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renamed trope; ZCE
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* SweaterGirl: Both Daisy and Lindsay at times.
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[[ThisIsNotThatTrope And then there’s Grayson.]]
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* ThrewMyBikeOnTheRoof: Zorro [[spoiler:destroying Gray’s drums.]]
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* ThrewMyBikeOnTheRoof: Zorro [[spoiler:destroying Gray’s drums.]]drums]].
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* BitchInSheepsClothing: Daisy turns out to be this when she blossoms socially and starts hanging out with the popular crowd. [[spoiler:She starts going out with the younger brother of one of Gray's principal tormentors, and begins treating Gray like he doesn't exist, making at best halfhearted attempts to defend him when he's picked on by the "in" kids.]]
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* HopeSpot: Every time Gray's life seems like it is about to get better or at least more tolerable, something happens which plunges him into deeper despair, whether it's [[spoiler:the destruction of his drum set or being rejected by Daisy in favor of Johnson's younger brother]].
* IRegretNothing: Partially. [[spoiler:Gray does feel terrible for what he did to Hannah, Ross and Lindsay, but feels no remorse for Daisy and especially Zorro. In fact, he hopes that he can finish what he started and get Johnson if and when he gets out of jail. He'll never get that chance, as he's sentenced to life without parole.]]
* IRegretNothing: Partially. [[spoiler:Gray does feel terrible for what he did to Hannah, Ross and Lindsay, but feels no remorse for Daisy and especially Zorro. In fact, he hopes that he can finish what he started and get Johnson if and when he gets out of jail. He'll never get that chance, as he's sentenced to life without parole.]]
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* WhereDidWeGoWrong: with Grayson?
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* WhereDidWeGoWrong: with Grayson?Grayson?
* YouShouldHaveDiedInstead: [[spoiler:Gray's father stops ''just short'' of saying this to Gray, after Barker is killed. Gray's mother interrupts him before he can say it.]]
* YouShouldHaveDiedInstead: [[spoiler:Gray's father stops ''just short'' of saying this to Gray, after Barker is killed. Gray's mother interrupts him before he can say it.]]
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Peter Wilton is pretty much perfect. Handsome, intelligent, and with a promising future in medicine, he’s his father’s pride. His parents love him. Teachers love him. Girls love him. Everyone loves him.
[[ThisIsNotThatTrope And then there’s Grayson.]]
Unlike his older brother (“Perfect Peter”), Grayson is a pimply, bullied, D-and-F student. With a history of victimization, he’s desperate for a new start when his family packs up and moves to Greenford. A new town, a new high school…it sounds like the perfect chance to make things better. But during Gray’s first week of high school, enter Zorro, the football star, who leads a gang of his friends in terrorizing Grayson and his friend Ross.
As the school year progresses, the torture escalates. Physical, emotional, and verbal abuse stalks Gray in the hall of his school and at home, at the hands of the father who can’t understand a son that wants to drum instead of shoot ducks, fails classes, and has no interest in sports. Nowhere is safe.
Slowly, every one of the few refuges Gray has built up are taken from him. Faced with the very real fear that one day, the bullies will kill him, and with absolutely no source of happiness left in his life, Grayson turns to what he sees as his only chance of having some form of control—-and some form of revenge.
Endgame was written by Nancy Garden.
!!This Work Provides Examples Of:
* AbusiveParents: Gray’s dad is this; his mother isn’t actually abusive, she just can’t stand up to her husband.
* AdultsAreUseless: An adult helps Grayson out once, over the course of the entire book. ''Once.'' By the time they start trying, it’s far, far too late.
* ArchnemesisDad: Two of Gray’s abusers stand out, having the most screen time and characterization, and perhaps giving him the most pain. One is Zorro. The other is Gray’s father.
* BreakTheCutie: The story is essentially about Gray being abused and abused until he snaps and [[spoiler:opens fire on his classmates]].
* BlackSheep: Gray. His mother and brother don’t seem to mind, but his father hates everything that makes Grayson different.
