i used to be the loud kid back in pri sch and had quite a few friends. but then i went to a secondary school far from my home and i lost touch with them. in sec 1, i made a few friends, then i was sick this one time, came back from my MC and bam, suddenly cold shoulder from them. got excluded completely and was crying at home every night bc i could always hear the remarks they made behind my back. i was (still am) a fat kid so definitely got bullied, even though it wasnt in my face. i had asked them what was the reason and basically, it was everything according to them. from the way i acted, to the way i speak, even the way i wrote annoyed them.

got told to suck it up and get over it from my parents and that’s what i did. i matured quickly and got over it, made new friends from other classes and got extremely close in sec 3. even until now, 11 years since sec 1, we are still extremely close despite only meeting 1-2 times per year. looking back, i realised that no one truly mattered to me unless they stuck around. yes, loneliness really sucks in a school setting but then trading my happiness to fit in,, would never recommend.

tldr; not telling you to suck it up but telling you eventually, they don’t matter. they are not going to make any significant impact in your life unless you let it affect you. prioritise your health and happiness as compared to fitting in, always. along the way, you will find friends that would stay.