Sarah had a bitter enemy in high school, and that enemy was none other than Matthew McCall. Ever since he joined her class in her first year of high school, Sarah had developed a strong distaste for him. Matthew was always teasing her for her nerdy appearance and he seemed to enjoy making her feel inferior.
But Sarah was not one to be easily defeated. To combat Matthew's mean-spirited behavior, she would sing Taylor Swift's "Mean" in her head, imagining the lyrics directed towards him. To this day, Sarah still uses this method to keep herself composed in his presence.
Matthew may have had a decent appearance, and was able to hold his own in sports, but to Sarah he was just a bully who thought he was better than everyone else because of his minor good looks. He had a small group of followers, but in Sarah's eyes, he was nothing compared to legendary figures like Aerospace.
Despite her efforts to ignore Matthew, he still managed to catch her off guard one day. Sarah was massaging her sore legs from a long walk home the previous day and applying ointment to soothe the ache. She was not the athletic type like her sister Deliah, and the long walk had left her feeling faint. In fact, even Deliah would have been tired after that walk. Sarah had to run at times to make sure she made it home on time, so Deliah wouldn't suspect anything. As she massaged her calf with a fresh slab of ointment, she heard Matthew's stupid voice.
"Are your limbs failing you already, Sarah Johnson?" he snickered. "I guess you don't use them much, huh?"
Sarah's eyes snapped open, and she looked at him with a frown.
"Can I help you with anything, Mr. Matthew?" Sarah asked politely, trying to keep a low profile. But, Matthew's loud and obnoxious voice attracted all the attention, making her efforts futile.
"Nah, just reminding you of your ugliness," Matthew snickered cruelly. "Just because your last name is similar to Deliah Johnson, you think you're all that. Please, Sarah Johnson, you look anything but pretty."
Sarah struggled to keep her composure, the words stung even though she expected some form of cruelty from Matthew. She tried to distract herself by singing Mean by Taylor swift in her head.
"Hey, are you even paying attention?" Matthew sneered. "Enjoy these moments when someone actually bothers to talk to you." Sarah took a deep breath and finished her song. She met Matthew's gaze and calmly asked once more, "Is there anything you need, Mr. Matthew?" This time louder.
As Alex gazed over at Sarah from across the classroom, he couldn't help but frown at the situation unfolding before him. Despite his initial dislike for Sarah, he couldn't stand to see anyone treated poorly.
With determination in his eyes, Alex rose from his seat, ready to step in and put a stop to the bullying. But, before he could take a step, his friend Joe grabbed him and held him back. "Where are you off to?" Joe asked, following Alex's gaze towards Sarah and Matthew.
"I'm gonna show that kid that bullying is never the way to go," Alex replied, his voice full of conviction.
But, Steve wasn't having it. He shook his head, warning Alex to stay back. "Don't. You don't know what kind of person Sarah Johnson really is. If you did, you would understand why this little insult isn't a big deal."
Alex was taken aback. His friends were usually such kind and caring individuals, so why were they not defending Sarah? Curiosity getting the better of him, Alex asked, "What are you talking about?"
"Well for starters," David shrugged. "There's this rumor that she always wears these long baggy clothes because she likes to cut herself. You know, those emo people?"
Alex frowned. He glanced at Sarah and shook his head. "Unbelievable."
"And there's this other rumor where she takes drugs." Philip supplied. "That's why she's so pale and she always hangs her head down."
"Isn't that fair instead of pale?" Alex inquired.
Henry ignored him and continued. "Also, there's this third rumor that she sleeps with men for money. Notice how her lunch boxes only have either Rice or spaghetti? Her family is poor and she sells her body for extra cash."
Alex frowned and turned to look at Sarah once more. Those rumors sounded ridiculous, but at that moment, Alex wasn't too sure what to make of Sarah's character. The rumors added to his belief that she wasn't nice.
"You still want to help her now?" Steve asked.
Alex sighed and rubbed the back of his neck, sinking back into his seat. "Fine," he muttered. "But I'll have to put in my earphones to drown out Matthew McCall's voice or I'll still feel guilty for not doing anything."
*******
Sarah hated herself. She hated herself when she turned soft, when she doubted her own decisions, and when she cried.
"Shit. Why are you letting him get to you again?" Sarah muttered furiously to herself as she wiped her tears away, sitting on a toilet bowl in an isolated toilet where no one ever goes to.
"He's Matthew McCall. He's mean. You know that." She took several breaths. "You know you shouldn't take any of his words to heart."
Sarah took a deep breath and tried to compose herself, but one thought kept echoing in her mind: "It hurts." She stepped out of the bathroom stall and washed her face, studying her reflection in the mirror. She saw her once-gorgeous face now hidden behind large glasses, her skin dull from being indoors too much, and hair that was a complete mess.
"Sarah, you made this choice," she whispered to herself. "You know why you did it, so stick with it." And with that, Sarah strode confidently out of the bathroom, as if Matthew McCall had never existed.
*****
For the first time ever, Sarah was late to the school's newsletter committee meeting. She quickly took a seat and waited for Teacher Edison to start. Alex sat across from her, ignoring Teacher Edison's attempts at flattery and instead, curiously observing Sarah. He was intrigued by her and wanted to understand who she was, beyond the rumors he'd heard.
Sarah's face was calm and poised, giving no indication of the tears she had shed earlier. Even if Alex had tried, he wouldn't have been able to see any signs of her crying, unless he was standing right in front of her. Across the table, Alex thought Sarah seemed Unbothered by Matthew McCall.
Teacher Edison led the meeting, and Sarah took detailed notes. Alex stood by, thinking and analyzing the situation. When the meeting finally wrapped up, topics for the next newsletter were assigned to each member. Alex declined to take on any tasks, feeling uncertain about his writing abilities and whether it was ready for the whole school to see.
As the committee members gathered their things and headed out, the two girls tried to strike up a conversation with Alex, but he wasn't interested. Instead, he approached Sarah as she organized her notes.
"Hey there!" Alex greeted Sarah, finally mustering the courage to speak to her.
Sarah turned to face him, a quizzical look on her face. "Yes, Mr Alex?" she responded.
Internally, Alex let out a sigh of relief. At least she knew his name. He had been curious about why she seemed to ignore him before. "I wanted to check in on you after the hurtful words Matthew McCall said earlier," he continued.
Sarah's expression softened slightly, and she gave a curt nod. "I'm fine."
But Alex wasn't satisfied with just a simple answer. He had heard rumors about her and wanted to know the truth.
You see," Alex started hesitantly. "I heard rumors about you. I'm not going to explain in detail but it's generally about drugs, prostitution, and how you like to inflict pain on yourself-"
Sarah's eyes narrowed, "It's none of your business is it?" At that moment, she realized he was just like any other Bastard Popular guy out there. Quick to believe rumors and judge based on appearances.
Sarah gathered her belongings turning to leave. Alex watched her go, annoyance etched on his face. "If that isn't a sign of guilt, I don't know what is," he grumbled to himself.