Does it ever surprise you how naive some kids are? I know that I'm out on the streets kickin' it more than most, but still it seems like some people just don't get it. It's pretty tough out there, and you have to pay attention.

Here's what I saw happen. Yesterday I was hanging out with some other kids after school and we watched this carload of girls pull up next to another girl. I don't want to use names here because I don't want anybody to be in trouble, especially me. Anyway, the girl they approach - I'll call her Elle, because she was clueless - she's always getting teased and bullied. She seems okay to me, but she just wants to be popular so badly that she hangs around on the fringes begging for attention. I feel sorry for her. So when this bunch she wants to be with stop and ask her to go for a ride with them, she gets in. Did she never even suspect why, suddenly, they wanted her with them? I even yelled out her name and waved at her to come over and join us, but she just ignored it.


We were still there maybe twenty minutes later, just about to head home, when the same car pulls back in and they shove out onto the sidewalk. She goes down on one knee and it's easy to see her face it all red, so I figured she was crying. And I knew what was coming, so I started walking fast and was almost there when two of them jumped out and were just about to "curb" this kid. You know, right? They slam the head, face-first onto the curb. It really is nasty. Once I saw this boy about fourteen and when he got up after that, he was missing one tooth and another was broken, and his mouth was all bloody. I don't think he ever came back to school afer that. Anyway, one girl came around behind Elle and was about to push her, when the other one saw me coming and grabbed her buddy. They were gone in about three seconds.

Now, I haven't ever hit anybody, but they know I'm not going to lay down either. I let Elle get up, and then I told her what they were about to do. She was crying, of course, like that helps, and then just walked off. Honestly, I hope she doesn't come back to school either. Those other kids will never leave her alone. Maybe I'm the one who doesn't get it, but I can't see why it's fun to mess somebody up. And hey, I'm no angel.