I walk into school that day with my head held high. What I was about to do, had probably never been done before. I had asked my only friend, the guidence couselor, if we could have an assembly and she said yes. It was friday and the assembly was about to start. I could see the class I was suppose to be in sit down in the cafeteria chairs. I run what I was going to say into my head and soon enough, the whole cafeteria is filled up. I see Mrs. Wade, the counselor, walk onto the stage and tap the micrphone.
Mrs. Wade: Good afternoon students. I know you're wondering why an assembly was called today. Well, one of our fellow classmates, Sarah Hazel, wanted to share some things with her fellow classmates. So, please give her your undivided attention.
I hear the crowd start laughing and I take a deep breath before walking onto the stage. Immediately, the crowd starts booing me. I feel my heart drop, but I continue walking anyway. I tap the microphone and begin to speak quietly.
Sarah: Hello, my name is Sarah Hazel.
Unknown: We know!
Sarah: And I just wanted to say a couple of things.
Unknown: Get off the stage!!
Suddenly, a balled up piece of paper gets tossed and hits me in the eye. I take off my glasses even though I couldn't see that well with them off, and see Mrs. Wade kick the kid out of the cafeteria.
Sarah: That's it! I'm tired of you guys treating me as if I am a rag doll. I know you guys and you're only doing this for appearence. So shut the fuck, sit the fuck down and listen to what I have to say!
I yell into the microphone and the crowd is silent. I look over at Mrs. Wade, giving her an apologetic look for my language. She nods and mouths "it's okay" to me.
Sarah: Now, like I was about to say, I want to tell you guys about me. Maybe then you'll feel sorry for all the hell you've caused me in my life. My name is Sarah Hazel and I've been at Macdowell High since late ninth grade. I'm sure some of you guys remember me. I came here with my best friend, Annaleigh. Pretty soon, she shut me out saying that I was weird.
Apparently my weirdness drove her friends crazy and that's what caused them to follow me home everyday and beat the living shit out of me. My parents, of course never cared. They were always drunk and they beat me as well. It took Timothy Withers two days to notice my black eye. He questioned me everyday until I finally told him that those "friends" Anna was hanging out were beating me up. He stopped it from happening and I can't express how happy I was. Summer vacation came and we started hanging out more. He fooled me with his good charms and he ended up being my first. Only my first, got me pregnant.
I chuckle softly as I see his pale face in the crowd.
Sarah: He denied it and then cut me out of his life. I thought that the best thing for me to do was tell my parents, but I was wrong. I was 24 weeks when they beat me into a miscarriage. Can you believe it? My own parents beat me and it wasn't because I was pregnant. It was because I told my mother that my step-dad tried to rape me. She didn't believe me. I never even got the chance to tell her I was pregnant.
I wipe away the tear that was falling from my eye.
Sarah: I came back in tenth grade year. I wore black all the time and Krissy Perkins asked me why I was wearing it. I told her I didn't want to talk about it, but truth was I wanted to tell someone. If only she'd pressed on.
On Thanksgiving break, I ran into a couple of football players. I had just gotten beat up once again by my parents. They asked me why I had a black eye and I tried to tell them I was in a thatnksgiving play at my church and that it was makeup. They knew better and they followed me home even after I tried to tell them not to. I put my thanksgiving dinner on the table when I got inside and my step-dad came downstairs. He had tried to force himself on me once again, but those football players saw what was happening and came in just in time. He was arrested but, my mom bailed him the next day. I was beaten up again for telling on him.
