2018 back-to-school contest: 'A fresh start' by Karina Chan

Luna had never been one with the crowd.  Strange.  Weirdo. Creep.  That was what they called her, even when they were just children.  You’ll never be one of us, they jeered, poison filling their words, you don’t belong here. She remembered the first time her teacher confessed to her parents that he was worried about her.  There’s something wrong with your daughter, he said, concerned.  Don’t be a fool, said her mother, dismissing the topic completely, my baby Luna’s just shy.  They didn’t know.  They didn’t understand.  After all, how could they?

It was hard for her to connect with others- it was like she lived in her safe little bubble, where socializing was unnecessary.  All the other children at the kindergarten were playing together, sharing their things, while she was struggling to simply approach another child.  She shied away from her teacher’s touch, instead of leaning towards it like another child. They spoke to her in slow, dramatic words, but she couldn’t understand anything they said, she thought it was too loud, too close for comfort.  So they ignored her.

At the beginning, being ignored was nice.  Over time, it grew lonely. Her bubble of safety became a cage, closing in around her.  Time passed by, as all the other kids developed friendships and hierarchy between themselves.