Walking down the halls

Not one student glances up

No ‘good morning’ or ‘hello’

Just quiet chatter diminishing, as I walk past

In nearly every class

The corner seat is mine

I have no one to talk to

No reason for a teacher to scold

Standing in the lunchroom, nowhere to sit

From an aerial view I am but a fragmented starfish

Mixed up in, and staring through and beyond a vast coral reef

As I walk out of the school

A veneer of silence disguises the usually loud students

The occasional needling voice can be heard

Poking “fun” at me

All the snide remarks are not taken as fun by me

My mind tells me I shouldn’t be in this school

No one should go to such a school, with intense feelings

Of anxiety, fear, and abuse

Realizing I just described myself,

I question my world further

I cannot fight the problem, perhaps avoidance will work

So the next day, my alarm clock purposely does not ring

As one gummy bear is nothing in a candy shop,

Fighting is futile

There is only one fail-proof solution,

Avoidance