one minute was all it took

he grabbed me

it happened so quickly I can't remember what he said

his friends laughing like he just cracked a joke

dozens of people around me and nobody said a word

not one person asked 'are you ok?'

fighting back tears as we left the classroom to go to recess

pretending as if nothing happened

having to see him almost every day as if nothing happened

terrified that he would do it again 


memories of that day echo in my head 

wondering how it all would've gone down if I had the courage to speak up 

to tell someone what had happened

what if he did it to someone else

did my silence allow him to go without any consequences for his actions

could breaking it have gotten him what he deserved

I will always wonder about what would have happened

but will I be able to stop worrying about something like this happening again?

when?