His head is low,

his eyes full of tears.

He gets upset easily,

but I know it's not anything small.

There are people laughing,

people laughing at him.

I say something,

something blunt but true.

"So, he's different.

What's bad about that?

You're insecure,

that's why you have to pick.

Grow up, get over yourself.

Maybe if you're nice,

people will like you."

It feels good,

the younger boy looks at me and smiles.

I smile back at him,

and the older boy walks off.

People are so mean,

people don't care.

I see it all the time,

I feel so bad.

I'm not the one causing the hurt,

but I see it getting worse.

The kids walking these halls deserve better.

They don't deserve to be treated this way.

Things need to change.

Walking these halls use to be great,

now it's a place for cruel acts.

No one should feel this way,

especially walking these halls.