going to school eventually turned into something i would dread every single day. i would come home from school and cry in my room all day. i would tell myself to restrict what i ate and when i ate, but i couldn't, because i wasn't used to it. food was the only comfort i had. it would always be there to offer me more and it would comfort me on days like these.

there were days when i would beg my mom to go under a diet, but she wouldn't let me. she would always tell me that diets would do me more harm than good during this phase of life.

it was around the beginning of ninth grade. my last year of middle school. i have never felt happier about the fact that i'd finally get out of this hellhole. i had just gotten back from a one week trip with my parents and older sister to thailand. we stayed at an ultra inclusive resort and ate to our hearts content. i had lost a little bit of weight, probably because puberty was finally doing its job and making me taller. chaeyoung also complimented me on looking a bit thinner than before, but i knew she was just trying to make me feel better. i walked over to our desk, where we sat along with another friend of hers - sooyoung.

i was just about to sit, when suddenly the chair beneath me was pulled back in one quick motion. luckily i was holding onto the desk and quickly managed to stand up. the chair beneath chaeyoung also was pulled back.

thud.

chaeyoung ended up falling to the floor butt first and the whole class fell silent, turning to look at us. turning my head, i spotted some of the guys behind us laughing. if it was me, i probably would have just cursed at them silently and gone back to my seat, but this was chaeyoung. they messed with my best friend.

i stepped over to the bullies, nearly ripping their fingers off the chairs, which i used all of my strength to pull. the bully in front of me glared, before smirking and beginning to walk away.

"hey!" i called out, my features darkening as i followed him. i wasn't going to let him off like that. not after what he did to chaeyoung. before i knew it, he broke off into a sprint and began running around the classroom. i didn't hesitate to follow him, but he was too fast. it seemed as if whenever i got close to him, he'd run even faster and escape. i couldn't seem to catch him, no matter how hard i tried. before i knew it, the teacher had already entered the class and i was standing by my desk, while the bully was on the other side of the room, smirking at me.

"lose some weight, fattie." he called out before heading to his desk.