I've been the quiet type right from my tender age, the kind of student who sits quietly in one corner of the class, minding their business and barely getting involved in any form of unnecessary drama, including providing answers to teachers questions except when asked in person. I can vividly remember during my secondary school days that I was an introvert, and that made everyone think they could pick on me or talk over me anytime. For the most part, I usually let things slide, but there was one time all hell broke loose.
That fateful day began like every other day, calm and drama-free, until someone farted inside the classroom. Although it sounds ridiculous, what happened next left me in awe for some seconds. One of the outspoken boys in our class, whose seat isn't too far from mine, pointed at me and said that I was the one who did it. That I was surprised would be an understatement, but then I tried to defend myself with my words, because the fart smelled awful, and I couldn't let everyone think I was the one who did that, including my classroom crush. However, despite my words, he continues to call me names and make fun of me in front of everyone.
While he kept on with his abusive words, I don't know what came over me, because I all of a sudden snapped. It's probably due to years of frustration and humiliation of such magnitude, because I just walked up to where he was, and punched him in the face, which led to him falling down, and he didn't stand up fight back; instead, he was holding on to his face. He probably didn't expect such from me, but I must say that, in all honesty, I didn't expect such from myself either.
Prior to that day, I'd never been involved in a physical fight; the most I'd done were verbal ones, and I guess that lack of experience led to me not punching him properly, because by the time I got home, my hand had started swelling and was painful. It was so bad that I couldn't go to school for the next three days, making it obvious that my punch did more damage to me than it did to him. But then it's worth noting that I didn't regret my action, even though I'm not proud of getting involved in a fight, but then I was happy that he got what he deserved, and that event led to majority of the others abstaining from teasing me for fear of getting punched as well.
Overall, one thing I learned from that experience was the importance of respecting boundaries and how even the meekest people have their limits.
All photos are mine.