Brier Maiden
3
Soon, I understood what Fredrick meant.
"Pig, I heard that your mother died of AIDS. Promiscuous. Gross."
My mom passed away. She was a nurse and was infected with AIDS due to her profession.
She did nothing wrong. She just wanted to save people's lives.
She deserved people's respect.
How dare they insult my mother like that!
This was the first time I had stood up for myself, and also the first time I had been beaten.
"Careful! She's sick too! Don't let her touch you!"
Their ignorance was almost laughable.
AIDS couldn't be transmitted through physical contact.
"Use this!"
They surrounded me, kicking me, smashing me with books, and beating me with mops.
They did it as if I was some monstrous evildoer.
They didn't care about the truth.
I did nothing wrong. I was not sick.
They just wanted to find someone to hate,
to vent their ugly emotions, and to show that they fit in.
Someone threw a knife at me.
The sharp blade scratched my thigh