Empty Hallway
Emptiness
The last door shuts
Silence
Quickly interrupted by
The last late student rushing to get behind one of those closed doors
Again, followed by silence
All the students in their classrooms
All the students but her

Alone,
She peers out of the bathroom
Into the empty hallway
Only compiled of loose papers and lost memories
Managing to find her locker, she twists the dial
3 to the left, 17 to the right, 10- She
Drops her hand
She allows it to hang in such away her bag
Drops off her shoulder and onto the ground
She pivots and presses her back and head against the cold lockers
Like the bag, she
Drops to the tile below her

Tears follow her down
She squints asking them to stay back
Forcefully, they burn as they swim along her cheeks
Leaving scars all the way down
Until they meet her chin and
Drop
She wishes she could do that
Drop off this planet that easily
Others do it all the time
Then they finally get noticed
The knot in her throat continues to grow
Leading back to short, uneven breaths

Her back pocket vibrates grabbing her attention away from her thoughts
She leans to her left side to pull the phone out of her right pocket
The screen lights up and reads,
“Jessica Laney and 4 others wrote on your wall..,” She
Drops the phone in her lap
Activating the second large wave of tears
Why me? What have I done to deserve this?
These comments stay with her
Judging her, second guessing her, hating her

High School was supposed to be exciting
Saved by the Bell definitely gave her the wrong impression
The Lisas don’t hang with the Screeched and neither do the Zach Morrises
It was all false hope: a lie
A dirty, untruthful lie
That prepared teenagers for nothing
High School is the bully who stole lunch money in the 2nd grade
Frightened spectators stand back watching the helpless victim
Thanking the bully, “At least, it’s not me today.”

No one would blink twice if she left this earth forever…
…No one notices she is missing class now…
…No one would notice her departure…

Ring!
She lifts her head, wipes her tears
Doors begin opening, students begin walking, noise begins filling
That once empty hallway