Chapter 2: Trampled

In the locker room, Trevor saw his girlfriend, Sylvia, leaning against Dennis, kissing him passionately. Her face was flushed with ardor and lust; Dennis was caressing her breasts. "You!" Trevor bellowed, his voice raw with anger and shock. His breathing was shallow and rapid; pain and humiliation overwhelmed him.

Sylvia and Dennis, engrossed in their intimacy, were startled by Trevor's voice. They slowly turned to face the door. Sylvia's eyes widened at the sight of him. "Trevor, what are you doing here?" she asked, flustered.

"I should be asking you that," Trevor roared, his eyes blazing. "Didn't you say you'd be shopping with your best friend this afternoon? What the hell is going on?!" His blood boiled with resentment. He'd worked late into the night to buy Sylvia a birthday gift, only to find her betraying him. It was unbearable.

Sylvia quickly recovered her composure. Instead of shame, she scoffed. "Now that you know the truth, there's no point in hiding it. Look at yourself. Do you really think I'd want to be with a poor loser like you? Our relationship was a bet with my friend. I never expected you to take it seriously."

"But I love you," Trevor retorted.

"Your love means nothing," Sylvia sneered. "I wanted the latest phone, but you said I had to wait a month. Pathetic! Dennis bought me an iPhone 13 and a Louis Vuitton bag." Her disdain grew with each word.

Suddenly, Dennis tossed a fifty-dollar bill at Trevor. "Poor Trevor," he mocked. "Think you can sleep with Sylvia? Here's fifty bucks. Go sleep with a prostitute, you pathetic peasant."

"Dennis, I'll kill you!" Trevor raged.

Unable to contain his fury, Trevor lunged at Dennis.

"Fighting back? Have you forgotten who you are?" Dennis sneered, punching Trevor to the ground. Dennis, over six feet tall and the agile, muscular captain of the basketball team, easily overpowered the shorter, thinner Trevor. Trevor landed hard, feeling a sharp pain on his cheek. Dazed, he struggled to his feet.

Before he could rise, Dennis stomped on his face, pinning him down. "This is what you get for fighting back. I'll trample you until you die!" He repeatedly stomped on Trevor's face.

Trevor's face was covered in footprints, each movement a groan of pain, yet he fought to get up. Dennis, however, sat on Trevor's back, pulled a black pen from his backpack, and with a cruel smile, wrote "Poor Loser" on Trevor's shirt. He then spat on Trevor. "Provoke me again, and I'll beat you every time I see you." He took Sylvia's hand and left.

Trevor was in agony. Unable to stand, he dragged himself back to his dormitory. Students pointed and stared at his bruised, dirty face. Sylvia, the girl he loved, had betrayed and broken him. He no longer cared about their laughter; he felt utterly dead inside.

Alone in his room, Trevor removed his torn, stained shirt and washed away Dennis's insult. The events replayed in his mind: Bernard's cruelty, Dennis's humiliation, and Sylvia's ruthlessness. Resentment consumed him. "No wonder you never let me hold your hand, hug you…you never loved me. You detested me for being poor."

Grief and rage choked him. He clenched his fists, remembering Sylvia's words.