* BloodlessCarnage: [[spoiler:The shooting]] at the end is relatively non-graphic, but we ''are'' seeing it through the eyes of someone who’s a little crazy
* BoomHeadshot: Takes out [[spoiler:Zorro]].
* TheBully: Gray seems to attract them…
* CharacterDevelopment: Gray gets increasingly pessimistic and angry.
** Daisy, on the other hand, goes from a sweet, quiet girl, to [[spoiler:dating one of Gray’s tormentors.]]
* CorneredRattlesnake: They push Gray, and they push him, and they push him. Then they push him too far.
* CreepyChild: Gray is this by the last few chapters.
* DespairEventHorizon: Gray passes it when [[spoiler:Barker gets run over.]] From then on, there’s no hope.
* TheDogBitesBack: The climax.
* DotingParent: Mr. Wilton is this. [[ParentalFavoritism To Peter]].
* DrivenToSuicide: Part of [[spoiler:Gray’s shooting plan. It doesn’t work out for him.]]
* EmbarrassingFirstName: Grayson points out that Zorro’s real name, Eugene, should be one. But since he’s popular and goes by ‘Zorro’, it’s not a problem for him.
* EvilFormerFriend: [[spoiler:Ross and Grayson]] both manage to become this to the other. [[spoiler: Ross by abandoning Gray, and Gray by going nuts and killing Ross.]]
* {{Flanderization}}: In-universe, the newspaper flanderizes Gray’s playing of violent videogames.
* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Peter is responsible; Gray is foolish.
* FreakOut: Gray finally snaps after [[spoiler:the breakdown of his friendship with Ross.]]
* GangOfBullies: Zorro and his cronies.
* HairTriggerTemper: Grayson has this in the transcripts with his attorney.
* HistoricalHeroUpgrade: [[spoiler:Gray’s victims]] get this in-universe, at the end.
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: [[spoiler: The newspaper article turns Gray in a raging psychopath who’s obsessed with violence, and practically omits the ''months'' of torture that left him thinking his own classmates were seriously going to ''kill him''.]]
* JerkassVictim: [[spoiler:Zorro]]. Also Grayson, at the same time. You know from the start he’s a murderer, and you still have to feel sorry for the pain he’s handed.
* JerkJock: Zorro and his friends.
* KeepAway: No GangOfBullies would be complete without it, right?
* KidsAreCruel: Some truly horrific abuse is handed out to Gray and Ross, who more than once seriously wonder if they are going to be killed.
* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:Zorro, Hannah, Daisy, and Ross.]]
* LonersAreFreaks: Gray is an almost-friendless loser. However, it is the loneliness that ''makes'' him into a freak, as it gives him no support system when things get horrible.
* NeverBringAKnifeToAFistfight: Gray carries a knife in his sock. He still gets beat up on, every time.
* OnlyFriend: A pattern in Gray’s life: first it was Jemmy, then it was Ross.
* ParentalFavoritism: Mr. Wilton dishes out ‘’a lot’’ of this. Horrifically, Grayson comes in third out of two siblings; both Peter ‘’and’’ the dog outrank him in his father’s heart.
* ParentalObliviousness: They just don’t seem to get that their son is going through hell.
* PinkMist
* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: See The Power Of Friendship, below.
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: One of the favorite insults used by Zorro and his friends is “fag”.
* ThePowerOfFriendship: Subverted towards the end, where [[spoiler:Ross and Gray’s friendship cannot survive Zorro and Co.’s attempt to force them into oral sex.]]
* ThePowerOfLove: [[spoiler:Peter and Lindsay’s relationship survives her being shot and crippled by Gray.]]
* ProtagonistJourneyToVillain
* SchoolBullyingIsHarmless: The [[AdultsAreUseless parents and teachers]] espouse this philosophy in-universe.
* SiblingYinYang: Peter is cool, intelligent, good-looking, and well liked. Grayson is quiet, fails classes, scrawny, and a complete social reject.
* SurvivalMantra: Gray chants “gonna get better” and “gonna be different here” to himself a lot. Later, this is twisted in on itself as he starts saying “gonna get worse” instead.
* SweaterGirl: Both Daisy and Lindsay at times.
