Felicia Tan Shi Qi

1.1

Success

"Don't be a bystander. Help someone if you think they're being bullied." I bet we all have heard that during talks about bullying. But do they know how hard it is to help when you know that if you do, you might be the next victim? They just don't get it. That it's not that easy. The person who helps the victim has to have guts. It's not that I'm brave or anything. I was afraid to help at first. But then, I saw what bullying could do to people. That was when I decided to make a decision that would change not my life, as it always did, but someone else's.

First, a quick introduction. I'm Cece. It's short for Cecilia. This story is of how I helped my best friend Rocky, short for Raquel, stop her bullying problem and how we actually became best friends. You see, Rocky and I were not always best friends. I was the popular one, always surrounded by people, people who I didn't know whether to trust or not, and she was the quiet one, who basically tried not to cause any problems. Caroline and Hunter however, caused problems for her. At least once every day, I would see them laughing at her or snatching her stuff.

I never really helped her because I was too scared. Like I said, how would I know if when I helped Rocky, I would become Caroline and Hunter's next target? I silently watched her for a few months. It wasn't till we were asked to work together for a project did I realise the extent of her suffering.

I still remember the day when our History teacher told us to work on a project on the French Revolution. The shocked look on Rocky's face when she heard both our names being called was pretty funny. I guess she would have never imagined that we would have to work together. After class, I approached her for the first time to talk to her about the project. I still remember the exact words from our first conversation.

"So, will it be alright with you if we went to your house after school to discuss our project?" I had asked her. She stared at me for about two seconds before she managed to choke out a "Yes.". I could only assume that she wasn't used to people talking to her since she always seemed alone most of the time. After that I spent most of the day in school with her, sitting next to her during lunch and talking to her in between classes. I could tell that she enjoyed my company and to be honest, I enjoyed hers too. I realised that she was actually really nice and funny once you got to know her.

Finally, the school day was over. Rocky and I walked towards her house together, laughing hysterically. Half-way towards her house, she stopped in the middle of her tracks.

"I left my History textbook in my locker. I'll run back to get it," she said before running back to school. Half an hour later, she still hadn't returned. I walked back to school myself to look for her, unaware of the cruel shock I would find.

The first thing I saw when I went back to school was Rocky lying on the floor, only semi-conscious. Caroline and Hunter were kicking and punching her, hurling words which I was sure weren't even legal at her. I heard a voice call her name. It took me a second to register that the voice was mine. My legs started running towards her. Caroline and Hunter saw me and ran off before I could run after them. That, and I was too scared to chase them.

Long story short, I called an ambulance. Rocky suffered from a broken arm and head. Other than that and a few bruises, she was, miraculously, fine. She came back to school after three weeks. During that three weeks she was in the hospital, we became closer than ever. Every day after school, I would visit her and update her on the happenings in school.

I stepped into the school with her by my side and was immediately greeted by numerous murmurs. Just as we were about to walk towards our lockers, Caroline and Hunter blocked our path.

"Aw, Rocky's trying to be popular by sticking with Cece," Sneered Caroline.

"Well, it won't work because you're a loser and always will be!" Hunter laughed.

I could feel my blood boiling at that moment. They had already hurt Rocky physically and they still have the cheek to make fun of her? Enough was enough. I was going to end this.

"Haven't you had enough?!" I screamed. "I have seen you two torment not just Rocky but many people for as long as I can remember! Why do you do this? What did she ever do to you? If you're doing this because you think it looks cool, I have news for you, it doesn't! So I suggest you stop it or else I'm going to report you two to the principal and trust me, the consequences won't be pretty."

I looked around and saw everyone nodding in agreement. Caroline and Hunter glared at me before walking off in a huff. The crowd around us cheered which made my blood boil even more.

"And all of you!" The crowd immediately quietened down. "Don't think that you guys aren't guilty! How many of you have actually helped someone in this school who was being bullied? You guys just walked away and not care about them." I looked at Rocky and quietly added, "Even me…" I took Rocky's hand and said quietly, "Rocky, I'm so sorry I never stood up for you until now. Will you forgive me?" Rocky, who had been looking at the ground the entire time, looked up at me with tears in her eyes.

Since then, Rocky became my best friend. Correction, my TRUE friend. She became the only person who I trusted. We swore to each other never to let this happen to each other ever again. And even if it did, we swore to protect each other and never let each other get hurt. As for Caroline and Hunter you may ask? Well, we can only say that they got their just desserts.