Bullying by Julian Goh

“Ring” The long awaited recess bell rang as throngs of eager students made a beeline for the canteen. Whereas for me, I was morose by the thought of missing my break and now found myself dragging my lethargic legs towards the most dreaded place in the school, the Staff Room, where my incensed teacher would give me a piece of her mind for not doing my homework.

Drifting away in my thoughts, a clamorous shriek, followed by some faint sobbing woke me from my reverie. My suspicion aroused, I took a quick glance around my vicinity. From the corner of my eye, I caught sight of a big burly boy and a small-sized boy. The big boy stood there menacingly, arms akimbo, as lewd profanities spewed from his mouth which the defenseless boy curled up like a millipede and was crying profusely.

I was shocked by the scene that unfolded before me and finally decided to take matters into my own hands. Being a good Samaritan, I approached the bully and to my horror, I realized that it was John, the notorious “baddie”. I chided him for bullying a little boy but he gave me a scornful look and passed a scathing rebuke. Feeling unjustified, I held my anger and asked the little boy, “What did he do to you?”

In between sobs, the little boy replied, “He extorted money from me and I have been giving him my allowance for the past three days.” Bewildered by his unacceptable behaviour, I decided to put a stop to it. I said, “Why don’t we have a challenge? If I win, you must let the boy go.”

“Fine! Let’s fight!” John replied. At the back of my mind, I knew that I would lose so I decided to use an excuse.

I thought hard and could feel my mind gears whirring as a plan formulated in my head. I replied, “Since this is the World Cup period, let’s have a penalty shootout!” Being a soccer fanatic, he instantaneously nodded his head. We proceeded to the field with the little boy in tow. After playing for a while, it was over. The little boy was freed. John shot me a dejected look as he walked away in sorrow.

Like a bolt out of the blue, the recess bell rang again. I stood rooted to the ground and my face turned as pale as sheet. As if the Earth was getting warmer and warmer, I started perspiring profusely when I recalled that I still had to pay a visit to the staffroom and face my teacher. Nevertheless, I mustered all my courage and decided to face the music. When I saw my teacher, her face turned a bright shade of ruby red. She towered over me and demanded an explanation for being late! After relating the incident to her, she calmed down and praised me for being helpful. She even said that on account of what I did, she would not scold me for not doing my homework and gave me a chance. After that, she confronted and berated John and even took disciplinary action against him.

As I walked back to my classroom, I reflected on the things that happened in the short duration. Even though I got a hurtful scolding from John, the teacher let me off the hook and even praised me! This was indeed a blessing in disguise.