I Didn't Feel Safe At Home Or In School

Louis is a middle child with an older sister and a younger brother. And that can be kind of tough, since any time he wanted to join in on activities with them, he was either too old for his younger brother or too young for his older sister. And, even though he loved his Mom very much, and knew that deep down she really cared about him, still, at times he got the feeling that his Mom loved him a lot less than his other two siblings.

For a while it was just his Mother and the three kids since his parents had divorced, and things were okay (and safe) until his Mom met a new person, who just so happened not to like Louis and his little brother very much, and was super strict with a short fuse and a bad temper.

If Louis and his little brother didn't do what their new father, well, step-father said, he would hit them, hurt them. Once he hit Louis so hard that he knocked him out. And this then went on for years. It got to the point where Louis actually called the police to come - he didn't feel safe and didn't think his brother or sister were safe either. But, unfortunately, when the police arrived his story was dismissed and ignored because he was "just a child" and his step-father made up a story and schmoozed the cop.

So, that was life at home, and his new school was no better. Because of what he was going through at home his self-esteem was really low and he would end up getting bullied just for being a loner, by himself, and a bit scared - who could blame him - but the kids at school weren't nice to say the least.

For the entire first year he had no friends at school - literally - and he was always by himself, so the kids made fun of him, called him a loner and a loser, broke him down every single day.

Then, after a bad day at school he would head out for a bad night at home - he didn't feel safe anywhere and felt like he had nothing good or positive in his life. And he'd get beat up.

After time, with all of that continuing, he saw his stepfather about to hit his little brother and without thinking, Louis stepped in between them and said "NO, YOU CAN'T DO THAT." This only made things tougher and he got hit even harder than usual, but at least he had protected his little brother from the abuse.

Up to that point Louis had always felt like an outcast, but something changed inside him then, he had been pushed too far, and he decided to put himself out there, to keep trying, and to overcome all those challenges that had been put on him and to be more confident and less of a loner.

He kept trying and trying to be friendly, to say hello and join in where he thought he could, and he never gave up. And finally, someone actually approached him, started a conversation, and Louis' first real friendship had begun!

His new friend ended up introducing Louis to more people and he made more friends - he even became known as a popular kid that everybody liked and respected. His confidence grew, and his happiness grew, and things at home started to improve then as well. He got along better with his brother and sister, and his Mom made more of an effort and he felt, finally, equally loved and cared for.

He felt like part of the family again, like home was a real safe place for him, and he felt good and welcomed and liked at school too!

How did he do it? He just stayed strong on the inside and tried not to let all the challenges take him down. He pushed himself to get out there into his world, be himself, grow his confidence and change his future.

- - -

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If you liked this storybooth animation and love storytime kid videos, watch our themed playlist collections:

Being Yourself:

Love and Heartbreak:

Embarrassing and Funny:

Bullies and Mean People:

Overcoming Challenges:

[fatchickennugeidk]

The step dad looks like count Olaf from series of unfortunate events

[Winniieee]

I cried when he defended his little brother :'(

[aliyahersey]

I’m glad he protected his brother i hope things are better!

[Michelle-pzlm]

I can't believe the mom did not do anything about this. What a great mother

[ElectricPeaPlayz]

I like these stories because they don’t sound very exaggerated like other stories.

[aviiviilunar]

0:56 what kind of a mother are u, u dont trust your own child!

[waiwai]

I'm a middle sibling and I feel like that sometimes but you should know that there's people around you who cares about you! This is the most important thing that I learnt that in life there are people who care.

[milevenggonjoyer]

The five things you'll find in Storybooth comment sections:
-Somebody sharing their real life story relating to what's going on
-People using their likes as the amount of pain the antagonist will receive
-Somebody writing something unfunny or using an overused joke.
-People feeling sorry for the victim and showing support for him/her
-People actively comparing Storybooth to other story channels

[vickykerasioti]

Omg this person needs a hug!!!I wanna hug him

[phuongthaopham]

1:47 ! So do I! I would do everything to protect my little sisters

[rebbomb]

I feel so bad for this kid I just wanna give him a hug :(

[sparkthegof]

School: no bullying!
Kid: commits suicidal act


School:😕

[lovelife]

Standing up to the stepfather for your brother was super brave.

[dejdej]

When he said “I felt like I had nothing” at 1:26, I almost started crying my eyes out, I just want to give him a big hug right now, poor guy
Edit: I’m so happy that he’s doing ok!

[iomqkloixx]

School: we don't tolerate bullying.


Bully: bullies


School: *k*

[thatnegurl]

“Kids can’t have depression.”
“Kids can’t do this kids can’t do that!”
Then why do they commit?
Why do they cry themselves to sleep.
Oh there just a kid.
I forgot they can’t do anything

[violetpixie]

0:45 *ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?!? THAT POLICEMAN SHOULD BE FIRED ASAP OML*

[phoebeenlow]

Trust me I know how it feels to have nothing, who else would totally be his friend?

[teddy.yellowbuckets]

Aw, he seems so nice☺️ he has a beautiful accent. I’m glad he kept pushing and didn’t let depression take over him. GOD bless him☺️

[Prastuti._.]

Defending his brother was the saddest thing of all. He took a bad beating that could make him injured just so his brother could be safe. No kid should ever be treated like this.