r/TeenVent•
drink-so

I’m 16, completely broken emotionally, and isolated from everyone. Here is my story.

vent

I want to share what completely broke me mentally. To be clear, I see myself more as overly calm and reserved rather than weak, though maybe there’s some weakness in me too.
It all started in middle school with a girl (let's call her Girl A). I had a huge crush on her since the 6th grade. By the 9th grade, she noticed I liked her; we would exchange looks, and she’d smile at me. But I never dared to approach her. I was in a different class, and my class was basically the "outcast" class of the grade—no one really hung out with us except for a few street-smart guys. On top of that, I always felt insecure about my looks. Girl A’s friends used to tease her, saying I was her boyfriend, and she would blush. But I knew it wouldn't lead to anything. By the middle of the 9th grade, I found out she had a boyfriend. I accepted it and tried to move on.
Later, I fell for another girl from the "smart/talented" class (Girl B). She would always look at me and laugh or smile. Once, during a school trip to visit veterans, another classmate borrowed my phone to take photos. She scrolled through my gallery and "accidentally" saw pictures of Girl B. I actually left them there on purpose, hoping she would tell her friends. Word spread across the entire school. I felt a mix of happiness and deep shame. Later, a friend told me that Girl A and Girl B were gossiping about me, saying things like, "Why did he dump Girl A? She actually liked him. What an idiot." Hearing that filled me with regret and shame.
By the end of the 9th grade, all these girls became close friends. They were popular and knew the whole school. I knew almost no one. Everyone in our grade started hanging out in one massive friend group, while I was left looking from the sidelines.
Then, the bullying started. A guy from another class who used to be cool with me suddenly started humiliating me in front of other guys. By the 10th grade, even my few remaining friends from my class started drifting away to join that popular group. I was left completely alone.
Around that time, I was jumped by a group of random teenagers downtown. They punched me in the liver several times, mocked me, and forced me to dance. I didn't back down or give them anything, but they robbed my friend. After that, a boxer guy from school started humiliating me on camera, threatened to beat me up, and posted it somewhere. Later, another guy who I thought was a friend completely turned on me. He cornered me, grabbed me by the throat, and said, "You won't do anything to me. Either you pay for my rental scooter debt, or I’ll f*** you up." He laughed it off as a "joke" at the end, but it was deeply humiliating.
I used to be emotional before the 9th grade. Now, I am cold, calm, and completely emotionless. If people look for trouble, I try to avoid a fight and just give them what they want, even if I argue a bit first.
Now, everyone from school hangs out together, goes to the mountains, rents houses, and works summer jobs at banquets. Meanwhile, I stay locked up at home. I’m terrified of going outside because I don't want to run into the people who humiliated me. I hate conflict and prefer to keep my composure. I honestly don't know if I'm just too calm or too weak. It's the end of the 10th grade now. Summer. The 11th grade is coming, and I have no idea what to expect.
I only go out with two friends now. One is a boxer, and the other does MMA with me. I’ve been doing MMA for three months, but I feel no aggression. I have no anger to let out; I’m just perpetually numb. My mom wants me to get a summer job and found me a spot through my aunt, but I keep putting it off. I’m terrified that if someone confronts me on the street or at work, I won't be able to handle it. Everyone in my neighborhood knows each other, and the people who bullied me are always outside. I want to work, but the fear paralyzes me. I’m also terrified of what my parents would think if I got beaten up. Honestly, if I were an orphan with nothing to lose, I would fight back 100% of the time. I'd have the guts. But I don't want to hurt my parents.
It hurts so much that the whole school is united, and I'm the only outcast left.
My parents are getting old now, and I feel immense guilt for not working. I dream of making enough money so they will never need anything again. I want to be successful, but I feel completely stuck because I have no idea what profession to choose.
I am terrible at math and anything involving numbers. On the bright side, I am fluent in English, which I learned entirely through video games like Roblox (Da Hood, Iron Assault, Risk Universalis, Rise of Nations) and later Hearts of Iron 4. I love history, maps, and geography. I can name almost any country, its capital, and its landscape. I also speak Kazakh fluently since it's my native language, and my Russian is great because of the internet. I don't know the formal grammar rules, but I can write and speak naturally.
The only thing is, whenever I speak, my voice sounds deeply insecure. My confidence is entirely gone because I am mentally broken. My parents still try to give me everything, but I avoid taking anything from them now.
I just want to know how to cope with this. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.

Posted Jun 12, 2026, 11:50 PM UTC

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