This comes with a *major* trigger warning as this is going to talk about bullying. If you're not in a good headspace to read this or if this will bring up scary feelings. Feel free to pass on reading this for now or don't read it at all. I will not be offended at all if you do.

The context of the bullying in this story wasn't something I went through – the thoughts expressed in the story are.

It began with a simple phrase.

"You talk funny."

It wasn't all that unusual for Niamh Mason to hear, as she knew that she was an outsider; having come from Ireland and was new to the school where she and her brother and sister, Adam and Ella Marie, went.

But then it grew beyond that… and became more and more hurtful. Each time she brought it up to her teachers and even her parents, cousins, Great Aunt and Uncle – and the rest of the family, it was just met with the phrase that hurts just as much.

"Just ignore them."

She knew they meant well. She knew that they were chalking it up to her still adjusting to the new school. But Adam and Ella knew that something was wrong and were determined to find out and make it stop.

Adam was watching his sister for weeks and kept noticing how depressed she was getting, hardly touching her food, hardly putting any effort into her appearance outside of washing her face, the whole nine yards.

He was exceptionally angry at his parents for not thinking that Niamh was being bullied and not "just missing Ireland and her friend Kennedy" as Della would say.

"Niamh, keep telling Mama and Daddy about the bullies. Even if they're not listening."

Adam insisted one night after dinner when Niamh excused herself without even touching her food. Niamh sighed as the tears began,

"But they don't believe me, Adam!"

Ella had snuck away from the dinner table as well,

"We do, Niamh. Yes, it is pretty sucky that your teachers and our family don't believe you as well. Tell us, what are they saying this week?"

Niamh nodded after Ella spoke,

"They're saying how I'm too weird to be in the Mason family. That you guys are weirdos too because you associate with me."

The brother and sister looked at each other with wide eyes as Adam felt his blood boil, now the bullies were attacking the Mason family as a whole.

This wasn't OK. This wasn't OK at all. Something needed to be done and Adam knew he was the one to do it.

Adam nodded and asked the same question he'd been asking since Niamh first told them about the bullies,

"Do you need Ella to stay with you again so you can sleep?"

Niamh nodded. Ever since the bullying began to get ugly, she had asked Ella to sleep in her bed with her for the nightmares to go away.

When Della and Perry went to kiss the kids goodnight… Adam always told them not to bother Niamh – knowing that Ella was with her and they didn't want their parents to know that Ella was helping Niamh sleep better.

"Mama, Daddy. Don't bother Niamh. I already gave her a kiss good night for both of you. Just go to bed."

Della and Perry looked to each other,

"Is something going on with her, son? Ella wasn't in her room when Mama and I went to tell her good night and we've noticed that Niamh gets clingy with Ella when something's bothering her."

Perry asked as Adam sighed, knowing that the truth had to come out sooner rather than later but he left it vague enough for them to buy it.

"Niamh's been having nightmares recently and Ella's been sleeping with her since Niamh swears that's what makes them go away."

Perry nodded,

"Alright, if it's helping Niamh sleep then we won't argue with her on that. Goodnight, Adam."

Adam sighed once his parents gave him the good night kisses and went to bed… he did tell the truth. Just not the entire truth.

As the weeks passed, the verbal abuse escalated quickly and then around three weeks after the talk before bed… the bullies began to physically abuse Niamh.

Tripping her in the halls, shoving her in the halls and on the playground, even after she told them to stop and was told the same thing when she told the teachers.

"Just ignore them and go play with other kids."

The kids went to the local public elementary school and the twins were in 6th grade and Niamh was in 4th grade.

So, Adam was able to keep a closer tab on how badly the bullies were treating Niamh.

That day the weather was usually nice for October and the majority of the students in grades 4 – 6 had been well behaved during the week that all three grades took the last hour for fun Friday outside.

Adam and Ella were watching the bullies as they shoved Niamh around while taunting her – trying to get a rise out of her. But they were shocked at how Niamh kept silent and Adam could clearly see her red, puffy, teary eyes.

