No one would deny I am an outgoing girl. You might not believe it, but I was terribly shy when I was younger. At that time, I was not able to strike up a conversation with strangers; nor was I gutsy enough to laugh out loud in public. I even dreaded taking my teacher’s questions in class.

As I was growing up, a lot of things happened, which changed me so much that today I am not that mousy little girl any more.

In primary school, each class had a boy who was popular among boys and girls alike. In my class this boy was Tom. Tom was smart, open and a little handsome. And he was good at his lessons. It seemed that all the boys went to him after class as if he were a magnet. It was no secret that many girls admired him too. Some crazy girls even confessed that they would marry no one but Tom in the future.

At first Tom and I did not click despite his popularity. When a new term started, we became deskmates. Initially we did not talk. With time going by, the ice was broken and our interaction began. As our familiarity increased, I found Tom an interesting boy. He was as knowledgeable as he was humorous. After class he taught me how to make paper boats. Thanks to him, I became a bit more sociable.

In time, we made friends. Every Tuesday we two attended after-school classes at the same training centre. We needed to take a bus there. After class, we boarded a bus home together. On the bus rides to and from the classes, we sat next to each other and chatted a lot. Our laughter lasted throughout each trip. My happiness then was true and genuine.

I was bus sick then, so when I took a bus or a car, I would have the window next to me open. In contrast, Tom was like a fish in water in a motor vehicle. Because of the biting wind, he would prefer the window dead shut. When we were together on the same bus, however, he would leave the window open for better ventilation to make me feel more comfortable. He was a considerate boy.

I had thought my friendship with Tom would last forever. I was wrong.

Without any sign, Tom started to hate me one day. In public he teased me, saying I looked as fat as a pig. He even used insects to scare me. One day on the playground when our class were doing a game where I had to grope for a classmate, blindfolded, Tom had those close to me move away quietly, leaving me stranded, helpless and stupid, in the dark. Another day I left my pens behind at home. When I turned to a girl for help in the classroom, Tom talked her into not lending any stationery to me. That girl worshipped him, but she was my best friend too.

Tom’s behaviour saddened and maddened me in the beginning. It was beyond me why he out of the blue had transformed into a totally different person. As time went by, I decided to ignore his tease and his dirty tricks. To thwart his purpose of insulting me, I became mentally tougher. By the time I did not feel a thing about his rude remarks, I had found myself a different girl. I was not that same introverted insecure girlie any more.

After primary school, Tom and I were streamed into different middle schools. Ever since then, I have not met the person even once. Today I can’t remember exactly what he looked like, but it was Tom who made a profound difference to my personality in my formative years. Was the difference positive or negative? I leave the judgement to you, my reader.

To tell the truth, Tom is the first and also the last boy to whom I have ever lost my heart so far, in the past 16 years of my life on this planet. The very thought of Tom still makes my heart miss a beat.