Like most single college kids, I have a Tinder. Naturally, I find people that I know and I usually always swipe right on them for the heck of it. After I got back to my hometown for summer, I started finding guys that I knew from high school and even middle school. So there I was, swiping and matching when I come across another familiar face. My elementary-through-high school bully (Let’s call him Chad (lol)). I stared at the screen for a minute as I recollected my memories of him.
Let’s back things up a bit. From elementary school to around my sophomore year of high school, I went through what I argue to be the longest awkward phase ever. I was a bit on the heavy side, I had no taste in fashion, no idea how to apply makeup and don’t even get me started on my eyebrow game (it was not on fleek). Chad was one grade above me and he and his buddies would comment on my appearance, causing me to become very self-conscious and depressed. They laughed at how fast I hit puberty and how I was developing breasts in the fourth grade (#earlybloomerprobs). At lunch they would comment on how chubby I was which just caused me to stop eating lunch altogether. The entire time, Chad was the ringleader of my torment. I had one year of peace when he went off to high school and I was still in eighth grade but the bullying started right back up my freshman year. Eventually he got tired of making fun of me but it didn’t stop the occasional comment, usually about how I was a theatre nerd.
Flash-forward back to me staring at his profile on my screen. I decided what the heck and I swiped right. I was curious if he swiped on me first and even if he didn’t swipe right, he would never know whether I did or not. Turns out, he swiped right first and we matched. Cue minor panic attack. It couldn’t have been more than two minutes before he messaged me with a corny pick up line. I was shocked. This guy, my tormentor, was hitting on me. Granted, I finally started to grow into my body and appearance. I lost weight and I don’t mean to brag, but my tinder profile is straight fire. I look awesome in my pictures. Apparently, Chad thought so, too.
I decided to play along and I messaged him back and we’re talking back and forth. Homeboy didn’t even recognize me. I never did confront him mainly because I don’t know what I would even say. I unmatched with him that same day. I wanted to call him out for bullying me but I’m looking at my life and I’m in a great place. It’s in the past and quite frankly, I got satisfaction knowing that he swiped right on me first.
