I remember when the twelve years of bullying began. I was five years old and someone I loved was murdered. No one told me she was murdered but somehow I knew the truth. I had taken a vow of peace. I thought I could live like Jesus and if I didn't hurt anybody no one would hurt me.
I was at the sitters waiting for my parents to come for me after they got off work. A group of young boys had gathered by the side yard and started fighting for fun. I had never seen boys get into fights without being angry.
"Hey Little D you should fight Bobby!"
Before I could say I didn't want to fight Little D had knocked me to the ground and rammed his right fist into my left eye. I pushed him off me and everyone laughed because Little D was four years old and I was five. I never let my guard down around Little D again. I was always taller than Little D but he was always the stronger of the two of us. My arms were longer but his were more massive. All through grade school Little D would try to pick fights with me. I was the tall guy that didn't believe in fighting and I guess I was just a easy target for a little bully trying to make a name for himself.
Little D never gave me another black eye but I've lost count how many times he tried. In first, second and third grades I tried to make friends with Little D. I'd walk home with him from school and we would seem to be getting along but when we got in front of his house he would attack me. With my longer arms I could block his punches and I would knock him to the ground and pin him there till his mother or sister would break up the fight.
By fourth grade I gave up trying to be his friend and stopped walking by his house. I'd see him at little league games where he would try to goat me into a fight by calling me names but I would just ignore him. In fifth grade I had a growing spurt and Little D left me alone. In six grade I got braces on my teeth and all hell broke lose. I was the only kid in town that had braces and Little D was talking all the 5
th grade boys into being my enemy.
"Bobby is trying to be a movie star by getting his teeth fixed so we need to beat him up to show we don't like sissy boys in
Kingsville!"
I heard him tell a group of 5
th graders one day. Two of my grade school friends would latter grow up to be gay men. I knew why he was calling me a sissy. It didn't bother me what he called me names but I didn't like him picking on my friends. A week later I got in a fight with the toughest kid in town and beat him up. I knew Little D had put him up to the fight and for a week Little D was scared of me. The next week the toughest kid in town beat me up knocking my braces loose. I got my braces tighten and the orthodontist was angry at the fact that I was beat up because I had braces. I had a black eye, split lips and the inside of my mouth was cut up.
My father told the parents of the kids that were bullying me that if I was attacked again he would sue them. Until I got my braces off in middle school I wasn't bullied.
My Junior year Little D and I got in a punching contest in Shop Class. Little D hit me as hard as he could on my shoulder for what reason I still don't know. I returned the punch and we went back and fourth punching each other till the Shop Teacher broke us apart. He wanted the two of us to arm wrestle to settle the near fight. I told the Shop Teacher that I didn't hold hands with bullies.
My Senior Year I had a car wreak and had my nose rebuilt because I couldn't breath through my nose after the accident and I had a lot of pain from cartilage pushing into my sinuses. For weeks after my nose operation I had to wear a purple plastic nose guard on my face. At school I was eating lunch when one of my friends asked if I really had an out of body
experience during my car wreak. I started to tell what I
experienced when Little D
interrupted me.
"
Vollrath you're so full of it. I think you had that car wreak on purpose just so you would have an excuse to get a nose job. You're still a sissy boy wanting to be a movie star."
"Little D you've been picking on me for years, when my nose heals up why don't we settle this hate we've got between us?"
"You'll never fight me. You're a coward and a sissy boy."
"You're going to find out Little D just who and what I am."
Little D turned and walked away. Everyone at the lunch table was shocked, I had never
threatened to beat anyone up before. Then my friends started telling me that Little D was telling everyone he was going to break my nose. I wish I could tell you I was better than Little D and just ignored his treats but I didn't.
"Tell Little D I'm going to kill him. Tell him I could bleed to death if he breaks my nose so I'm going to try to kill him. Tell him I came back to this side of life mean as hell and I remember all the years he bullied me. Tell him I won't back down a inch."
My so called friends went and told Little D what I said. Little D told them he was going to get me after school that day. The gang of trouble makers came back and told me what he said.
"Little D's a coward or he would have told me this to my face. Tell the little coward I'm ready."
An hour later I was getting a book out of my locker when Little D came up to me. He was shaking with fear.
"I'm sorry Robert, I don't want to fight you. You weren't really going to try to kill me were you?"
"Yes, I wasn't going to let you break my nose and kill me. Don't ever talk to me again or I'll beat the hell out of you!"
Little D walked away from me still shaking with fear. I felt empty. I had took a vow of peace when I was five years old but I only found peace for myself with a threat of
violence when I was 17 years old. Little D hated me and bullied me for no reason. I had never done anything to him to bring about the years of bullying. We should have been friends. I never spoke to Little D again.
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