Dear mistreated friend,

In sixth grade, I was trying to figure out who I was. No matter who asked me, I denied that I didn’t want popularity. However, that was a lie. As you know, I found a group of popular kids that liked me but only if I misbehaved. I put on this tough exterior that now I can’t break. I didn’t realize this until now. I thought I was a better person. They loved to hang with me. I sat with them at lunch and only talked to them. One day, one of them texted me telling me that I turned into a horrible person. That I should burn in hell. I didn’t know what I did wrong.

The next day, these friends that accepted me all turned there backs on me. Started rumors that I couldn’t bear. Ruined my sixth grade life. Little did I know that when the world walked out on me, that you’d be there. Everyday and night I wondered why my fifth grade friend that I abandoned and treated so ill had still loved me. You took me in as if I never left. You weren’t as popular as the others but in my eyes, you were an angel. You don’t even realize that everyday I spent with you, you slowly peeled off the hard exterior of my being. I still have mental scars from those days I spent in the dark. But because you came to rescue me, I didn’t stay long without a light.

Sincerely,

Kendra, age 13