"Out of the way, lard-butt."
A handsome, athletic-looking young man shoved a tall, heavy-set boy from behind. The heavy boy, radiating a lack of confidence, immediately shuffled to the side. He cleared a path for the handsome guy and the trail of friends and girls following in his wake.
As the group moved past, he could only watch their retreating backs. "Must be nice to be like that. Not a chance for me," thought the heavy boy as he continued his lonely trek toward the school building to find his classroom.
***
What I just saw—it's impossible for someone like me. Gary is handsome, a basketball star, and the son of a famous businessman. But don't get it wrong; he's not arrogant and he's not a bully. Honestly, the way he treats me is pretty fair. Anyone who sees me usually just wants to get away; the fact that he even acknowledges me is actually kind of nice, haha.
By the way, my name is Dennis. I'm 17. I'm the fat kid who's isolated—not bullied, exactly, just friendless. My life is incredibly standard and very simple: wake up, go to school, space out during class, go home, eat, shower, rot in my room, repeat. My mom is always screaming at me, "If you don't change, how are you going to survive?"
Thanks, Mom, but I'm sorry. It's not that I don't want to, it's that I can't. You see, when I went to the gym to try and slim down, the management told me I was disturbing the other members. Their reason? My body took up too much space and I smelled bad.
Whenever I leave my room, Mom and Dad pamper me and buy me all this delicious food. If I refuse, their faces look so crushed and disappointed, like I just killed their dog and swallowed it whole. So it's not a lack of will. I tried working out in my room using YouTube tutorials, but then someone would shout from downstairs, "Knock it off!" and we both know who that was. Yeah, my mom.
At school, I just sit there in silence, alone at the very edge of the room. No one comes within a one-meter radius, especially the girls. The reason? I'm slightly cross-eyed. Even when I'm not looking at them, they "feel" like I'm staring intensely. When I try to borrow a book or a pen, they assume I'm ogling specific parts of their bodies, even though I'm not looking at anything.
If I try to borrow from the guys, they don't just get uncomfortable—they shout, and sometimes they gift me a fist to the cheek without even asking if I wanted one. So, that's me. It's not just a lack of confidence; I just don't know what I have left to offer. Grades? Trashed. Physique? Trashed. Scent? Trashed. Feel free to add to the list. This morning was the same. Every day is the same.
***
Dennis had just reached the front of the classroom when he paused before stepping inside.
"Hey, move it."
Dennis turned. He saw a beautiful girl wearing a messy version of the school uniform. One side of her shirt was tucked in, the other hanging out, and her top buttons were undone enough to reveal a significant curve beneath the fabric. Her skirt was exceptionally short, hitting mid-thigh. "Smack," she slapped the boy's back.
"Why are you blocking the way, Den?"
"S... sorry, Bella."
Dennis immediately stepped aside for the girl rumored to be a "bad girl," despite being incredibly cute. Her name was Bella. He let her enter first, then followed. He watched as she immediately started chatting with the popular kids, the same species as her. Slowly, Dennis walked to his desk at the very back; his height and bulk made it impossible for him to sit in the middle or front.
Dennis looked over at his classmates chatting away, including Bella and her clique. When Bella felt his gaze and turned toward him—even though Dennis wasn't actually looking at her—she gave a tiny, momentary smile before returning to her conversation.
***
Now, here's the deal with Bella. She used to live next door. We were childhood friends, growing up together. Sometimes I'd eat at her place, sometimes she'd come to mine. We even had sleepovers and took baths together back then. But since she moved away in the 5th grade, we never spoke or saw each other again.
When we started 10th grade at the same school, I was happy to see her. But when I tried to greet her, she acted like she didn't know me. I figured it was just because it had been a long time and we'd both changed. But that wasn't it. Bella used to be just as big as me, and I could still recognize her. Me? I've been big like this since I was a kid.
Eventually, I asked her seriously why she was ignoring me. Want to know her answer? She said it was because I hadn't changed; I was exactly the same as before, which made me too different from who she is now. Plus, she said she had a boyfriend and felt awkward talking to guys. After that, she just walked away and never spoke to me again. But out of everyone in this school, she's the only one who still calls me by my name, so I guess that's a win?
Whatever. I'm used to this. I'm just drifting through a life that has no direction. I have no ambition, no dreams, no goals. I've just given up. My only escape is locking myself in my room to play online games where I can create my own character. A character that is, of course, the total opposite of my real life. In a VRMMORPG called ECLIPSE SAGA, I'm actually pretty famous as a high-level Beast Berserker. I get invited to raids and even have my own guild. That's enough for me.
There's only one thing I avoid in that game: marriage. In this VR game, you can get married and even have kids. As a top-tier player, plenty of women want my "seed"—whether they're actual women or just guys posing as girls to get items and gold. I reject them all. Why? Because eventually, they'll want to meet in real life. And when they see me, they'll definitely file for divorce, demand custody of the kids, and make me pay child support. Bastards. So, I'm famous for being a solo player. In the end, real life and the game are the same, always alone.
Anyway, back to class. Because...
"Hey... no way!"
"Run... run!"
I turned toward the window and my eyes went wide. Why? Because the nose of a burning airplane was right outside my classroom window. They say if you want to go to another world—an isekai—you have to get hit by Truck-kun. Well, right now, Plane-kun is in front of me, and he's clearly ready to take us all there.
"Thump." I looked over and saw Bella had tripped, her leg caught in her bag. She couldn't get up. I didn't think. I ran to Bella and pulled her into a hug. There was a deafening roar as the plane's nose crashed into the room. After that, I felt nothing but intense heat, then incredible pain, and then... total blackout.