He came running at me. Luckily he didn’t seem to have any weapons, so I had chances to beat him. He was about to reach me. As his fist flew toward me, I ducked and rolled to his right, scrambling behind him before he could react.

  “What the fuck was that?” Shouted the thug confused.

  Without looking back I started running, leaving that guy behind.

  “Hey!! Fucking coward, comeback and fight!” I could hear from the distance.

  I thought.

  As I was about to reach the end of the street, I looked to my left for a moment and in an alley I saw two guys that I thought I knew, but I wasn’t sure of it, so I continued running. I managed somehow to reach the end of the street. As I came out, I slowed down for a bit to recover my breath. I look at my phone and it says that it is 4:48 AM. I start running again. My foot is hurting more than ever and I’m really tired. Through the run I looked again at the phone. 1 kilometer left. Time, 4:52. My foot screamed with every step, but stopping meant failure.

  I ran faster, I couldn’t believe it. I think that I haven’t run that fast in my whole life. It was painful, really painful. In the distance I could see my house. I was almost there. I gave my all in that last distance. “Aaaaaaaaaaaaaa!” I shouted as I was getting close.

  Suddenly my hurt foot makes me trip, making me fall to the ground. I open my eyes and I take out my phone. 4:58 AM. While on the ground, I look at what I have in front of me. A sensation of resfresh hits me.

  My hand was touching my home entrance. I crawl through the ground until I enter my house, I close the door and I could finally rest.

  Beep, beep, beep. “Mmmm, what is that? Who the fuck is making that noise, let me sleep”. Beep, beep, beep. I open my eyes. It was my phone's alarm. It was time to go to school. I tried getting up. My leg hurt, but not as much as yesterday. I did my usual and I went to school.

  I couldn’t walk well. My foot made me be in pain every time I put it on the floor. So, I was pretty much limping the whole way. Inside the walls of the school, I crossed paths with Karla.

  “Hey, Mark. Good morning!”. On her face as always a big smile. I didn’t know why, but every time she smiled, I had this uneasy feeling. I decided to ignore her and just walk faster.

  “Why are you not answering me?” She caught up to me in a second.

  “H-hey”. I answer by trying to put a smile on my face. I couldn’t and it was disastrous.

  “Pfff. Haahahahaha”. She started laughing out loud. “Were you trying to smile? Hahahaha”.

  “By the way, Mark. Is your foot okay? You seem to have some problems with it”.

  “Ah, it’s okay, d-don’t worry”. Every person around was looking at us. I glared at them for a second, they put their sight away and they just continued their walk. I sighed

  Karla suddenly grabbed my hand. “Come with me to the nursing of the school”.

  He carried me to the nursing door. Karla knocks. “Hello, is someone inside? I got a patient”.

  No one answered, so I just pushed the door and it opened. “Can we really go in if there is no one?” Asked Karla worried.

  “You dragged me from the main gate of the school, and now you are worried about some shit?”

  We get in and Karla turns the lights on. It was a room that I don't remember ever being in. It had some stretchers. Separated each with some curtains. It also had a desk that had some stuff on it.

  “Well, get on one of the stretchers and take your trainer off”. Said Karla.

  “You know what, I’m going. I already told you that I was okay”. I said walking away while limping. She suddenly ran and stepped in my way in front of the door.

  “Get out of the way I’m going to class”. I said

  “I’m not getting out of here until I see that you are really okay”. Said Karla while looking at me fiercely. She looked really small from my perspective. Just like a little animal.

  I sighed. “Okay you won”. That put a smile on her face. I was taken aback. That one didn’t feel like the others she has done. The smile she just did right now, was a true and honest one.

  “Now, please. Sit on the stretcher and take out your trainer and socks”. Said while pointing to the one behind me.

  I did as she said. To be honest I was curious too. I didn’t get to see in which state my foot was yesterday, not even from the training nor from the running.

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  As I was taking out my trainer Karla started talking again. “It may not seem like it, but my dream is to become a chiropractor. So I have studied something on my own”. She kept yapping about other stuff.

  She then finally took out my sock and both of us remained speechless. She looked at me. The smile she had before disappeared after looking at my foot. I was impressed by how its condition was.

  “S-so, what is your diagnosis doc?” I tried adding a bit of humour to this tense situation. Karla started reacting again.

  “Ermm, I.d-don’t kno..” As she was about to talk someone opened the door and saw us.

  “What are two students doing here? Are you guys making out?” Her sudden comment made Karla blush and ran out of the room without saying anything.

  “What’s with her?” A woman came inside the room. She was an adult and was wearing a white coat. She had blonde hair that was collected in a ponytail.

  “Are you the nurse of the school?” I asked out of curiosity.

  “Well, well. If it isn’t the ‘fallen king’ of the school”. Said in a mocking tone. I clenched my fist out of anger, but I calmed down.

