Complete story
The Truth Behind the Fear
In the schoolyard, the most noise came from Rohan. He was only 10 years old, but his voice and his way of acting made him seem like a big enemy. Rohan was the school's "Bully." He stole books from younger kids, teased them by calling them "small," and sometimes even pushed them.
The most worried about this was Aryan. Aryan was a very quiet and weak boy. Rohan often opened Aryan's lunchbox, ate his food, and said, "You don't need to eat, I am hungry."
Aryan never said anything. He just watched silently.
One day, during school break, Rohan cornered Aryan. He opened Aryan's bag and said, "Today I will eat even more of your food."
Aryan said in a scared voice, "Rohan, please... this was my last meal."
Rohan laughed. "So what? You can stay hungry."
But then, Rohan's phone rang. It was a call from home. Rohan picked up the phone and shouted angrily, "Yes Papa, I am coming from school... Yes, I didn't do anything..."
But in Rohan's voice, there was no anger, only fear. He hung up the phone and ran away.
Aryan thought, "Rohan is angry, maybe something happened at home."
The next day, Rohan did not come to school. There was a lot of noise in the school all day, but Rohan's seat was empty. Aryan thought maybe Rohan was sick.
On the second day, Aryan heard some voices near an old building outside the school. He went there and saw Rohan sitting there crying. He had a broken toy in his hand.
Aryan got scared, but he gathered his courage. He went near Rohan.
Rohan looked angrily. "What are you doing here? Run away from here!"
Aryan asked softly, "What happened? Are you fighting with your parents?"
Rohan was surprised. He thought Aryan had come to find him, but Aryan asked, "Do you need food?"
Aryan took an extra biscuit from his bag and gave it to Rohan. "I have more, you take it."
Rohan didn't take the biscuit. Tears came to his eyes. He said, "My Papa and Mummy fight every day. I feel that if I scare everyone at school, someone will notice me. I thought if I looked strong, no one would think I am small."
Aryan understood. Rohan wasn't a bully because he was bad, but because he felt lonely and scared inside.
Aryan said, "Rohan, if you stop scaring me, I will make you my friend. We will not scare anyone together, we will help people."
Rohan smiled for the first time. That day, Rohan promised he would not go looking for anyone to scare.
After that day, Rohan was not the same. He was still strong, but now he used his strength not to scare people, but to protect younger kids.
And Aryan? He became Rohan's best friend.
The Moral of the Story:
Most people who act like enemies often hide fear or loneliness inside them. If we try to understand them, enemies can become friends.
