The following day after school, Mr. John, his wife and the headteacher checked Alex in his ward. With closed eyes, Alex's chest rose and fell with every breath. Mr. John went to the toilet when Alex woked up.

His eyes squinted to the harsh sunlight and he yawned into consciousness.

"How are you, my dear? Do you still feel pains?" Rebecca held his face to check his injury. His swollen chin had suppressed.

"A little." Alex replied flatly and sat up. It's still painful. He tried to touch his chin but his mother stopped him by grabbing his hand.

"Don't touch it, okay?"

"Okay, mum." He smiled painfully.

"Dad spent the night... Where is he?" Alex glanced around with quirked brows.

"He just steeped out." Rebecca replied studying his dull eyes.

"Hello, Mrs. Ola." Alex greeted once he noticed her presence. "Good afternoon."

Although, Alex made a full recovery and became completely unaffected by the coma, he was at a critical stay of recovery while he received care and cure.

Mrs. Ola, the headteacher of Greater Heights Academy, asked if it was true that Alex had been treated with contempt by some of his classmates in school. And if Eric hit him at school yesterday right before break.

"Yes... Is it true what I heard? That you are mistreated my your classmates?" Rebecca pressed in support of the headteacher.

"Because my parents work for the Williams family, they crack insultive jokes at me. My classmates calls me names and I'm not allowed to participate in activities at school else, I get blamed. I kept it as a secret. I am tired of keeping it to myself. Eric was furious at me because I answered a question in class. I'm not even allowed to talk."

"What? Why did you keep this to yourself?" Rebecca cried. "You even told Bunmi not to tell anyone. Why?"

Alex eyes slowly misted over as he thought about how he hid his feelings. Revealing it felt tough, he had made it a secret over the years.

"The idea of being transferred to another school scared me. I might be faced with something else there. I love it here. I my school, my teachers and parents. I enjoy learning with Bunmi around, to be her helping hand especially in school. I was willing to endure till I complete my basic education. It's just some months away till I go to the secondary section, I didn't know why Bunmi revealed the secret." He collapses in ragged sobs. His condition made his more empathetic.

Was it his weakness or strength? Alex's words touched Mrs. Ola and moved her to tears. Her lips pulled down as she wiped the pouring tears. 'How long was he going to tolerate such?'

"Why won't she? Don't you realize that this has caused something else too you. How can you learn in fear of others. And I didn't realize it until now?" his mother blurted at him. With distress in Rebecca's heart, she whined at Alex, close to tears.

Then the tears stung her eyes, her tongue watered as she gulped in the pain of hearing Alex say those words.

“I never thought it would result to this, mum. I'm sorry.” Alex's eyes begged hers for forgiveness.

Hurt to the bones, Rebecca held unto his shoulders and kissed his head. Her withheld cry turned to whimpers as she cuddled her son. “Why, Alex... Silence solves no problem.”
Mrs. Ola sniffled as she watched tears pooled in both the mother and son's eyes. Being bullied was a regretful experience indeed.

"Let them judge and misunderstand you! Let them gossip about you.”Mrs. Ola ad iced once Rebecca pulled out of the cuddle. She sat right next to her son on the sick bed. And he leaves to his mother's arm.

“Their opinions aren't your problems. You should be yourself and accept your situation.” The head teacher continued. “Don't give others the chance to bring you down despite who your parents are. You're smarter than those kids, who dear treat you any less. It not your duty to protect Bunmi if you can't defend yourself, understood?"

"Okay, ma." his sad eyes looked up at her.

"Trust me, Mrs. John." The head teacher faced Alex's mother. "I didn't know something like this happened in my school. It's still surprising. I will address this issue at school."

"Thank you ma." Rebecca sniffed, still in tears.

"Who usually bullies you at school?"

"Bose, Boma, Eric, Lizzy... All my class mates have bullied me. They're a group." his hoarse voice reported.

"I would warn the students and their parents." Mrs. Ola assured then she excused herself and went back to school.

Once Mrs. Ola got to the school, she walked directly into basic 5 to address them on the issue.

"Good afternoon, ma. You're welcome to basic 5. God bless you, ma." They chorused the greeting.