Their mother had put Niamh's hair into a tight French braid that morning, and one of the bullies grabbed it and tugged hard as Niamh yelped before Adam charged the girl who tugged Niamh's braid,

"Get your hands off my sister!"

He shouted as fists began to fly as the fighting began and got loud enough to have other students run and get the teachers that were already on their way to break up the fight.

Ella had rushed over to Niamh, along with the guidance counselor for grades 4 – 6 as they escorted her to the counselor's office as Adam and the group of bullies were taken to the office and Della was heartbroken to receive the phone call from the school,

"Hello?"

"Is this Mrs. Mason?"

Della nodded,

"Yes."

"Hi, this is Ms. Jones the office secretary calling you to sadly inform you that your son Adam started a fight with the girls he's claiming to have been bullying Niamh for the past six weeks. You and your husband need to come in now to talk with the principal."

Della nodded as she felt tears form as she swallowed them before replying,

"We're on our way. Thank you."

She hung up before the secretary had a chance to reply as she walked into Perry's office.

"Perry, pack up. We need to go to the kid's school. Adam started a fight."

Perry looked up and did a double take as Della could see the anger rising.

"What?!"

Della bit her lip and nodded,

"Apparently, Adam claims that there have been a bunch of girls bullying Niamh. We need to go. Now."

While they were on the way to the school, Niamh was in the counselor's office – sobbing as Ella held her sister close.

"Ms. Fields, you believed me when I told you about them. Right?"

Niamh choked out as she continued to sob as the counselor nodded,

"Yes, and I told you that I was talking to Mr. Keller. He, like your parents, didn't believe me."

In the principal's office,

"Start from the beginning Adam."

The principal said as Adam nodded,

"It began six weeks ago. Niamh came to Ella and I saying that Hailey, the girl who pulled her hair, told her that she talks funny and that she shrugged that off, having heard that before. Then it got worse when Hailey enlisted her friends to help her get a rise out of Niamh by saying mean things to her. We told her to tell Mama and Daddy but when she told them they ignored her by saying she missed Ireland and her friend that lived in the same orphanage as her. Then, three weeks ago, Hailey and her friends began to physically hurt her. Pushing and shoving leading up to today with tugging her hair – hard. That's what did it for me."

Perry and Della were listening as they began to feel guilty in not actually listening to Niamh and missing all the signs that she was being bullied. But that didn't cover up the fact that Adam did start a fight and that he needed to be punished.

As the meeting drew on and other teachers listened to Adam, they too admitted that they saw the signs and ignored them thinking that on the playground Niamh was truly playing with the girls, and in the hall that Niamh was accidentally in their way.

When they went to collect the sisters,

"Adam!"

Niamh cried into his shoulders as the brother and sister hugged tightly as Della and Perry sighed.

The car ride home was quiet and once they got in the house,

"Ella, Niamh. Go to your rooms please."

Perry said with a calm voice as Niamh could read the angry undertone as they nodded before Perry guided Adam to the home office before Della went to Niamh's room as she knocked on the door,

"Niamh, sweetie. It's Mom. Can I come in?"

Della asked as she heard Niamh's sobs as Niamh hiccupped a reply,

"Please."

Della walked in as her tears won over as she lied on the bed with Niamh, holding her close, letting her tears run dry while crying along with her.

Della was crying out of guilt. Guilt in seeing the signs of bullying but chalking it up to Niamh missing Ireland and Kennedy. Guilt in not stepping in sooner, like she would've if it was Ella and not Niamh.

Niamh was Della's daughter and the guilt was so strong that Della silently swore to herself if it happened again, she'd step in sooner.

"Dad. Before you start let me speak."

Adam began once Perry sat down.

"I know you and Mama have been super busy recently. I know you both meant well in telling Niamh to ignore the bullies. But what hurt Ella and I's feelings that you said that with the air of not believing her. Same with Great Uncle Calvin and Great Aunt Irene. She's your daughter – just like Ella. Even though she didn't tell us, we could understand that your telling her to ignore the bullies hurt her just as much if not more than being bullied. Honestly, Dad."

