My Son Was Treated Poorly Because of His Looks Throughout His Freshman Year – After Summer Break, Not Even the Kids Who Used to Tease Him Recognized Him, so He Did What He Had Been Planning for Months

I called my sister Renee instead of sitting on the edge of his bed.

“He barely looks at me, Renee. He used to talk my ear off.”

“Have you actually asked him about Ava? Or Tyler? By name?”

“Diane, you ask him if he’s okay. That’s not the same thing.”

I brushed her off. I was the one who showed up, who tracked report cards, who knew the pediatrician’s number by heart. That was love. That had to be love.

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Then summer arrived and something in my son loosened.

He started running in the mornings. He asked me to buy chicken and rice instead of frozen pizza. He came back from the barber with a real haircut and stood a little taller in the mirror.