* SympatheticMurderer: [[spoiler:Yes, Gray killed four people, most of who weren’t his actual tormentors, but he was broken and crazed from months of horrific abuse.]]
* TeensAreMonsters: Played straight in both the horrible abuse Grayson receives from the bullies, and [[spoiler:the shooting at the end]].
* ThrewMyBikeOnTheRoof: Zorro [[spoiler:destroying Gray’s drums.]]
* ToughLove: Mr. Wilton is doing what he thinks is best for Gray; he’s just an abusive idiot who wants to stamp out Grayson’s own personality and make him into his father’s idea of the perfect son.
* TrailersAlwaysSpoil: Or in this case, the summary on the inside cover.
* TragicBromance: Ross and Gray, apparently both the other’s OnlyFriend, [[spoiler:are separated first by the pressure of the bullying, and second by death. An odd example, as it’s Gray who kills Ross.]]
* TheUnfavorite: Grayson is much less dear to his father than Peter is.
* TheUnseen: Jemmy.
* WhereDidWeGoWrong: with Grayson?
[[ThisIsNotThatTrope And then there’s Grayson.]]
Unlike his older brother (“Perfect Peter”), Grayson is a pimply, bullied, D-and-F student. With a history of victimization, he’s desperate for a new start when his family packs up and moves to Greenford. A new town, a new high school…it sounds like the perfect chance to make things better. But during Gray’s first week of high school, enter Zorro, the football star, who leads a gang of his friends in terrorizing Grayson and his friend Ross.
As the school year progresses, the torture escalates. Physical, emotional, and verbal abuse stalks Gray in the hall of his school and at home, at the hands of the father who can’t understand a son that wants to drum instead of shoot ducks, fails classes, and has no interest in sports. Nowhere is safe.
Slowly, every one of the few refuges Gray has built up are taken from him. Faced with the very real fear that one day, the bullies will kill him, and with absolutely no source of happiness left in his life, Grayson turns to what he sees as his only chance of having some form of control—-and some form of revenge.
Endgame was written by Nancy Garden.
!!This Work Provides Examples Of:
* AbusiveParents: Gray’s dad is this; his mother isn’t actually abusive, she just can’t stand up to her husband.
* AdultsAreUseless: An adult helps Grayson out once, over the course of the entire book. ''Once.'' By the time they start trying, it’s far, far too late.
* ArchnemesisDad: Two of Gray’s abusers stand out, having the most screen time and characterization, and perhaps giving him the most pain. One is Zorro. The other is Gray’s father.
* BreakTheCutie: The story is essentially about Gray being abused and abused until he snaps and [[spoiler:opens fire on his classmates]].
* BlackSheep: Gray. His mother and brother don’t seem to mind, but his father hates everything that makes Grayson different.
* BloodlessCarnage: [[spoiler:The shooting]] at the end is relatively non-graphic, but we ''are'' seeing it through the eyes of someone who’s a little crazy
* BoomHeadshot: Takes out [[spoiler:Zorro]].
* TheBully: Gray seems to attract them…
* CharacterDevelopment: Gray gets increasingly pessimistic and angry.
** Daisy, on the other hand, goes from a sweet, quiet girl, to [[spoiler:dating one of Gray’s tormentors.]]
* CorneredRattlesnake: They push Gray, and they push him, and they push him. Then they push him too far.
* CreepyChild: Gray is this by the last few chapters.
* DespairEventHorizon: Gray passes it when [[spoiler:Barker gets run over.]] From then on, there’s no hope.
* TheDogBitesBack: The climax.
* DotingParent: Mr. Wilton is this. [[ParentalFavoritism To Peter]].
* DrivenToSuicide: Part of [[spoiler:Gray’s shooting plan. It doesn’t work out for him.]]
* EmbarrassingFirstName: Grayson points out that Zorro’s real name, Eugene, should be one. But since he’s popular and goes by ‘Zorro’, it’s not a problem for him.
* EvilFormerFriend: [[spoiler:Ross and Grayson]] both manage to become this to the other. [[spoiler: Ross by abandoning Gray, and Gray by going nuts and killing Ross.]]
