mirror.
          "I.." he mumbled, putting his hand up to his newly cut hair.
          "Oh no," Waylen worried. "Does it not look good? I'm sorry, I knew we shouldn't have done this!"
          "No, it's perfect. Thank you," Karter turned to look at his friend. He was starting to tear up from happiness.
          "Oh, well, you're welcome," Waylen smiled, walking over to his friend to hug him. "Would you like to tell your parents now? They'll probably freak over your hair,"
          "Yeah," Karter replied, pulling away from the hug. "Let's go," the two kids walked out of the bathroom and started to head to the stairs. They decided that they'll clean up the bathroom later. Waylen and Karter crept down the stairs, and heard Karter's mother.
          "Katy? Is that you? And is someone with you?" The two froze, not knowing what to say.
           "Um, yeah, and Waylen's with me." He got to the bottom of the stairs and tried to build up enough courage to open the door.
            "Well, come downstairs. I made some brownies," his mother responded, not questioning how Waylen got into the house in the first place. Karter then opened the door, revealing his newly cut hair to his mother. "Honey, your hair!" His mother rushed over to him. "I.." she looked to Waylen. "Did Waylen do this?" She asked in a calm voice.
          "Yeah, I-I asked him to," Karter replied. "D-Do you like it?" He asked, a bit scared. His mom smiled.
          "I think it looks lov-"
          "I hate it!" His father shouted from behind his wife. " Why did you do that? Why!? You KNOW you're not allowed to cut your hair without OUR permission!"
          "It's fine, hun-" his mother tried to say, but was cut off by screaming.
          "No, it's not! You're grounded, young lady!" He pointed to Karter.
          "What!? It's MY hair! I can do what I want with it!" At this point, Karter and his father's argument seemed like a full-on anime battle.
          "You listen to me-"
          "No! You listen to me for once!" Karter cut his father off. Finally sticking up for himself, Karter started to yell. "You never believe me when I say that kids bully me, you yell at me all the time, and always call me "young lady!" What if I don't wanna be a lady, hm!?"
          "What are you saying?" Karter's father asked in a stern voice.
          "I'm saying that I'm a boy, dad! My name is Karter, not Katlyn! And I get beat up by some kids everyday, I have a black eye! Nobody cares!" Karter screamed at his father, who was now really upset. He started to stomp closer to Karter and was going to scream at him again until his wife went in front of him and got into a defending position.
          "Get. Out." She scolded him, protecting the children behind her. When Karter's dad was about to argue, she yelled again. "I said, GET. OUT!" Karter's mother pushed her husband to the doorway, opened the door and slammed in when he was out of the house. She sighed and walked over to Karter, who was stunned.
          "I.." Karter stammered, trying to think of millions of apologies to say.
          "Shh.. it's ok.." his mother said, hugging him and kissing his head. "I support you, son," the comment made Karter break down in tears. Waylen stood behind the two, feeling a little awkward. When Karter was done, his mother looked up and noticed Waylen still their and smiled at him. "Now, does anyone want any brownies?" She tried to cheer the two up, who both nodded. The three then headed towards the kitchen.
          "Are busses supposed to be this loud?" Karter asked, getting onto a school bus for a ride home. It was a little while later, about a couple weeks, and up until this point, Karter's mother always picked him up from school. But she finally let him ride the bus home. After getting bullied, she never let him walk home again.
          "Yeah? Waylen replied, following the other. The two then sat down on a bus seat. "But don't complain, at least your mom is allowing you to ride the bus and not deal with those bullies,"
          "Yeah, now that dad is gone, things have been so much better. I like it being just me and mum," Karter said. "Dad always made things worse. At least mum didn't have to pay that much for the divorce. She said that she already had money saved up in case they ever had to get one," after about 10-17 minutes, the bus pulled up to Karter's house. "We'll, this is my stop. Bye, Waylen!" Karter hopped off of the bus seat and walked out of the bus.
          "Bye, Shopping-Kart!" Waylen exclaimed, waving from the bus window. Karter waved back and turned around to walk into his house. When he opened the door, his mother was sitting on the couch folding laundry. She turned to see Karter in the doorway.
          "Hello, Karter! How was your day?" She asked as she paused her Netflix show with the remote and walked over to Karter, hugging him.
          "It was alright, I guess," Karter confessed. "Not the best, but not the worse." He smiled and took his gray shoes off.
          "Well, do your homework if you have any. I'm going to finshed some chores around the house that I have to do," his mom said as she walked back over to the couch.
          "Alright, mum," Karter said, walking up to his room and getting his homework out. As he got out his math homework, he smiled. Finally, things were going good for him.