  “It’s just a joke. Don’t take it that seriously. So, why are you here?” She then looked at my bare foot. “Oh, damn. It has been a long time since I’ve seen an injury like that. You have the instep bones broken. The ankle has a second degree sprain. Just look at how purple and swollen it is.

  “Let me guess what you have been doing”. Said the nurse. I listened to her, curious about what she was about to say. Just to see how wrong she could be. She rubbed her chin for a bit.

  “You have been training first. Putting a lot of stress on that foot. Probably you were hitting something like a sack or some dummy”.

  “You are rig..” I was about to talk, but she cut me off at that instant. “I haven’t finished, kid. Then you went running. A long distance that is somewhere between 15-25 Km. A big distance to be honest”.

  She left me completely speechless. She didn’t miss anything. “Just who are you?”

  “I’m Mary Santos and as you have noticed now, the nurse of this school. By the way kid. You have been doing some pretty hard training, haven’t you”. She said

  “M-maybe”. I answered, starting to get anxious and nervous.

  “Who told you to do it? Was it Mon?” Asker Mary while sitting down on the room’s desk.

  “Wait! What do you know about Mon and me?” She then started laughing. “I know only a few things about you, but I have known Mon for a long time. You could say that we ‘worked’ together”.

  I take a peek at my phone and I see that I’m getting late to class. “Fuck! I’m late”. I exclaimed.

  “I won’t allow you to go to class right now. You need to be treated right away. I didn’t know you cared so much about getting late to class”.

  “Don’t worry I’ll give you a medical certificate for the absence”. She said, making me feel more relieved.

  “Can I request something”. I asked. She looked at me confused. “Go on”.

  “Today I need to run again the same as yesterday. So, can you set up that foot so I can run”.

  She smiled cockily while looking at me. “Mmmm. I could do something, but you have to ask properly”.

  I swallowed my pride completely. “P-please”. I said looking at her.

  “Mmm. I guess that works”. She then gave me a pill and proceeded to bandage my foot. “Take the pill the moment you have to run. You can now go to class”. I said thanks to the teacher and got out of that room.

  “You are exactly like him”. Muttered the teacher.

  After that I went to class and handed the teacher the medical certificate to excuse not being in class. During the whole day Karla didn’t talk to me even once. Not that I cared about it. With the sound of the school bell lunchtime arrived and before I could get up from the table Ryan and Ethan approached me. They both were wearing hoodies. Ryan still had that bandana.

  They looked at me not smiling but with a serious face.

  “What is it now?” I asked. Trying to be as calm as possible.

  Without saying anything, Ryan suddenly punched my face in front of everyone in class, Which made me fall back. I get up, take my chair and I throw it to my right. I then slam my hands on the desk.

  “What the fuck was that for? Are you still mad from the bullying?”

  “You motherfucker! You still act as if you knew nothing”. Said Ryan. I haven’t seen him this angry ever.

  I take my hands out of the table and I put them inside my pockets. “I don’t”.

  “What did you fucking do with Chris? You fucking bastard!” Shout Ryan. Everyone in the class was looking at me.

  “Wait. I don’t know what the fuck you mean. Is Chris missing or something?”

  “He disappeared yesterday without saying anything. He wouldn't do it, he always tells me everything. So, something bad had happened like a kidnap or someone killed him”. Said Ryan nearly crying.

  “Hey. I may have bullied people. But killing or kidnapping? Nah. That 's too much”. I said.

  “You must have done it! You must have been really mad at him for the punch of that day in the gym”.

  “Stop saying that I did it, I really didn..” I could feel everyone's glare on me. It has always been like that. When I was little, they would sometimes accuse me of stealing things when I didn’t and no one ever believed me. I looked at Ryan for a second and then around me to everyone and I just got out of there. “Come back here you fucking bastard!” I could hear Ryan saying behind me.

  Outside the class in the hallway I could see Karla. She was looking at me with a disgusting face. I looked at her tilting my head and for the first time in my life a soft smile appeared on my face. I said with my lips to her. At that moment her expression changed and she looked back at me with a face that resembled regret and sorrow.

  Luckily today we didn’t have any class after lunchtime, so I just went home. On the way home, I started thinking about everything that happened today. What really happened with Chris? What is the relationship of the Nurse called Mary and Mon? What did Karla feel when I looked at her?

  In a place, far from Ireland…

  BAM! An impact that sounded like a bomb. The punch that made that sound broke a wall. The fist bleeding from its knuckles.

  “Is this how it is done, master?” A guy, around the age of a high schooler. Not wearing a t-shirt and showing his defined physic. His stance is strange but simple. The high schooler settled into his stance, feet planted. His lead foot pointed forward, knee slightly bent, while the back foot angled outward, heel grounded, ready to drive power into his strikes. His hips were coiled. His fists were up, the lead arm extended just enough to threaten, the rear hand guarding his ribs like a shield.

  “Not bad. You have passed the average Kyokushin karate user level. Now look at your right” Said Cruz, who apparently was now training someone. He pointed at a at least three times thicker and bigger wall. “Start punching that one”.