I woke up from my nightmare, shivering — not from the cold but from fear.

Will the monster return? Will I be caught? Will I be as lucky as I was last time and was let go?

I knew many people had trouble climbing out of bed because they were still tired, but I was far from it. If I went back to bed, the monster could return.

After I finished my morning routine, I stepped into the car with the help of my crutches and felt a worrisome touch from my mom.

"Avery, we still have a few minutes until we need to begin driving, so I want to show you something," she said, holding up her phone. "You know the monster you've been telling me about recently?"

I only nodded. Some force covered my mouth, forbidding me to talk. Flashing images of the monster raced through my mind, and I felt like they weren't going to leave soon.

"Hey, Avery, you okay?"

I burst out crying. "Y-you don't believe me. Are you accusing me of this again? Of me watching Peppa Pig videos and suddenly this monster showing up?"

"Oh, honey, no. It's quite the opposite actually."

I looked up at her phone.

"So many news articles covered the monster news; what you're saying is true! Look here though," she pointed. "Your name shows up. They say that you're The One to stop him!"

"Why me? I remember something about how the monster communicated with me about this..."

"I'm not sure the reason behind it, but I just thought I'd let you know. Whatever you need, just let me know, okay?" she smiled.

"Well, now that you finally trust me because of a few articles rather than your own daughter, I don't need anything. Thanks," I murmured.

She sighed. "I'm sorry for not believing you in the first place. I know you can defeat him though!"

We drove off in silence until I got out of the car and went to class.

"Hey! A-Avery, right?" Isabella asked.

"Yeah, hey!"

"H-how'd you sleep l-last night?" Her eyes were red, either from crying or lack of sleep. I couldn't see through my perfect vision through tears.

DING

DING

DING

DING

We headed to class.

"Hi, class! Today, our main focus is on bullying, so we'll have partner work again. I want you all to feel comfortable and safe with one another, so by building in as many partner works as I can, I think I'll be able to achieve that," Ms. Reagan announced, projecting a slideshow about bullying on her projector. "Bullying, according to the National Centre Against Bullying, is an ongoing and deliberate misuse of power in relationships through repeated verbal, physical and/or social behavior that intends to cause physical, social and/or psychological harm."

Seems to be that third grader who's my bully.

"I'll be giving each pair poster paper and markers, and what I want you all to do is to make one side of your poster about how one might feel when and after being bullied. The other side is going to be a list of trusted adults — adults that you can talk to about this matter, especially if someone is bullying you or someone you know.

Isabella put her hand to her forehead in pain. I could sense her pain for some reason.

"Gah, that was so much information and so many words! What the heck did she just spit out again?"

"No worries, I'll walk you through it."

I didn't want to leave anyone behind.

I instructed her to draw a line down the middle using the ruler I kept in my fanny pack. I then labeled the left and right sides exactly how Ms. Reagan wanted us to.

"How would you feel when you're bullied?" I asked Isabella.

"I actually have been bullied by some tall girl. I feel d-discouraged and unwanted."

"Wait, really? Some third-grade girl keeps on picking on me, too!"

I wrote down "discouraged" and "unwanted"; I added "anxious" and "angry".

"Who are some adults whom you feel safe talking to about this?" I queried.

She thought for a minute. "She's not a legal adult. She's thirteen but trusts and loves me very much. My sister."

I wonder what it would be like to have a sibling...

"That's amazing! Age doesn't define you."

I put down "siblings" because brothers can be trustworthy as well. I even added "parents" because even though my own parents could be skeptical of me due to my age, I thought they didn't necessarily mean it.

Just a misunderstanding...just a misunderstanding...

After receiving praise from Ms. Reagan, she sent us all off to recess.

"Oh, look who it is! Aggressive and Arrogant Avery along with Illiterate Isabella! My two favorite little first-graders!" the third-grade girl shot.

Aggressive and Arrogant Avery? The Inequality Monster has definitely gotten to her. It's the exact same wording!

"Back off, nameless third-grader! She may have trouble with words, but at least her character is nicer than you. You'd be the antagonist in a novel."

She scoffed and spit at the floor near us with pale blue saliva just like the monster's skin color! "Maybe that's what I want to be then!"

Isabella and I were walking away until she suddenly stopped and swiveled around. "Do you not have a name?"

The third-grader's evil smile dropped into a hypnotized face.

"Oh my gosh, look at her e-eyes!" Isabella screamed, pointing at her face. She hugged my waist.

I looked and noticed red lasers coming out of her eyes, similar to the monster's!

Is this what happens when they get angry that we asked a question they don't know the answer to?

The red beams neared Isabella's eyes, so I covered her eyes with my crutches as the third-grader ran off. While doing so, she yelled, "saw that you could stop the monster. Help me!"

Does she need help? Is the monster controlling her movements?

The Inequality Monster took over the third-grader's identity, and she wasn't always a bully.

"Avery, I'm scared..." Isabella trembled. "Am I evil, too?"

I shook my head. "I think you're okay. Have you ever heard of the Inequality Monster?"

Her eyes lit up. "I'm not the one who's crazy? He's r-real?"

I closed my eyes for a few seconds to ask her the burning question. "Did you have a dream about him last night?"

"Not last night but the night before."

"Perfect," I replied, having a plan in mind.

Sometimes, one must be a monster to defeat it.