Adolescence.
Youth.
The most beautiful period of a person's life.
Perhaps for others...but not for me. I was a girl like many others.
I went to school, studied, wanted to have fun with friends, and live my life like everyone else.
At that time, I wore glasses and, above all, I was an overweight girl.
For this reason, I began to be bullied by my classmates. In the beginning, everything was limited to a few jokes about my weight, which didn't bother me too much; in fact, sometimes I played along, but it didn't end there.
The jokes became more hurtful, and I began to be increasingly marginalized.
I remember one incident in particular; as I was entering the schoolyard to feed the animals, someone locked me in and took the key with them. I didn't have time to realize what had just happened when I heard a voice shouting from afar:
"Even cows need to be in a cage!"
Upon hearing those words, I suddenly started crying. I was locked up for a full hour before a teacher passed by to help me get out.
I was never able to figure out who had locked me in.
At the time, I had only one friend. I got along well with her and felt good, but she started being targeted simply because she talked to me.
So, to avoid this unpleasant situation, she turned her back on me and she too became part of those who mistreated me.
In the end, among all the kids, she became the main instigator.
Certainly, there was the time when I was beaten up by a group of girls just for their personal amusement. I know it doesn't make sense, but people are like that. They take pleasure in seeing or causing suffering in others.
Because of all this, over time, I became more and more antisocial and kept to myself more and more. But I was okay being alone... All I wanted was to be left in peace.
I never told my family anything, especially since the family environment left much to be desired.
In fact, perhaps it was precisely because of this situation that I began to gain weight.
Eating was the only thing that made me feel at peace with myself and distracted me from the chaos of my home.
My parents did nothing but argue continuously, especially after what happened… After middle school, I decided that in high school, I would change my life.
So I did everything I could to change my physical appearance, losing as much weight as possible before the start of my new school year, and getting to my ideal weight. Although I think I did it more for others than for myself.
From that cumbersome physique emerged a completely new girl, and not to brag, quite cute.
My smooth, brown hair and thin lips were now more noticeable.
My brown eyes, always buried under layers of skin, now sparkled in reddish hues in the sunset light, casting their shy gaze toward the future, the new world awaiting me.
I was ready to live a quiet school life, but as it happened, some boys, my classmates in middle school, entered my same high school.
Despite my significant weight loss, I was targeted again in the same way.
Nasty rumors started to circulate about me that painted me as a prostitute.
The word spread that I was sleeping with older men and getting paid for it.
So my ideal of a normal adolescence vanished, and I was, once again, alone. I was ready to live another nightmare, but then one day...