Bullied By The Wolf

Chapter 01: LIAM THE GROWN UP            LIAM’S P. O. V.   “Be careful as always, Liam. You should be vigilant with the surrounding. If things are suspicious, run away and find a crowded place,” she declared, sipping her cup of tea. It was my mother, Leila, who spoke. Picking a slice of moist banana cake and devoured it. Hmm. The rich taste of sweet banana and vanilla makes me crave for it more. I looked at the table and saw a sumptuous meal of the day. “Affirmative. Noted. Copy, mom,” I lack interest in listening to this type of reminder. It has been ages since she reminded me about the exact phrase again. and that is… “Wolves are everywhere. They are hiding in a human’s clothing,” she insisted. I bobbed my head, rubbing my palm together. It excites me to taste the chicken curry that mom prepared.   “Your mother is right, Liam. Just don’t take this as a joke. You know wolves eat up almost half of the human population on earth. And we don’t want you to become one of the victims,” Dad wiped his mouth with a table napkin. “Mom. Dad. I know you’re concern about me and my safety,” I paused, staring at them with a tiny smile. “But you all should remember too that it has been ages since you reminded me about wolves and not to mention that we are in a modern world now. Twenty years have passed by, and I don’t think they are still aggressive, and if they are well, they are outnumbered by human population by now.” “Your dad and I can sense a wolf, honey. So whatever I say, whether you heard it before or new, just listen. You won’t lose anything for taking our advice,” mom commanded. I pursed my lips and grabbed the spoon, serving myself with the right amount of chicken curry. “So, when will we meet your boyfriend?” I choked on my own spit after hearing his question. He smiled playfully. Both my parents knew that I was gay. And I am thankful that they are not narrow-minded and homophobic. “D-Dad,” my cheeks painted the color of a rose. I heard him chortled. “Stop it, Mike,” said mother. Oh, thank God! At last! Mother sided with me. But it was just my thought. “But if you’re having a hard time finding a boyfriend, Liam, I know some that I can introduce to you,” mom teased, wiggling her brows at me. My parents laughed out loud. I shook my head and resumed eating. Hmmm! I will never get tired of eating the chicken curry that mom cooks. The meat explodes with relish as I gnash on my teeth. “But, I’m serious, Liam. When will we meet your boyfriend? ” dad asked. I swallowed hard, meeting his serious face. “Dad. You know that I am not secretive from you. I’ll tell you and mom if there is one. Because so far, there really isn’t. ” My parents nod their heads in unison as if they practiced it. It is a constant question that I keep hearing every breakfast. Nonetheless, it is not a big deal for me. I am glad that they are open to my future boyfriend, and they care about me like a precious diamond. In a world where homophobic rants and homophobic people were scattered, your home should be the safest place you can count on. And I’m thankful for my parents. I may not have a boyfriend, but the love that I’m asking for can be found in them—the unconditional love. And I get it. Not everyone had a supportive parent like me. But cheer up love! Things happen for a reason. Believe me. One day, we can conquer the world without any homophobic rants we could hear. One day, the world would be a better place for us to live. And one day, we will get the freedom, equality, and check we deserve. Because what we are? Yes. We are QUEENS! Let’s keep our paws up! We are uniquely beautiful, talented, and destined to won. After savoring breakfast, I rose from the wooden chair and made my way heading to the kitchen sink. Taking my toothbrush and applying not a pea-sized amount of toothpaste, and started brushing my teeth. You may not, but I am in my fourth-year college under Hotel and Restaurant Management course. Since I was a child, I always envisioned myself being in a kitchen to prepare mouthwatering dishes for my loved ones. And now that I am growing up, I would take this chance to catch my dreams and live the fantasy that I always dream about. I spit out the foam from toothpaste and the remaining excess of toothpaste inside my mouth. But on a serious note, living in a world where wolves are everywhere frightens me. Like for real, they say wolves are hot, oozing with s*x appeal, big biceps, protruding abs, and perfect face, but honey, what I saw on the television is nothing of the sort. It’s true. Wolves eat people. They consume people. But do I have a problem with them? Absolutely not as long as they keep their claw off of my face because I almost spend my allowance maintaining my poreless babyface. Cause yeah. Aging is a thing that nobody can escape. I placed my toothbrush in the designated place and started walking away from the kitchen sink. Mom stood at the doorway with a wide smile. On her hands is my gray satchel. Which, of course, only contains a single book and a pen. Mostly, what you will need is a mental taking of notes because this is college, where survival of the fittest would arise. “You’re so pretty, queen!” mom complimented, giggling. I chuckled, feeling flattered. “Thanks, mom. That would be the only reminder that I would love to hear from you over and over again,” she rolled her eyes at me, shaking her head. “Kidding aside. Liam, you take care, okay? And don’t forget what I told you,” “Mom,” I paused, heaving a sigh, scratching the back of my neck. “A’right,” I slowly nod. It would be futile if I answered contradicting what she is expecting. “Good luck on your school, Liam. I know you can ace it,” she wrapped me around her warm hug tightly, and I did the same to my mother. Her hands caressed my back, followed by gently tapping it. We let go of the hug as I picked the satchel from her. I kissed her rosy cheeks. “Goodbye, mom!” she opened the door for me. “See you later,” and we waved goodbye. I walked, stepping on the cemented road. Dad parked his car in front of our house, waiting for me patiently. “You don’t want to be late for school, are you?” he asked. I shook my head and opened the car’s door. The smell of orange and pines greeted me and made my nose wrinkled. “Can you throw that air-freshener, please?” I said, covering my nose. I sat on the front seat and wrapped my body with the seatbelt. The sun makes my skin crawl up and dry. Silence is the answer I heard. I faced my dad, who is currently staring at me. “Should we go now?” “Yeah,” he snapped his head. “Why are you staring at me? “It’s just that… you grow up so fast and fabulous,” I looked at my outfit, which is the same style as the other day—a pair of jeans and a pastel pink hoodie.   “I used to know you as the little boy who is scared of lizards and tarantulas,” he guffawed. “I still fear them, dad. The difference is that I’m already grown up now,” Yet growing up, I discovered that not only tarantulas and lizards are what I fear. I also fear Ivory. Ivory, the bully. But among all the people who bullied me, why does my heart thump and beat abnormally as I hear him calling my name?