Waves

Chapter Five: Only a Bully

Chapter Five: Only a Bully

“When another person makes you suffer, it is because he suffers deeply within himself, and his suffering is spilling over. He does not need punishment; he needs help. That’s the message he is sending.” –Thich Nhat Hanh, Tumblr

No one likes to be bullied. People will criticize you and talk behind your back until the day you die. You can let it get to you or you can choose to ignore it, because you—and only you—know who you are and what you want to be.

            People pick on you when you’re vulnerable. They will pick on you if they notice that you have no friends. They will whisper about you as they walk through the halls, calling you “gay” or “emo” or a “freak.” People who are different are immediately targeted just because they don’t follow norms. I didn’t blame them.

            Bullying can make a person feel worthless and alone. It can lead a person to become so unhappy that they decide to take their own life. No one should ever feel that way. It is wrong, cruel, and sad. Death should always come naturally, but it doesn’t. There are accidents, suicides, and murders. Death is unavoidable but when Death comes for me, I want to have lived my life and fulfilled my goals.

            People always say that bullies are insecure. Maybe it’s true, but that’s no excuse for the damage they have inflicted on others and the society around us. I didn’t quite understand why someone would want to make someone feel less than what they are. Because I would never want to feel that way, I wouldn’t do it to anyone else.

            Bullying is wrong. And it must be stopped. For that to happen, people need to stand up for what’s right. A victim of bullying that doesn’t act isn’t a coward. A coward is the person who watches the victim squirm and doesn’t do anything about it. I didn’t ever want to be that person.

The weekend went by quickly. A little over a week had passed since I fainted in the hallway. Since then, Cory hasn’t laid an eye on me. But his friends have been picking on me, as usual. It was beginning to get boring. Class after class, day after day. I wanted it to end. No one else knew what I was going through, aside from Lucas and Eliza. Having them around made things easier, but the rumors and name calling didn’t go away.

            “They’re just jealous,” Lucas had said, “because they don’t have an amazing and beautiful friend like you.” That made me feel good. No one had called me beautiful in a long time—not after Hurricane Cory. And it also made me smile, making Lucas smile too.

            Eliza and Ryan were also hitting it off. On Saturday, she told me that he finally kissed her. Since then, they hung out more often. She was hoping that he asked her to be his girlfriend, but he hadn’t. When I told her to give him some time, she pouted. Honestly, he was probably afraid to get into a relationship with someone. Once you get yourself involved with someone, it’s possible to lose that person for good. I could understand the logic, but Eliza was impatient. She always has been.

            Hailey was also excited. She informed me that Michael had asked her on a date on Friday, to the movies. She said that a bunch of her friends were going too. When I asked her if she wanted me to take her, she said that she was going to walk and meet him there. I was happy for her. It was her first date. My first date had been with a boy named Daren. I liked him for a while, but then he moved away. And that was the end of that. However, we were friends on Facebook and still talked every now and then. I had to admit that he’d gotten cuter over the years.

            Thursday, I thought. Almost Friday. I went through my usual morning routine. This morning, I felt good for a change. I straightened my hair and put on eyeliner. Then I coated my lips with pink gloss. From the corner of my eye, I noticed Hailey lingering in the doorway. “You look cute,” she said, examining my appearance. “Hm . . . do you have a boyfriend at school? Is it Lucas?”