I'm gonna hop straight to the point: I was the bully.

Let me tell you, there's nothing I regret more than picking on those kids. There's nothing I want more than to go back to middle school and tell them that I'm truly and genuinely sorry.

You see, I was bullied myself, at home. My parents pressured me to be perfect, and they hurt me when I made a mistake. Therefore I was at the top of all my classes, and I was considered a "popular kid", when I all I wanted was to rip off my fake smile and burn all of my fake clothes. I kept all this stress bottled up inside of me until one day, I accidentally knocked this kid in the side of the head. I almost said sorry, and I wish I had, but it actually felt GOOD. It was like some of my stress had vanished with that single tap.

It spiraled out of control from there. I started picking on the less popular kids, and with my "friends" cheering me on from the sidelines, nothing could stop me.

I remember one boy in particular, he was a really skinny and small kid with reddish blonde hair. He moved to my school from Australia, just about on the other side of the world, and my "friends" encouraged me to give him a "nice welcoming". Which, of course, meant name calling, bullying, the lot. I did it, not wanting to lose my popular status, and I'm still scolding myself to this day.

In the summer between middle and high school, my family moved, and I took some time to seriously reflect and reconsider my actions. I realized what I was doing was horrible, and I was just being a despicable bitch.

Again, I am ashamed of myself. I never meant to be so cruel, inhuman, and coldhearted, but it all just slipped out of my grasp so quickly.

Hurting others is never an answer to solve your problems. It's never an excuse, and it's never an okay option. Those people can and will be affected.

I know the people I bullied most likely aren't reading this, but I am so sorry. I'm so so so so so so so so so sorry for what I did. I'll never let myself live it down. I'll never forgive myself for all the pain I caused.

Thanks for reading.

Hurting others is never an answer to solve your problems. It's never an excuse, and it's never an okay option. Those people can and will be affected. Also, don't be afraid to talk to people. Don't bottle up all of your emotions. One day you'll snap and you won't like the results, trust me.