Freshman Year By Skyla Terlizzi
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It is September 8th, 2022 my first day of high school. I see some of my old friends, and I start making conversation with them.
My day was flowing nicely until I went to my 8th period class.
The boy that has been bullying me all summer by calling me mean names like “Whale, fat, ugly, obese, nerd” was in my class.
My bully Mathew, was giving me dirty looks and laughing at me. When class was over he pulled my backpack and made me fall. It was so embarrassing, everyone started to laugh.
When I came home I was still devastated about what happened. He called me, I answered.
“You’re so ugly” he said.
I replied by saying “You should not say that about someone because it can really hurt someone’s feelings”.
He hung up and I felt even worse about myself.
My mother came home from work and asked me how school was. “It was good,” I said, even though I was just lying.
“That’s good, I am happy for you,” she said.
I tried to go to sleep but all I could think about was how humiliated I was.
The next day I wake up and hope this day will be better. I look at my phone and see that someone texted me from an unknown number, I had a feeling I knew who it was.

“You’re Fat, obese, chubby and overweight, you need to lose weight and eat a salad,” the text message said.
As I read the message I felt physically and mentally ill.
I started counting calories in food and gave myself a limit of how many calories I can have in order to lose weight. I work out everyday hoping I lose weight fast. I hated the way my body looked, I covered my body in many layers of clothes so nobody could know what my body looked like or make assumptions about how much I weigh. I didn’t go to school because I felt insecure.
I went to school the next day and it felt like everyone was staring at me and belittling me.
“Hey fatty,” Mathew said.
I look at him in disgust feeling defeated.
The other students start laughing with him pointing at my body and calling me rude names.
I start completing my classwork and all of a sudden everyone is nice to me. “Heyyyy Skyla can you show me what you wrote for the questions,” a few girls said. “I’ll be your friend if you let me copy your work,” Mathew said.
At this moment I realized that if I want people to like me I have to do favors for them.
“Of course I will help you,” I said. I felt so loved that I actually smiled.
As soon as I gave them the answers they replied by saying, “Okay thanks bye”.
I was confused because I thought they said they’d be my friends if I helped them.

I was being taken advantage of and I didn’t even realize. It felt good at the moment but afterwards it left a horrible feeling in my stomach. I felt sick because of the way I was being treated. It felt like someone just shot me down.
“Skyla, you should wear tighter clothes because then boys will actually like you,” Mathew said.
I angrily said “No! I do not want people to like me just because I am showing my body o”.
The next day Mathew was actually being nice to me. “Skyla, you look pretty today,” he said.
“Thank you,” I replied.
I started to like him because he finally showed kindness and aection towards me and he told me he liked me but he did not want to be seen with me because I looked like an embarrassment. I overheard him talking about me to the only friend he could trust.
“Skyla is actually really beautiful. I just wished that she was popular so that nobody would judge me for liking a quiet girl,” he said.
Me and my friend Gianna went to the movies. Mathew was at the movies as well but he was with his friends. I made the mistake of saying “Hi” to him because I forgot he doesn’t want to be seen with me so he embarrassed me by saying something mean in front of his friends.
“Look guys, the fat girl is saying hi to me,” he said. Then he pushed me to the floor. I think to myself “Should I defend myself?, because I have had enough!”.
I got angry and I had enough. I pushed him back and made him fall on the floor.

I said “How does it feel? Bad right? This is what you put me through everyday. You have to learn a lesson so I am going to tell the Principal everything you have done to me”.
The next day Mathew looked scared.
I showed the Principal all of the evidence I had against him and the Principal was not happy so they gave him detention.
He started being nicer to me and even oered me to hang out with him and his friends.
“No, thanks," I said smiling.
After this incident, everyone turned against him and realized how bad of a person he was. Everyone started talking to me and telling me stories about him teasing other girls.
I finally felt seen and heard because I did not think anyone noticed me, but now everyone is noticing me.
The people that used to support Mathew said, “Skyla, you are so beautiful. Can you teach me how you do your makeup? It looks so good”.
I told them what makeup I wear. 
“Wow, Skyla, I did not know you had expensive taste in makeup,” the people replied.
After that, nobody ever bothered me or teased me again. I am finally content with my life and I feel free.