“I know what you’re thinking. Sounds like I’m saying there’s no hope. This girl’s a bummer, you’re saying, maybe I should put a gun in my mouth or a rope around my neck or take whatever pills I find in my mama’s medicine chest. That’s one road you can take. But that’s the coward’s way. That wrecks the world for those you leave behind. Those who you think don’t care, but who really they do. Suicide is selfish. Doesn’t do squat but leave behind a lot of mess. Worst of all, it makes sure that the bullies win. Because now they live in a world with one less person they hate—in a world that looks suddenly a little more like them.”

Now she leans closer, narrows her eyes.

“I’m saying it doesn’t get better on its own. But I am saying you can make it better. You can fight back. You can kick and scream and shove and make sure nobody gets the better of you. You can vote. You can punch. You can stand your ground and stick out your chin and take pride in who you are.

“That’s how you really get ’em. By being proud of yourself. By owning it and being awesome and giving them a big old middle finger that tells them no matter what they do, it won’t change you one teensy tiny little bit. Let them be uncomfortable. Let them squirm. They don’t like who you are, then fuck ’em.

“You defeat them by being undefeatable. By being you.”

Now she smiles. A mean, fox-faced grin.

“But I know it’s not easy. Standing tall. Fighting back. So I’m here to help. Sometimes you need a hand just being who you are and keepin’ the bad folks at bay. You do, you call me. You go to my school, you already know me. You live in this town, you already know me. You already know what I did. What I’m capable of. It won’t get better on its own, but together . . . well, maybe we can make it better.”

The smile drops off her face like a framed photo dropping off a wall.

“To you bullies out there? To the haters, the monsters, the Nazis and criminals, the tyrants and tormentors? I’ve got a message for you, too—”

Suddenly, from off to the side, a series of fast footsteps.