"Every one of you, fall on your knees." she demanded. Then she picked up the pankere cane on the teacher's desk.

The students raised a brow, murmuring at why she would do this. It was a rule in her school that teachers shouldn't beat any student. Pinching their ears and slapping their backs was enough to discipline the kids, but that instant, she really wanted them to learn.

Mrs. Ola was a demure young lady who was found of kids, but she hated the term, bullying.
"If any teacher bullied you, none of you would attend school the next day. But no teacher bullied any student here, instead students bully student? Who are you learning from? Being abusive was unacceptable in this school. The notion must be corrected before it becomes a trend. Eric and Boma, come out here!" she snapped her fingers.

The boys looked at themselves with raised brows and gulped on their dry saliva as they proceeded toward the front of the classroom. They both hated the situation.

Mrs. Ola grabbed their shots and whipped them on their bare legs. Ten lashes each. The beatings made the boys weak, they limped back to their desk to kneel, like dying frogs. Eric cried out loud, and Boma wept bitterly. He didn't give Alex the blow, but he covered up and it wasn't the first time that Boma treated Alex with such greed, hate and jealousy. He always treated Alex as a dirt to avoid.

"I hate the fact that Boma and Eric denied attacking Alex yesterday!" Mrs. Ola snapped at the children.

Some of the students face turned red due to the anger and hate that they have been exposed. Others who believed that insulting Alex was a good deed contempt the fact that they were serving punishment because of a driver's son.

"That young boy almost lost his life. If anyone insults, mistress or abuses anyone in this school again? I will discipline you in front of the assembly. I will record your punishments and forward it to your parents so you'll think twice before bullying anyone. Bullies ends up in prison, wherever you find yourself! Be you educated or not, you'll end up as a poison to the society. This is just a warning!" she ranted with an heavy sigh.

"You all are a disgrace to this school. I will give your parents a call for a meeting on Saturday. If you're a goat, stay at home because this is a school and not a zoo where animals are kept." she cracked her knuckles.

Some students were already crying due to the kneeling and the headteacher's threat. "Students of Basic 5! You should serve as a good example to others but instead, you choose to be the worse! You all will kneel throughout today, even while writing, till closing period. Now, go and call the next teacher!" Mrs. Ola emphasized, pointing towards the door.

Bose's nose flared while her flaming heart made her sweat.

"Where is the class monitor?" The head teacher's eagle eyes peered at the Bose, as she stood from her kneeling position, wiping her dusty knees with a special, pink hanky.

One could see Bose's throbbing veins in her neck. The rigid cords were visible enough to notice. Her eyes was red and bulgy, and her wobbly legs strode like a flamingo as she majestically strolled out.

Mrs. Ola watched her with slacked jaws, yet, she tried hard to control her fueling anger.

"Can't you walk?" The head teacher threatened to beat her while she ran out of the class.

Others laughed at her, though, it wasn't even funny.

A month later, Alex was discharged from the hospital. He missed a month of learning, due to the incident. But he was much stronger and healthy. Once he stepped in, Eric and Boma walked up to him.
"How are you feeling now?" Concerned, they asked in unison.

Amazed, Eric pressed his lips together and looked away. It felt different. 'what changed?' he wondered.

"Better." Alex replied.

"I want to apologize for causing you so much pain." Eric brought up.

"Me too." Boma agreed.

"Sorry for bring an idiot." Eric muttered in sincerity, then he stretched his right hand to Alex. "Can we be friends?"

It surprised him that it wasn't for a slap, but and handshake.

"I want to be your friend too. I'm bad at mathematics." Boma confessed, timidly bitting his lower lip.

Alex gasped and froze. His hand covered his nose and his eyes widened at the both of them in shock.
They smiled at him, and that gave him an assurance .

Alex rose to his feet and wrapped his arms around their shoulders at once, in a firm hug. Eric and Boma tightened the embrace. It moved them how easy it was for Alex to forgive them. Bose who was watching three of them gave them an unblinking glare. With pressed brows, Bose rolled her eyes and walked away.

"Oh God, I can't breathe! I can't believe that those fools are already swayed. I would never be that predator's friend no matter what!" her arms wrapped against her chest as she promised herself. Thinking of what next to do.