I’m Robbie. I am a tough guy. I have big muscles. Nobody will stand up to me.
At recess, I take Johnny Greenapple’s Doritos bag from him and shove his face in the dirt. I walk to the picnic tables to eat my Doritos, and I see Johnny talking to a new girl. She is pretty, and I want to be her boyfriend. I am not letting that scrawny nerd get in my way.
I walk up to Johnny and push him to the ground in front of the new girl.
“Ha, ha! Come on, let’s wrestle. I bet I’ll beat you again, Johnny Appleseed,” I laugh at Johnny. The new girl turns her head and stomps away.
Are my muscles too big for her?
The next day, I see the new girl.
“Hey!” I call after her, but she just looks away. I grab the football from two other kids, and throw it with all my might. It hits a kid in the head.
The new girl looks at me and shouts, “You’re a mean boy! Just because you are stronger than the rest of the boys, doesn’t mean you should pick on them!”
I ride the bus home, feeling sad and alone. Nobody will talk to me, and the new girl doesn’t like me. I thought having big muscles was cool?
Maybe the new girl doesn’t like tough guys with big muscles. Maybe she likes nice boys with a big heart.
The next day at school, I give Johnny the rest of my lunch. I ask him to play with me at recess, and he does, because I tell him I am sorry for beating him up. The new girl comes up to me on the playground.
“Hello,” the new girl says, smiling. “I saw you give your food to Johnny. That was nice.”
“Thanks. Do you want to play with Johnny and me?” I ask her.
“Okay. My name is Sally.”
“I’m Robbie.”
Sally, Johnny, and I play on the jungle gym the rest of recess. I definitely would rather be a nice boy with a big heart, than a tough guy with big muscles.