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The Weight of the Backpack

The hallway echoes, loud and bright,

But comfort's nowhere to be found,

I brace myself and hold on tight

As rumor's wheels go spinning round.

The friends who used to share my desk

Now turn away and change their seat,

They leave me with a heavy chest,

And look down at their passing feet.

Then comes the class I dread the most,

Where kindness never seems to stay,

The teacher stands there like a ghost

To chase my confidence away.

A biting comment, sharp and mean,

Before the grading pen is dry,

A public critique on the screen,

That makes it hard to not to cry.

The clock is ticking on the wall,

The pressure mounts with every tick,

I feel so small inside the hall,

And anxiety is hitting quick.

At night the desk is piled high

With endless homework, page by page,

Beneath the dark and silent sky,

I feel trapped inside a cage

The expectations start to blur,

Of who I am and who to be,

While all the slights that did occur

Keep echoing inside of me.