Up there, is Mae Whitman as Elizabeth Ryder.

Dedicated to @flickerstory ! ❤️

|Chapter 1|

   I was so proud of myself, successfully surviving another year of high school- another year of being bullied. I know I always tend to mention this, but this year has definitely been the worst I have ever had. Because not only was being bullied ten times as painful as any year that had passed, but so was being betrayed.

Every person has their own definition of pain and agony. Mine was not being bullied... at least not anymore. Before this year, being bullied was my definition of pain and agony. It hurt me, knowing that just because I loved reading and writing, because I was a straight A student, because my body is not perfect, because I was being me, I had to be constantly bullied, every day, by the ruthless students of my school. However, after the heartache I experienced this year, I realized I had a whole new definition of pain and agony.

Being betrayed by the person you least expected to hurt you.

The nightmares I had of being bullied were nowhere near as painful as the ones I had of betrayal and sorrow. The memories haunted me and chased me everywhere. They drove me insane. I was not used to being unhappy. I knew I had to do something about it. I knew I had to change somehow. I just needed to find a way.

And my wish was granted.

Two months into the summer vacation, after two months of locking myself in my room and refusing to go outside, my father made an announcement that for the first time in forever, made me smile.

We were going to move to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for Dad found a new job there.

I was actually, genuinely happy, for I could start a whole new life there. I could finally start anew and avoid making the same mistakes I had made before. The moment Dad made the announcement; I stood up, hugged him, and said, "Congratulations! That's great news!"

Of course, my parents were skeptical. For sure, they were asking themselves why I am so happy to be leaving San Francisco, the city I lived in my whole life. Why I am so happy for leaving my friends behind. But they never knew that those friends were nonexistent. They never knew what was going on with my life at school. They never knew I was being constantly bullied. They never knew I was always hurting. And honestly, I never bothered telling them. Why should I? They could not stop it even if they tried.

Bullies are unstoppable. They are ruthless, and will stay that way until they realize that it's no good- that they're just proving that they are evil, cruel, and are ruining innocent peoples' lives for no reason at all.

And let us face it; it is never going to happen.

I was so relieved that I even stopped hibernating in my room. I started playing with my four-year-old sister, Sophia, and I started watching Disney movies with her once again. I started helping Mom around the house by packing up our belongings while she was at work. However, most importantly, I started dieting once again. I did fat burning workouts at home and ate healthy food. It was hard, and it still is.

I had always struggled with my weight. I had always been bullied for being extremely fat. At first, I believed them. However, when I started actually looking at the mirror every once in a while, I realized that I was not actually all that fat. The pounds overweight I am are close to none, but I always had annoying fats here and there. I had a slightly fat belly and thick thighs. I was never confident in my body, so I decided to diet. My diets continued for a month, then, I stopped. I love food, and having to eat only certain types of them killed me. Months later, however, I started dieting again, then stopped, then dieted again, then stopped, and the cycle went on.

This time, the reason I am dieting is the new chapter in my life I am going to start. If I am going to change in many different ways, might as well make losing weight one of them. I will do it for my own sake. I will do it because I want to be happy and confident in my own skin. I will do it because I do not want to suffer again. I do not want to be bullied for my size.

I want to start anew.