I’m an eighth grade girl, I was bullied from around mid-5th to 6th. I had a slight crush on the boy who bullied me, so I only saw it as teasing and ignored my mother’s warnings about the boy. By the middle of sixth grade I was terrified of this kid, but I didn’t really realize it—I still sat at his lunch table and talked to him during science. But the horrible thing was, he essentially robbed me of any free will. I had a tiny zit on my nose? “You’re ugly as f***!” He didn’t like my shirt? “B**** you’re a f***ing idiot!” I bought the wrong thing for lunch? “Why’d you get that? Hey look everyone, she got the mac and cheese, she’s f***ing stupid, she’s gonna die and the world’s gonna laugh” I’m still terrified of this boy. I’ve said six words to him (I counted) since the beginning of seventh grade in September 2014.

Now just because I’m an optimist, I’m sharing a story only slightly relevant but will hopefully restore hope in a shattered mind. A boy I like, my best friend, and my other friend and I were all hanging out at a school Halloween event, we were waiting to go in the haunted house. My bully and a few of his dumb friends were behind us in line. My best friend and the boy would answer questions if he spoke to us, helping me ignore him, and at one point when he was staring at me, my crush gently nudged me around a corner out of sight and stood in front of me. This proves that your real friends will always, ALWAYS have your back no matter how bad things may seem. Don’t give up hope—it’ll improve (:

Love, a girl who’s been there