Author: Ema Cundeković, OŠ Odra
Let me tell you something about myself. I’m Olivia Johnson. I go to County High and I have been bullied my whole life. I have never had real friends who I could share my story with, so I will share it with you. I have always been the quiet one in my class; that girl who doodles in her notebook during the break while the other students are laughing and talking to each other. Nobody likes the girl who is always asking weird questions.
The only people making me happy are my parents. Especially my mum. In her younger days she was also bullied. She was coming home crying and wondering why this is happening to her, until one day she met my dad. He stood up for her when some girls were laughing at her and calling her names. They became best friends. Now they are in love and don’t regret anything that happened. My mum says that the things those girls said to her toughened her up.
Enough about that. You should probably know that I have a hobby. I love the film industry. Since I was a little girl I have wanted to be an actress so I could hide the real me and see what else I can be. That is my dream. Since I cannot film with real actors, I am filming with my parents. I have a stack of films in my top closet drawer. Some of my favorite films I made are “Beauty and the Geek”, a story about a beautiful girl who finds her soulmate at Comic-Con, dressed as a hobbit, and “Winter Wonderland”, a story about a little girl exploring the wonders of winter. My favorite of them all, “Highschool Loner”, is a story about my life. It is still work in progress, but I am happy with it. I have a favorite actor, of course. His name is Bill Grey. He has been in a lot of movies, but not as the lead actor. I think that I am a little obsessed with him. I watch his films before and after school. I have even made a Facebook fan page for him. I am following him everywhere on social media.
As I was walking to school one day with headphones on my ears, I saw a very familiar person. My mind didn’t realize it immediately, but my eyes could not look away. It was him, in person, in all his glory. It was Bill Grey. I started to panic and couldn’t help jumping around. People probably thought I was crazy. I cannot explain in detail what happened because I was out of my mind at that moment, but the next thing I remember is me falling on Bill Grey. It was very embarrassing. He got up and offered his hand to help me up. He asked me what that was. My heart was pounding too fast. I must have passed out. I remember waking up and Bill Grey helping me to stand for the second time. I had enough nerve to tell him he was my favorite actor. He couldn’t believe it.
“Nobody usually recognizes me on the street,” he told me.
He smiled and said he was here writing another scenario and looking for some inspiration, and that my crazy jumping around actually gave him an interesting idea.
“I have a lot of my own films,” I told him. “Perhaps if you watched them, you could get even better ideas.”
Looking back, I can’t believe I said that. Those words just came out, but it actually worked. I invited him to my house to show him my movies. He said that I was very talented and that I should become an actress or a screenwriter.
But an even more incredible thing happened then. Bill Grey asked my parents if it would be possible for me to leave home now and start my movie career. I was excited beyond words. He explained to my parents that I would go with him to a faraway country, which sounded like a fantasy land. I was happy until I saw my parents’ eyes. I wasn’t sure anymore. I could never leave my parents. They had been the only ones to make me feel good about myself. I could never leave them. What if people in the fantasy land started bullying me? Who would be there for me?
“I don’t want to go,” I told Bill Grey. “Not without my parents,” I added.
He smiled and said: “They can come as well.”
That was all I needed to hear.
* * *
Let me tell you something about myself. I’m Olivia Johnson. I’m 16. I go to a new school where everybody is nice and I have lots of friends. I am also a famous actress. I live in a mansion with my parents and I have a new family member – a very playful puppy that can eat more than the rest of the family combined. I have named him Billy, after the man who gave me the opportunity to start a new life. I’m very happy now and I wouldn’t change anything.
