She was Different

For the longest time, she believed them.

Photo by Nsey Benajah on Unsplash

She hurries through,
Clutching her books.
Eyes glued to the floor,
Barely catching her breath,
But she made it through.

Finally safe, or so she thought.
“Hey ugly fattie!” they called out.
Everyone stared at her,
Anticipating a performance,
Of humiliation and shame.
Slashing a wound,
That could never be soothed,
Reminded like a tattoo.

They teased and laughed,
Some point and whispered.
Like famished wild beasts,
She was the meat,
Eager to tear her to bits.

In alienation, she yielded.
This was her life now.
She was different,
She looked different.
Undesirable and loathful she thought,
As she gazed at the mirror.

When the nightmare was over,
Head to toe, she felt numb,
Cold and hardened,
She built her walls.
She couldn’t cry,
She wouldn’t…