The Protest!

[Karice]

Part 1

(I decided to write this story. Dave is going to soon have a protest for gay rights,but in later part of the story......

This will be a little long lead into the protest......

)

Jack Wilson came out of the closet in our school, Marshall Johnson Academy, a prestigious school in Jacksonville, Florida. It’s an all boys' school. Lots of students jeered and threw items at him. They called him queer and threw items at him.

At lunch, no one wanted to sit by him. When he sat down, the whole table cleared. He started eating lunch. He had a dejected look on his face. I felt sorry for him. I picked up my lunch plate and sat next to him. I started eating lunch with him. A lot of “Johnies” gasped in shock. But Jack looked at me gratefully. He was gratefully. He was grateful to have someone eat lunch with him.

“Thanks, Dave,” Jack said happily.

“No problem,” I said. We continued eating lunch. Paul Sanderson came by.

‘Dave, are you GAY?” He asked in surprise.

“No, I’m asexual. I don’t like men or women,” I scoffed.

“Oh,” Paul said.

I lied. I’m not asexual. I’m gay too, but I wasn’t ready to come out yet. I was proud of Jack for coming out though. It took a lot of courage to do that in this school. This school shuns gay people. There are approximately 580 Johnies who are gay, and are “in the closet.” This school is one big “closet,” if you know what I mean.

We finished eating, and we were walking back towards our classes, when more students threw items at jack. “Queer!” They hissed at him again. Jack held his head down low. It was really easy to see how much the taunting affecting him.

“Leave Jack alone,” I said, “sticking up for him. “He’s done nothing wrong.”

“This must be his dream come true. A school filled with boys,” Louis Alexander said with an evil smile.

To what I said, Peter Norris said, “He did nothing wrong but come to this school looking for a man orgy.” He sneered.

Jack said, ‘Leave me alone,” in a really harassed voice. I knew that voice. I had used that voice many times myself. I use that voice whenever George and Rob harass me. George and Rob always pick on me and beat me up. They are huge guys.

They laughed cruelly at him and dropped all his books and kicked them far away. Jack looked bothered. It was like looking into a mirror. Louis and Peter were like George and rob. And jack was like me.

“Let’s go get your books,” I told Jack softly. Jack nodded sadly.

We walked over to jack’s books. “If you pick up Jack’s books, we will start a rumor that you’re gay,” Louis told me, smiling an evil smile.

I picked up Jack’s books anyway. I softly handed them to him. I looked at him thoroughly. “You didn’t deserve any of that,” I told him. “It’s not your fault.”

“But, if I didn’t come out, none of this would have happened,” Jack said.

“It’s not your fault that there are narrow-minded people on this campus. You should be proud of who you are. You shouldn’t have to confirm to what society thinks is “normal.”

Jack said, ‘I know, I ought to be proud of myself, but it’s hard to in a world that makes fun of gay people and don’t accept them.

“Look,” I said firmly, people are afraid of what they don’t understand. If you show them that you are just like them, they won’t be afraid anymore.”

Jack smiled a little bit. He looked better.

I walked him to class. “Thanks,” he said, looking at me gratefully.

“You’re welcome,” I said, happily.

I walked to my own class. During classes, I thought of Jack. I myself should have had that courage. I was a cowardly wimp. You’re a hypocrite, a nasty voice screamed in my head. You bitch! It continued to haunt me. You just told Jack that he should be proud of himself, and you yourself are hiding in the closet. Why don’t you yourself come out? You’re afraid.

I was driving myself crazy. I tried to fight the feeling of guilt and shame I felt inside, but it was hard to. I tried my best to suppress those negative thoughts. I managed to do my assignments through the rest of the day.

I went to my dorm. I watched Sabrina the Teenage Witch. In the episode I was watching, Sabrina said to a full mortal, “You have no idea how it feels to carry around a deep, dark, secret around with you. I mentally answered, ‘Yes, I do.” Her secret was that she was a witch, mine was that I was gay. We were both afraid of showing our true identities.

I finished the episode, and did my homework and then showered, ate, and got ready for bed. I slept for 8 hours. When I awoke, I got ready for school. During school, I saw Jack once again being harassed.

Tommy and Paul were throwing dirt in his face and spitting on him. Jack looked helpless.

“Stop!” I yelled to his defense.

“Oh, look, it’s Dave. His boyfriend coming to rescue his lover,” Tommy said, unmercifully.

I guess Louis and Peter had spread the rumor pretty fast.

“I am not gay. I’m asexual. I don’t like boys or girls,” I lied again.

“If you’re not gay, leave him alone. Let us “play” with him. Only gays help other gay people out,” Tommy said. Paul nodded.

