The altercation

I was 14 and a loner. At lunch, in a dreamy state, I wandered around my High School.

When I wandered, I wasn't anti-social. I was just bad at being in groups.

One day, I was wondering and a boy gave me a friendly smile. Somehow, he initiated conversation, and we had a very pleasant conversation. I don't recall much about him, other than that he was excessively friendly, and during our conversation, I inwardly wondered why this trait was so rare.

Finally, we wandered to an area of the school that was less crowded, and he told me that he had to go get something from his locker. He pointed to the basement; a basement that was large, dark, completely deserted, and yet, was open to the students. His body language suggested that I follow him.

Instinctively, I sized him up. He was luring me to a deserted location, and so, I looked at him. I looked at him carefully and made a decision. It was a risky calculation, but I decided I could severely hurt him without much effort. He was small and didn't look muscled. I thought, if I have to, I can knock him out with a single punch.

It was stupid of me to be so confident. I rarely got into fights. I didn't like them and generally avoided them at all costs. I had no experience to make this judgement.

So, I knew I was taking a risk by following this guy, but since company his had been so pleasant before, I figured that I'd take the risk.

Well, I followed him into the basement. That part of the school was partially dark and completely deserted. He lead me to a locker at the far corner, and then as soon as he had picked out a locker and somehow cornered me without me being completely aware of it. He turned around and mumbled something to me. It was something like,

" I don't actually have a locker here, I just come here to make out with girls."
I tried to have him re-clarify and was hoping that I misheard him.

Then he asked me, "Can I hug you?"
Being nervous and hoping that this interaction wouldn't lead to any serious conflict, I said, "Uh, sure I guess"
He gave me an awkward hug. I was understanding that the situation was getting tense. The boy, he leaned forward, both his arms learning across the lockers, making a trap for my body. I was cornered between the lockers and his arms. I knew I couldn't escape without going through him,
He asked, "Can I kiss you?"
I said, "No, I'm going to go now" and shook my head. It seemed like my words had echoed off the locker and there was a tension between us.  I felt strangely mechanical, like a machine. My emotions were blunt, and my mind was silent. My body was preparing for conflict.

He then leaned forward with his slobbery lips. It was disgusting, and I ducked to evade his kiss. Unfortunately, I ducked to slowly, and he gave me a drooling kiss on my eye. It was gross and horrifically disgusting.

I managed to slide past him. My body was calm, and I don't recall displaying any emotion. My body had the purpose, and I was leaving. Nothing was going to stop me. I slide pass the guy and turned my back on him to leave. The guy jumped onto me. His body on my back and his arms around my neck.

At first, I was surprised, but then my body acted without debate. I body slammed him against a locker. He fell and seized in pain on the floor. I didn't run. I walked away. My steps were steady but forceful.  He didn't get off the floor, but he reached for my feet. His intention was to trip me, but he was too weak. He grabbed my ankle and I dragged his body across the floor. When I got to the staircase that provided escape from the basement. I grabbed the railing for extra support and dragged his body up the stairs. He clutched my ankle, and I knew every step stabbed him. I was determined to get to the top of the stairs. I was irritated, and thought how the kids I babysit could put up a better fight than this freak.

When we got to the top of the steps, he let go of my leg, got up and looked at me in disbelief. He was shocked and angry. He told me that destroyed his lunch and the stuff that he had been carrying in his pockets.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing, and I looked at him. I asked "What's wrong with you?". He was lucky I wasn't interested in causing trouble.

When that incident happened, I told no one. I was worried if people had known I had an altercation, it would just cause unnecessary trouble. My friends would try to keep me from wandering off alone. I figured that fighting and common sense was the best way to ensure my freedom. Why tell someone else, when they can't do anything about it anyway.

Better to do your own thing, and royally fuck up the people who try to stop you.

Beyond that, my school was mostly black with a few white people. Racial tension was rife in the community and waiting to explode. I was white. He was black. It was a bomb, that I didn't want to be a part of.