Trapped (Bullied Book 4) (Bullied Series) Vera Hollins (best large ereader txt) 📖

“Okay. I want you to kiss my friend.” The blonde pointed at the black girl with braids across from her, and Kev blushed furiously.

“S-Sure,” he said, but he visibly swallowed.

“Does this faggot know how to kiss a girl?” a guy next to the black girl said, stunning us into silence.

Kevin paled and dropped his gaze. I balled my hands into fists with the growing need to protect him.

“He’s gay?” his friend asked him. “Eww. Hell no.”

“There’s nothing wrong with being gay,” I bit out, shaking with anger. Kev was motionless next to me. Too motionless.

“It is if you can get STDs,” the purple-haired girl said, and I gaped at her.

“Have you ever heard of condoms?” I asked her in a quivering voice. Kev was almost in tears.

“As if they can actually help.”

I was ready to have words with her, but Kevin darted from his spot, pushing through people to get out of the kitchen, and I rushed after him right away, hoping I wasn’t drunk enough to fall over.

“Kev!” I called out. Those ignorant and awful people!

I reached him on the back porch. There was no one in the back yard, and the music wasn’t loud out here, the smell of the imminent rain present in the air. It got colder, but the alcohol was warming me up.

“Don’t pay attention to them.” I stopped behind him.

He didn’t turn around. “It’s not easy to, to do that, because th-those kind of people are everywhere! How can I tell p-p-people I’m b-bisexual if they’re going to react like that?”

A lump formed in my throat. I placed my hand on his shoulder. “I know. It’s not fair, and there’s a lot of injustice in this world, but not everyone is like them. There are good people out there, Kev. There are people who won’t judge you or look at you any differently because of your sexuality.”

“I know th-there are good people out there, but that doesn’t mean anything when this happens. It’s difficult to accept who I am when I’m b-bullied for it. I wish I could change it.”

I moved next to him and peered into his face. His red eyes and the pain in them left a deep gash in me, and I pulled him into my embrace, already sobering up. I understood him perfectly. I understood firsthand what it was like to suppress yourself because you were afraid of what the world would say. They held the power over us, silencing our voices, dreams, and desires, turning them into dust and us into shells of who we really were, and for what?

Everyone should have the freedom to be themself, but it is so hard to achieve it. We live only once, but we spend out time pleasing others and forgetting our own happiness—forgetting we are the ones who have to live with our choices, not them. Why does it matter so much? Why does it matter whether we are bi, gay, fat, ugly, stupid, unsuccessful, or any other label society puts on us?

“It’s going to be all right,” I said reassuringly. “Just don’t hide or suppress who you are, no matter what. I’ve been doing that for as long as I can remember, and now I’m struggling to find a way to live free of my fears. So don’t let them win. You and I will find a way to be ourselves.”

He pulled away, but he didn’t break the contact between us, holding me by my elbows. “Why are you so nice to me?”

“Why shouldn’t I be? You’re my friend.”

“No one has treated me as, as, as nicely as you have. I’m nobody. I’m not worth your t-t-time.”

I shook my head. “Don’t put yourself down. You’re so sweet, Kev.” I pinched his cheek. “You’re the best friend anyone could wish for.”

He dropped his hands. His lips curled into a sad smile as he stared at the sky. “A friend, huh?”

I opened my mouth to confirm it before I stopped myself. I felt like I was treading a thin line. “You know I really care about you.”

“Yes, I know. You care about me…but as a friend.”

“I…” I sighed. “I’m sorry. I know how you feel about me, but…I just don’t feel that way about you.”

He looked more upset with each word I spoke, and I hated hurting him like that. He grasped the railing as his eyes shifted to the sky. “I know. But I hoped you would like me too and I…and I could also forget about Hayden. It’s so s-stupid of me to crush on him. Or you.”

I observed his profile. “Is there maybe someone else you like? I mean, what about Marcus?”

He frowned at me. “Marcus?”

“Yeah. I know maybe you don’t see it that way, but I think you two would look amazing together.”

He let out a long sigh and pushed himself away from the railing. “I’m not sure I can be with him, Jess. And how can he like me with my s-stutter?”

“And why shouldn’t he like you with your stutter? Your stutter is not who you are, remember? I can see Marcus doesn’t care about that, and neither should you. Stutter or not, you’re a sweet, nice person, and you deserve the best.”

“Then why can’t you like me?” He ran his hand through his slicked hair, managing to ruin it. “Is there no way for you to like me?”

My eyes traced the clouds hiding the stars, a thick layer of regret blanketing my chest. A shiver swept through my body. “Kevin, I…I can’t. I like someone else.”

“I know. It’s Blake, isn’t it? Even though he’s always b-bullied you, you fell for him.”

I didn’t like the accusation in his tone. I didn’t turn to look at him, fisting my hands on the railing.

“Yes. I fell for him even though he’s my bully. Sick, right? You probably see me as stupid, but do you think I haven’t tried to get rid of these feelings? It’s not easy.”

He grabbed my hand, and I looked at him. The longing