I had a tough decision to decide. If I helped Jack, I would be considered gay. But, if I didn’t, Tommy and Paul wouldn’t think I was gay, but Jack would be betrayed.

I knew what I had to do. I had to do the right thing again.

I said,"Leave Jack alone.” I pulled Jack away from them.

“Gay bitch!” Tommy hissed at me.

“FA....!” Paul said to me.

I had just stepped myself into something big. I was getting alienated too.

I walked Jack to his class again.”Thanks, Dave,” he said again.

I smiled at him.

 

[Karice]

Part 2

(This is a short part, due to a time restraint......

)

Suddenly, he looked a little sheepish.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Do you feel like I’m a burden to you?” Jack asked. “Do you feel resentful always coming to my rescue?”

I smiled and looked at him deeply. “I see so much of myself in you.” I told him softly.

“Is that a good thing?” He asked me.

“Yes, “ I replied.

Jack smiled at me and sat in his desk.

I went to my own class and did assignments.

I’m Dave Winston, a brown haired, brown eyed lean 6ft boy. I am 15 years old. I’ve been gay since I was 10 years old. I’ve attended Marshall Johnson Academy For Boys since I was 14. I have a boyfriend, Max Cartwright, who is 17. He has blond hair and blue eyes and is a lean 6ft 2 inches guy. We’ve hidden our secret because of the gay shunning. We’ve been dating for over a year. I was once a cocaine addict earlier this year for a little over a month, until Dean Riley caught me snorting and sent me to drug rehab. I beat the addiction in 2 weeks, which was a record.

Back to the present. I finsished my assignments, and I went to lunch.

I begun to eat pizza, corn, and begun drinking chocolate milk.

Rodney Kelly came up to me and smiled at me. I smiled back. Rodney’s one of my closest friends. Rodney and I began to eat our lunch together.

Jack came up to us and asked if he could eat lunch with us.

I was beginning to get a little annoyed with Jack. I mentally rolled my eyes. He was acting like a tag along.

“Sure,” I said aloud. I didn’t want to hurt his feelings. I saw Rodney REALLY roll his eyes when Jack wasn’t looking. Rodney was annoyed too.

Jack sat and begun to eat lunch with us. He began chatting about being new to the school and how “liberating” it felt to “come out.”

Rodney made a grimace face when Jack was looking at me. Then Jack looked at him and Rodney quickly smiled a pained smile. Rodney wasn’t a very good actor.

“Look, if I was interrupting something, I’ll just leave,” jack said, sounding hurt.

‘No, you’re not interrupting anything,” I said, trying to make him feel better. “Rodney just has a stomachache,” I lied.

“Yes, it’s true,” I have a stomachache, “ Rodney confirmed unconvincingly. “I’m going to get some antacid,” Rodney said, wincing. What a terrible actor.

After Rodney left, Jack turned to me. “Are you and Rodney a couple and I interrupted your quality time?” Jack asked me, looking imploringly.

I coughed in surprise. “We’re not a couple. We’re just friends,” I answered. “Remember, I’m asexual. I don’t like boys or girls,” I lied again.

“But, I remember you telling me that I reminded you of yourself,” Jack pointed out. Wouldn’t that mean that you’re gay too?”

Jack had a good point. And a good memory. “I didn’t mean that you reminded me of EVERYTHING about myself,” I said.

“So, you’re not gay?’ Jack asked.

“No, I’m not gay,” I said, lying through my teeth.”

“Oh,” Jack said. Then his face changed a little. “Rodney didn’t want to be around me,” Jack said perceptively. “He gave me a really bad vibe when I came to the table.”

Jack was smart. I didn’t say anything.

“So you agree. Rodney didn’t want me around,” Jack said sadly.

“I didn’t say anything,” I said aloud.

“Yes. Neutrality is a good weapon,” Jack said, looking at the ground.”

 

[Bob George]

America really needs to get over this gay issue. Sexuality is way too big a thing over there. Just the fact that a guy came out at school and everyone picked on him, no one sat by him at lunch. I went to an all boys Catholics high school here in Australia and we had a guy come out of the closet. When he did it was just like "OK, fair enough". You'd think of all places where homophobia would exist in a big way would be an all boys Catholic school. But apart from calling obvious straight guys "gay" and "homo" as an insult or joke, real gay guys were pretty much left alone because it just wasn't that big a deal. It just seems in other countries compared to America, your sexuality is not as important. In America it's like people must know your sexual preference and will question everyone "do you think he's gay?" It's just weird. No one else around the world cares that much. If you're straight, so what? If you're gay, who cares? Live and let live I say. Somebody else's sexuality just shouldn't mean that much to you.