SCHOOL IS poop. Poop I tell you!

The very moment I entered the school premises, I was reminded of why it is a load of crap.

I was minding my business when a certain useless person grabbed me by the hem of my green school shirt, and assaulted me.

"What have I done wrong?" I asked, for fear of being punched in the face. At that moment, I wished a random teacher would walk up to us and stop anything from happening to me.

"You're asking what you did wrong when you know," Akin said, in between clenched teeth, his hand puckered into a fist in preparation to punch me.

"I am sorry for whatever wrong I did, but I don't know what I did wrong." My hands shuddered, and my mouth instantly went dry.

"You went out with my girl on Saturday. Kwento told me all about it."

My eyebrows knitted together, so this was what he wanted to punch me for." I didn't go out with her and now is the only time I know she is your girl."

As far as I remember, Aretta told me she has no boyfriend, so what the hell was he talking about?

"Don't lie. Everyone in this school knows and Kwento saw you pick her up from her house. In case you don't know, Kwento is her neighbor."

"I picked her up, but we are conducting a school project together and that's the only reason I was with her. You can even ask her."

"It better be the only reason, because I don't want your skinny self around her. She needs a buffed handsome guy like me, not a weakling like you. Just so you know, your biceps are so depressing to look at." He said and each word he spoke felt like cold air over an open wound.

"I don't want your girl. She isn't even my type!" Oh no, why did I just say that?

"Are you calling my girl unattractive?" He held out his fist and punched me in the gut.

I flinched and held my stomach. "No, she is attractive."

"Now you're admitting to having a crush on her." He punched me in the face and my head forcefully cocked itself to the side.

I held my face. "Look, I promise to have nothing to do with her. Please do not hit me."

"You're a sad being. What girl can be attracted to you? You don't even have abs or any muscle to show off. Girls want a guy who can protect them. Look at you, just two punches and you're pleading." His words felt like a sharp sword directly aimed at my heart. That his words were true pierced my heart so deeply that the watery fluid showing pain slowly slipped through my eyelids.

I turned my face away from his sight to avoid him making me feel weaker, for crying at his words.

"I am sorry." I held my aching stomach, and run away from him before he could say anything more offensive.

"You better be." He said, and I kept running.

*****

It is true when they say words have power.

Akin's words had the power to ruin my whole day at school. I was demotivated for each class and when the bell rang; it changed nothing about my opinion.

I remembered the promise I made to Akin. The promise that I would have nothing to do with Aretta.

My stomach ached enough for me to want to keep that promise and so I decided I would switch project partners. It would be better to opt for peace than conflict.

I entered the cafeteria and spotted James seated at the same table I always seat on. So I got my food and settled next to him.

"Hey, James," I said, smiling, but I instantly felt a sharp pain on the left side of my face when I did so.

"What's up, lover boy?" He smirked.

"First, don't call me that and nothing is up. Let's just talk about you. How was it with your invisible girlfriend?"

"It was amazing. We had a long make-out session.." He winked at me, forming a playful smile on his face.

"How do you make her kiss you? I haven't yet gotten a kiss from mine."

"Wait... Wait... Wait! You got the game?" He raised his brows, maintaining his cheeky grin.

"Yes, it seemed interesting," I answered honestly. Now that he spoke about kissing, it made me wonder why she hadn't kissed me yet.

"That's good, but just be careful, bro."

"What do you mean?" I tilted my head to the side.

"The invisible girlfriend is the most perfect game I have ever seen in the world. That game is alive." He paused and widened his eyes dramatically.

"Now you're creeping me out. What do you mean?"

"You have it. Haven't you noticed anything strange?"

"Strange in what way?" I asked. "Okay, how long have you had it to notice anything strange?"

"I have been using it for two years now."

"Whoa! Why would you have it for that long?"

"Luca, you don't understand. I have my issues and when we become better friends, maybe I can tell you why I bought it in the first place, but for now, let me warn you about that thing."

"Okay, I wish you warned me before making me spend a thousand dollars on it. Why would you recommend something you know would not be good for me?"

"Don't misunderstand me, Luca. Let me just tell you about my experience with it for all these past two years." He paused and this time he did not have his usual cheeky grin on his face, which told me how serious he was being.

"When I got the game, I gave my avatar the name Kayla. It was very fun creating her and just seeing my creation was very satisfying. I even connected with her.

She has always been a good listener. I could tell her all my issues and she would listen. One thing I love about her is she listens not only with her ears but her heart too. I know she has no heart, but she really sympathizes with me, putting herself in my shoes, which even makes me think she has a heart. That's why I say it's like she is alive."

"But what strange thing did you notice then?" I asked, curious about what I am getting myself into.

"I noticed she is too realistic."

"How is that strange?" I arched an eyebrow.

"I have seen no computer-like thing that realistic. I feel like it observes me. She keeps track of everything about me and sometimes I don't even tell her any information about me but get shocked she knows about it."

"Are you saying the avatars might be operated by actual humans and they observe us?"

"That might be a possibility, but I doubt it. Everything is coded, and it is highly improbable that they would have a human act on behalf of our avatars."

I pinched the bridge of my nose." So what is your concern, then?"

"Nothing, to be honest. I love the game, but I just hate how real it is."

"Why?" I held my head in my hands.