* {{Flanderization}}: In-universe, the newspaper flanderizes Gray’s playing of violent videogames.
* FoolishSiblingResponsibleSibling: Peter is responsible; Gray is foolish.
* FreakOut: Gray finally snaps after [[spoiler:the breakdown of his friendship with Ross.]]
* GangOfBullies: Zorro and his cronies.
* HairTriggerTemper: Grayson has this in the transcripts with his attorney.
* HistoricalHeroUpgrade: [[spoiler:Gray’s victims]] get this in-universe, at the end.
* HistoricalVillainUpgrade: [[spoiler: The newspaper article turns Gray in a raging psychopath who’s obsessed with violence, and practically omits the ''months'' of torture that left him thinking his own classmates were seriously going to ''kill him''.]]
* JerkassVictim: [[spoiler:Zorro]]. Also Grayson, at the same time. You know from the start he’s a murderer, and you still have to feel sorry for the pain he’s handed.
* JerkJock: Zorro and his friends.
* KeepAway: No GangOfBullies would be complete without it, right?
* KidsAreCruel: Some truly horrific abuse is handed out to Gray and Ross, who more than once seriously wonder if they are going to be killed.
* KilledOffForReal: [[spoiler:Zorro, Hannah, Daisy, and Ross.]]
* LonersAreFreaks: Gray is an almost-friendless loser. However, it is the loneliness that ''makes'' him into a freak, as it gives him no support system when things get horrible.
* NeverBringAKnifeToAFistfight: Gray carries a knife in his sock. He still gets beat up on, every time.
* OnlyFriend: A pattern in Gray’s life: first it was Jemmy, then it was Ross.
* ParentalFavoritism: Mr. Wilton dishes out ‘’a lot’’ of this. Horrifically, Grayson comes in third out of two siblings; both Peter ‘’and’’ the dog outrank him in his father’s heart.
* ParentalObliviousness: They just don’t seem to get that their son is going through hell.
* PinkMist
* PlotMandatedFriendshipFailure: See The Power Of Friendship, below.
* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: One of the favorite insults used by Zorro and his friends is “fag”.
* ThePowerOfFriendship: Subverted towards the end, where [[spoiler:Ross and Gray’s friendship cannot survive Zorro and Co.’s attempt to force them into oral sex.]]
* ThePowerOfLove: [[spoiler:Peter and Lindsay’s relationship survives her being shot and crippled by Gray.]]
* ProtagonistJourneyToVillain
* SchoolBullyingIsHarmless: The [[AdultsAreUseless parents and teachers]] espouse this philosophy in-universe.
* SiblingYinYang: Peter is cool, intelligent, good-looking, and well liked. Grayson is quiet, fails classes, scrawny, and a complete social reject.
* SurvivalMantra: Gray chants “gonna get better” and “gonna be different here” to himself a lot. Later, this is twisted in on itself as he starts saying “gonna get worse” instead.
* SweaterGirl: Both Daisy and Lindsay at times.
* SympatheticMurderer: [[spoiler:Yes, Gray killed four people, most of who weren’t his actual tormentors, but he was broken and crazed from months of horrific abuse.]]
* TeensAreMonsters: Played straight in both the horrible abuse Grayson receives from the bullies, and [[spoiler:the shooting at the end]].
* ThrewMyBikeOnTheRoof: Zorro [[spoiler:destroying Gray’s drums.]]
* ToughLove: Mr. Wilton is doing what he thinks is best for Gray; he’s just an abusive idiot who wants to stamp out Grayson’s own personality and make him into his father’s idea of the perfect son.
* TrailersAlwaysSpoil: Or in this case, the summary on the inside cover.
* TragicBromance: Ross and Gray, apparently both the other’s OnlyFriend, [[spoiler:are separated first by the pressure of the bullying, and second by death. An odd example, as it’s Gray who kills Ross.]]
* TheUnfavorite: Grayson is much less dear to his father than Peter is.
* TheUnseen: Jemmy.
* WhereDidWeGoWrong: with Grayson?
