Embarrassment overfills me.
I can feel their stares on the back of my neck.
In the corner of my eyes.
The side of my cheek.

Those looks burn holes in my skin,
Like the unforgiving UV rays that so often
burn my skin.
Yet I feel cold.

How embarrassing it is,
for one of such esteem,
such former confidence and punctuation,
to lose the faith of his mentors.

“A few of your teachers are concerned…”
His look is grim.
“They are concerned that you are not living to your full potential.”
A wave of surprise.
“They feel that you are bringing others around you down because you have lost focus.
My heart grimaces.

And now I see them- how they look at me-
even the ones who once were kind.
They look at me differently,
whether with concern, compassion, contempt, or constraint,
one thing remains the same…

Their smiles are gone.