Saved by the Bell
-1-
His name was James Donald Bell

It's a common misconception that Benton Academy is the cradle for the Episcopal and Methodist bourgeoisie of Benton. In fact it's nothing more than a really redneck school. And the only way my mom and dad can afford to send me here is that my grandmother is footing the bill. My grandmother wants me to get the best education possible in this small town. She wants me to make something of my life.

My daily life in Benton Academy is hell. Sure I'm friends with some of the cheerleaders. Mainly Jamie and Lily Potter. But I'm not allowed to sit at the table with them. Well, I'm sure I could but the other cheerleaders would shun me. And unlike Jamie, who enjoys a measure of protection, I'm left to fend for myself most of  the time.

That is until he came into my life. His name is James Bell, but his nickname is Daisy. James transferred from St. Katherine's Episcopal School, an super elite Episcopal School in Vicksburg to Benton Academy because he was getting bullied by his classmates. His uncle is this town's Episcopal priest and he is staying with him while he finishes his remaining two years of High School here at Benton Academy.

James is my boyfriend, and I'm blessed to have him. How did he become my boyfriend? Well I'm about to tell you that story now. It was one day. Lunch is easily the most segregated period of Benton Academy. Everybody sits with their own little group. You know, the cheerleaders sit together with the cheerleaders, the football players sit together with the football players, you get the picture. And I sit alone.

Anyway I was collecting my food one day when this huge guy bumped into me, my tray went up and the front of my blouse quickly became stained with a frozen hamburger patty that was floating in a sea of brown gravy. A mountain of mashed potatoes added a little color. Along with a splash of green from the smearing of green from English Peas. My shoes were soaked too and the guy just stood there.

“Hey! Queer.” He said in a thick southern accent. “What were the fuck your going.” And he reached down and picked up my carton of milk. I was too shocked to move and fuming like a cat. I had no idea at that moment Daisy had risen from his seat halfway across the room and was striding toward us. Snorting fire with each step he took.

“Oh? Does the baby want his milk?” He teased me. Now it's a common fact at school I'm transgender. I don't tend to hide that fact. Heck at that moment a trans pride pin, pinned to the front of my shirt. Did that paint a huge target on my back? Hell yes, did it matter hell no.

“I'm a girl you..” I started to say, but before I could finish, he had unscrewed the plastic lid and upturned the carton of milk over my head. The coldness of the milk took my breath and my cheeks turned a beet red as a chorus of laughter filled my ears. At that very moment, unknown to me Jamie was starting to move toward me. While all of this was going on, she had gone to fetch a teacher and get me a new uniform to wear, as now the clothes I was wearing needed a good long soak and a good long washing.  

Looking back, Jamie did the most sensical thing I could think of. Daisy on the other hand, fueled by either rage or a sense of noblesse oblige shouted at the top of his voice. 

“Hey! Leave that girl alone!” 

And with that the glove had been thrown down. Now, normally in Benton Academy when a kid was bullied or picked on. The other kids would keep their heads down and look the other way. Others like Jamie would go fetch a teacher to deal with it. Nobody, and I mean nobody ever stood up to the bully. 

The boy turned around and slowly moved toward Daisy who was standing there with his fist balled up. 

“What did you say to me punk?” The boy said as he moved toward Daisy.

“I said leave that girl alone.” Daisy said standing his ground.

“You know she a fucking queer right?” He said. “You know she is one of those tranny kids that seem to be popping up all over school right? Like fuck even our homecoming princess was one.” He said as he moved toward Daisy. 

“I said leave that girl alone now!” Daisy repeated himself.

“My dude.” The boy said. “You are about to get your ass handed to you if you don't step aside.”

I blinked and blinked again. Then it happened. The boy drew his fist  back, and smashed it into the side of Daisy's face. I screamed, I swear I heard the boy's jaw bone crack. Daisy went down like a sack of rocks, his face seemed smeared with blood. The boy that hit him, just stood there grinning from one ear to the other. And me, I hung my head down. Here was a boy, a boy I had only met once in my life, taking a punch to the jaw for me.

“Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!” The crowd started to chant. A circle had now formed around the two. A deep circle. The loud chant of “Fight! Fight! Fight!” Rung in my ears. I turned around and noticed I was trapped, trapped by a ring of students who had all surged forward to watch the unfolding madness. 

Then something happened. Daisy stood up, turned around and growled toward the other boy. Once turned his face to the side and spat out a large wad of blood and spit. The crowd roared with approval. The noise must have been heard a mile away.

“Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight! Fight!” The Crowed started to chant louder and louder. I felt like crying all of this had happen because of me? If I'd not been such a push over then none of this would have started. None of this would have ever needed to have happen.

Daisy though stood up and then from his voice he muttered a cry that turned my blood cold. It was a cross between a bark, a shout and a growl. He launched himself at the boy and soon had him down on the ground. Once Daisy got the boy on the ground he went to work, punching him, the boy's face turned red, then it turned blue then it turned black. Daisy screaming like a demon released from the pit of hell kept punching away. 

Blood, spit and a odd tooth flew around the room. The crowd roared with approval and shouted with joy. They seemed to revel in the bloodshed. I just stood there shocked and scared out of my mind. I was whimpering, I could feel the milk soaking into my hair and into my blouse, I could smell the peas and taste at the back of my throat the blood being spilled on the floor of the lunch room.

Then the tide turned. The bully caught his second wind, he pushed Daisy off of him and shoved him down onto the floor and once more pounced on him.

It was savage, The bully started to punch Daisy in the belly. Daisy groaned and whimpered and hissed with every punch. Thirty seconds that how long he took this torture before he managed to get a lucky kick in and smash the bully in the balls. Know, I know from being a boy for the first twelve years of life that if you get hit in the sack, it hurts like hell. And from day one we boys are taught never to hit another guy down there.

But well, when push came to shove, any part of the boy was fair game. And as expected the Bully went down as soon as Daisy removed his foot from his balls. Daisy then stood up, he was patting like a dog in summer, his face was covered in blood, his blonde hair was smeared in blood, his shirt unbutton and his chest rose and fell with the speed of a steam mill. His eyes, though his eyes seemed to burn with a rage that reminded me of the fires of hell.

Once more he screamed, a scream I will call a yell. And this time he brought his foot, square down upon the Bully's sack. The Bully howled in pain and rolled over on his side. I saw Daisy smirk, it was the most evil smirk I've ever seen grace a human face. And with that he cocked his foot back and like a football player kicking a field goal he smashed his foot into the Bully sack again, and again and again.

And then a shrill blast of a whistle brought everything to a standstill.