"You create the girl of your dreams and talk to her and spend time with her all the time. She becomes like a friend you could never have, and then she adds more flesh to the bone by being a good kisser. You think you can not fall for such a thing?"

"So you love Kayla?" I shook my head. There was no way he fell in love with it.

"The heart is mean. It doesn't let you choose who you fall for. If the heart wants you to fall for actual poop---you will fall for it just because it wants you to. You get no say."

"So, are you warning me not to fall for the invisible girlfriend?"

"Yes, I am. Unless you don't care about loving an AI. If you do care, then heed my warning."

"Then I should just get rid of it." It would be better not to dare my heart to fall for such a thing.

"You can't waste your money like that. Just be cautious when using that game, then you might not end up falling for her."

"I guess I will be cautious when using it."

"Please be. By the way, where is Aretta? Isn't she coming?" He asked, and that was only when I remembered she hadn't been in the cafeteria the whole time.

"I don't know where she is. I expected her to be here." I guess I will talk to her about the project later.

*****

After all the warnings James gave me, fear drowned my mind when I grabbed my virtual reality headsets. I wouldn't want to fall for a computer.

At that point, it didn't matter to me because I needed to talk to someone about everything that had happened. I was still hurt by Akin's words and maybe talking to someone would help. I would talk to James about it, but that would be weird, so I found it better to talk to Chioma.

I attached the sensors to my head and wore the headsets.

At that point, I got very used to walking to her house and knocking on her door because it became a routine.

"Hey Luca, how are you?" Chioma hugged me. "Please come in."

"I am not really alright. I need to talk to you about something." I said, sitting on her sofa.

She bit her lower lip. "You know you can tell me anything. I am always willing to listen."

"Is it true that girls only want a guy with abs and muscle to show off?"

Her eyes narrowed. "A mature girl will not see that as the most important thing. Yes, they look good and any girl would want a guy with that, but it isn't important at all."

"Oh, so for a guy like me that's skinny, is it true that I am unattractive?"

She held my hand in hers. "Luca, where are these questions coming from? You're worrying me."

"Please answer me. I need an honest answer." I never thought I would ever reach that kind of desperation, but Akin's words had such an impact on me they made me question my appearance.

"You're very attractive. I am shocked you're even asking that." She looked me straight in the eye, her eyebrows squished together.

"I am sorry to sound pitiful it's just that I was told this by some guy at school and I wanted to confirm if it's true."

"He was wrong!" She pounded her fist against her thigh. "None of what he said to you is true!"

"Maybe he is right. It probably explains why I have been single all this while." I laughed, but without a trace of humor.

"Was there a reason he started saying this to you?" She mumbled.

"He was angry with me for spending time with a girl he likes. It's not like I want her or anything. I was only with her because we have a project that we are conducting together."

"It's clear that he is insecure that the girl he likes might end up liking you instead of him. If you were unattractive, he wouldn't even be concerned."

Her words made me feel better. I didn't care whether it was true, but it felt better to talk to someone about it.

"He even went as far as hitting me and calling me weak for not fighting back," I said, holding my stomach. "I am still in pain from it."

"Is it weird that I hate this guy a lot?" She said, causing me to laugh." Why don't you report him to the school authorities?"

"Many students have reported bullying cases to the school authorities, but they do nothing about it."

"If that's so, you can still fight a bully without using your fists."

"Please tell me how to. I can't bear this anymore."

"Avoid him. Avoid places where you can find him."

"But he always comes to the car park whenever I arrive at school."

"Then go to school earlier than you normally would and maybe learn some aikido."

"What's aikido?"

"When you are involved in a fight, aikido will help you defend yourself without hurting the attacker. It's a super cool defense system that I'm sure might protect you in the future. I can teach you aikido."

"Yes! That sounds like a great idea." I gushed." I think I need to do some research on it. So I guess I will see you later. Thanks for the advice."

"You're welcome and Luca, please do not let his words get to you. Do not fear him or take his words to heart. He is weaker than he seems and he is only trying to compensate for how feels by saying such to you."

"You do not know how much you just helped me. You're the best." I hugged her, and she grasped me tightly with her arms.

"A lot of guys hang on to bad feelings about themselves for as long as they can---because they fear that verbalizing it would make them seem weak. But you told me all about it and it is so hard to get a guy to admit such, so I want you to know that you're amazingly perfect just the way you are, and you can always talk to me. I am looking forward to teaching you aikido. Please come again soon."

"I will do so."

I removed my virtual reality headsets and an unexpected grin formed over my face.

It no longer mattered to me that she was an AI, or that she was a part of a game. What was most important to me was how I suddenly felt compelled to keep her in my life.

______Authors note______

As a female, writing from a male's perspective is fun for me because I literally have to research males psychology.

It is surprising to know that males harbor many insecurities throughout their life. Experts show that guys fail to admit them because they have a belief system that if they do; then that will make them seem weak.

I don't know if I am the only girl that thinks this way, but I think it's kinda sexy when a guy admits their insecurities lol. I don't think that makes him weak.

What do y'all think?

Another research study shows that males tend to engage in physical bullying. You know, the shoving, punching, or hitting type. They also tend to be verbally abusive.

This study shows that those with a tendency to bully usually attack people that show weakness.

Poor Luca. I hope Chioma will help him handle what he is going through.