Adam finished as Perry blushed deeply as he felt a wave of guilt wash upon him.

"Adam, you've made your point and I respect it. But, still, what you did was wrong and since you're serving out of school suspension, Mama and I are going to need you to shape up. We didn't raise you to go and pick fights. Mama and I need to talk about your punishment, please go to your room."

Perry said in a drained voice with an undercurrent of anger as Adam left the office as Perry broke down crying silently and once he was done he called Liam, Irene, and Calvin asking them to come to LA with the reasoning being that they needed help with something.

Once they got to LA and to suite 904,

"What's going on, Della?"

Liam asked with concern as Della nodded while fighting the tears – talking about it still made her cry.

"Niamh… Niamh was being bullied for six weeks because she is from Ireland and Adam started a fight with the bullies recently when they tugged on Niamh's braid – hard from what Adam told us. It started with just verbal jabs but then it escalated to physical abuse and Adam's in the first of two weeks of out of school suspension. I just feel – Perry and I feel so guilty for reading the signs of her being bullied as lingering signs of homesickness for Niamh."

Everyone listened and when Della finished…

"Della, have you heard Niamh's side of the story?"

Liam asked as Della shook her head,

"We've let her be for the past few days… even letting her stay home from school. She's beyond traumatized."

Irene nodded,

"How's Ella taking all of this?"

Perry nodded,

"Not too well. She's also mad at us for turning a blind eye to what was happening."

Calvin nodded,

"Would you mind if I took Ella for the day tomorrow?"

Della and Perry looked to each other and nodded,

"Sure, we don't mind."

That evening,

"Hey, Ella. You're not going in for school tomorrow. Great Uncle Calvin's going to take you out to spend some time with him. Niamh, you and I are going to the beach tomorrow. Adam, Daddy's staying home with you."

Della said at dinner as all three kids nodded quietly.

Before Niamh went to bed – she found Della on the couch in the family room and snuggled with her, crying.

Oh, Niamh… Mom and I are so sorry that we chose to not believe you and brush it off thinking you were just missing Kennedy and Ireland.

Perry thought as he looked at the scene, pressed against the doorframe by the family room.

"You couldn't have known it was bullying, Perry."

Liam said once Della and the kids went to sleep as Perry shook his head,

"I understand, Dad, but it pains me that we were dismissive about it."

Liam nodded as Perry walked out and went to sleep.

The next morning after breakfast,

"Niamh, why don't you start from the beginning?"

Della asked as they began their walk on the beach as Niamh nodded,

"Like Adam said, it began six weeks ago with Hailey saying that I talked funny but it wasn't in the normal tone that I had heard before, it was in a meaner tone. But again, I brushed it off because I've heard it before. Hailey didn't back off when I told her to, instead she gathered her friends to throw meaner taunts at me. That's when I started to feel sad and rather dismissive about myself. And it also hurt me even more when you and Dad were dismissive about it, along with my teachers. It made me think that it was a mistake that I came here to be your daughter. That you and Dad didn't love me. I still ignored them, but then three weeks ago… it got worse verbally and the girls started to shove and trip me in the hall, push me around on the playground. Then last Friday when they tugged hard on that lovely braid you did for me, was when Adam jumped in when he started that fight."

Della was listening and keeping the tears at bay when she heard Niamh's admission to thinking that Perry and Della didn't love her and that she didn't feel like she belonged in the family.

"Oh, Niamh. Don't ever think that Daddy and I don't love you. Because we do, and you are supposed to be here with our family. I know that no amount of apologizing is going to cover up our mistake but we want you to know that you were so brave in continually telling us and doing your best to ignore Hailey and her friends."

Della finished as Niamh clung to her as they both hugged tightly before continuing their walk.

When the mother and daughter got home,

"Niamh, sweetheart, come sit with me."

Perry asked gently as Niamh nodded as Perry gathered Niamh in a hug and had her sit next to him as the father and daughter sat there and cried.

It wasn't a pleasant time for the family, but thankfully things were less of a mystery with Niamh. But Della prayed fervently that night for things to continue to be on the uptick.