Trans student faced mean comments every day — until his friend found the bully out alone, and taught him an unforgettable lesson
It reminded them of all the struggles Dave, their trans friend, had endured because of the bully
Trigger Warning: This article mentions bullying, which can be triggering for some readers.
After years of tolerating a high school bully, a trans boy finally got his revenge when his bestie took charge and humiliated the tyrant publicly. In a post shared on Reddit by u/vorealltheway on April 15, they shared a story about their friend, Dave, a trans man who had always been open about his identity, and Brad, a classmate who used to bully him constantly. While the poster wasn’t the primary target, they never forgot how their friend was treated — and years later, when they unexpectedly ran into the same bully, they handled it in a way that left him red-faced in public. They posted the story on April 15.
Dave, who studied in a Catholic school, never shied away from his identity. In fact, almost everyone around him knew of his transition. "He was going through a lot of other crap… just know that he had a rough time, but he was still a great friend and is doing great now at a university for art," Dave's friend wrote in their post. Brad, a student from the same school, was also aware of Dave's transition.
However, instead of supporting him, he bullied him and hung on to every little opportunity to humiliate him in school. "Brad never bullied me that much, but he was really awful to my trans friend by misgendering him and just generally saying really awful things," the friend shared. Years passed, and Dave's friend maintained a safe distance from Brad until they bumped into him at a bakery in the UK.
When Brad saw Dave's friend, he immediately recognized them and tried to strike up a conversation. However, in that moment, the friend was perhaps reminded of all the terrible times Dave had been through because of his bully. So, they just decided to ignore Brad and let him taste his own medicine. "I decided that I wasn't going to be polite and give this a****** any kind of energy and instead just pretended not to know him," they recalled. No matter how much Brad tried to convince them that they knew each other from school, Dave's friend treated him like a nobody. Embarrassed, Brad gasped, "Ah, oof, awkward, haha," and left.
You're really lucky if you have a friend who stands by you no matter what, because surveys show not everyone has that kind of friendship. A survey of 1,000 kids (ages 9 and 11 years old) found that more than half (77%) of them had experienced bullying, but not everyone had a friend standing up for them. When asked what stops them from helping a bullying victim, 58% said they don't know what to do or say, and close to half (46%) cited fear.
Meanwhile, reacting to the Reddit story, u/jurakhan shared, "I'm in my 50s, and I withheld shaking hands with my bullies during a class reunion…most of them were fat, balding, and on their 2nd marriage or more… me? Full head of hair, same belly as in high school, and my 50-year-old wife doesn’t look a day older than 35-40…" Similarly, u/chimes320 said, "I dream of doing something like this to the people who sucked the most in school. They assume they’re important and cool, and when the day comes that they’re forgotten, they lose power. I am delighted that you got to experience this and that your family got a good laugh; I hope I have the wherewithal if it happens to me."
If you're being bullied, please text 'CONNECT' to 741741 for free, confidential support from a trained Crisis Counselor, available 24/7.
More on Scoop Upworthy
Mom proud of "strong, fierce" son standing up against bully for his friend writes a powerful post
School bullies picked on 6-year-old girl but weren't prepared for her comeback about 'family'
Share on Facebook
