Hey, my name is Amelia. I just turned 18,
and this is the story of how my whole life changed one day. It all started back
when I was almost 13. I was always a pretty happy, normal kid. I liked baking,
drawing, and hanging out with my friends and with my oldest sister, Kayla. But that
summer, my family moved across the country and it totally stressed me out. I
was starting at a new middle school, which was bad enough, but now I had to
make all new friends too. And to top it all off, Kayla was in high school so I
couldn't even hang around with her at school.
Kayla's always had a super easy time making new friends, but not me.
I'm the shy one in the family, so it was really hard for me. Everyone in my new
school already knew each other already had their groups. And it looked to me
like all the girls were already, like "teenagers". They wore make up, and cute
clothes, and talked about boys, and hanging out at the mall, and I was just a
slightly chubby kid with acne and no friends. So you know how sometimes when
you stressed out all you want to do is curl up with some ice cream and watch a
movie? Well, that was me, basically, every day. And pretty soon you
could tell. I wasn't really getting invited to go anywhere, and well, my
clothes didn't fit very well anymore either. Mom said it was just me growing,
but I knew I was growing OUT not up. Anyway it didn't really bother me- I was
still just the same old Amelia. Or so I thought. It all changed on the day of
Ava's pool party. I didn't know Ava very well; she was one of the popular girls.
She had shiny, long blonde hair, hung out with the cool kids, and always seemed to
be doing something fun. She was exactly who I wanted to be. At the end of the
school year, her parents let her invite everyone over for a pool party... and she
included me. I was so excited! I wanted to see what Ava's house looked like, and
deep down, I even thought that maybe we could end up being friends. The day of
the pool party, my Mom dropped me off outside Ava's house. Everyone was already
in their bathing suits out by the pool, so I shimmied out of my
shorts to join them. Just then, I saw a bunch of kids out of the corner of my
eye. One of them was looking at me and then they all laughed. I wondered if I
put my bathing suit on inside-out, but then I heard Ava whisper,
just loud enough for me to hear: "OMG I can't believe Fatty's brave enough to
wear a bathing suit! I didn't even think she'd come!" And then they all laughed
again. I looked at my reflection in the window of Ava's house I knew I had
gotten chubby... but was I really FAT? All I saw was a sad, short girl with a
potbelly. My face felt hot, and I could tell I was about to cry. Just then, Ava's
mom came outside to check on everyone and saw me standing on my own. "Are you
okay, honey?" she asked. "I'm just feeling a little sick."
I lied. "Is it okay if I call someone to pick me up?" When I called home, Kayla
picked up and came to get me right away. I was barely in the car before I started
sobbing. It all just came out. I told her everything: how lonely I was, how hot it
was for me to make friends, and the mean things those girls said about me.
Kayla gave me a big hug and told me it was going to be okay. It felt so good to
tell someone everything I was struggling with ."Those girls seemed like they'd be
mean to just about anyone. Don't pay attention to them!" Kayla said. "But I have
an idea! I think it could help you make some new better friends and even help
you slim down a bit." Kayla thought that I should join the sports team.
She played lacrosse and that was how she met all her friends. I hesitated- I had
never been very fit. "What about the swim team? You've always
liked swimming! That would be a great way to get your confidence back." The thought
of being in my swimsuit in front of people again made me feel sick, but I
knew she was right. I signed up for swim team at the pool we belong to during the
summer. I was really nervous, but I told myself to trust Kayla. The first practice
was tough and I felt shy, but I got through it,
and Kayla took me out for milkshakes afterwards to celebrate. I have practiced
four times a week and suddenly, I didn't have so much spare time to sit in front
of the TV, eating. After only about a month, Kayla told me it looked like I
lost a little weight, and actually, the waistband of my shorts
felt looser. I was so excited that the plan was working! I made friends with some of
the girls on the swim team. We hung out at the pool after practice,
and we had sleepovers on the weekends. I began learning about eating healthier,
and tried to eat less sugar and more fruits and veggies. It really helped my
training, and- bonus!- my skin cleared up too! Who knew it was this easy? Not only
was I losing weight but I was getting fit too. I was having so much fun at the
pool! I started posting more pictures of me, instead of just my baking, and my dog,
Coco. And you know, it was crazy but I started to notice that my Instagram was
getting more and more followers as I got more confident and posted more pictures.
The pics were mostly just me being silly with my friends after practice, and
pictures that Kayla took of me while I wasn't looking. I thought it was pretty
fun, though, and I started using different hashtags so more people could see my
posts. I couldn't believe it when after a while I had 2,000 followers, then 5,000
and 10,000. It was crazy! Oh, and those girls who had bullied me? Yeah. Now, they
wanted to be my friends... Can you believe them? Anyway, one day I got a message on
Instagram from a modeling agency from France. At first, I thought it was a scam,
but when I checked out their profile, they had over a million followers! When
they asked if I wanted to work with them OF COURSE, I said yes! It was very cool,
but it didn't really start to feel real until my mom, Kayla, and I were flying to
Paris to meet with them. The company paid for everything. Oh I was so excited and
super nervous! We had to go to a ton of meetings and I even met the head of the
company. My first photoshoot was way easier than I thought.
The photographer kept making me laugh and I was surprised at how comfortable I
felt in front of the camera. "You're a natural!" said laughing. They measured my
height and weight and- by now -I was almost 5' 9"
That was the perfect height for modeling on the runway. Then things really took
off. Between the modeling and Instagram collabs, I was so busy I ended up having
to get homeschooled, but I still kept in touch with all of my friends from my old
swim team; they were the ones who were there for me from day one. It always
makes me laugh to see that, after all these years
Ava is still following me on Instagram and liking all of my posts. I wonder if
she remembers calling me a "Fatty" at her pool party. I hope so! That nasty comment
made me turn my life around. Sometimes I think about commenting something mean on
one of her posts as revenge, but I don't want to give her any attention. After all,
look who's the last one laughing! What about you? Were you ever bullied or did
someone ever say something like that about you? What did you say or what did
you wish you could say to them now? Thanks for listening to my crazy story!
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