True Colors | Teen Ink

True Colors

January 16, 2020
By Nessa09, Buchanan, Virginia
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Nessa09, Buchanan, Virginia
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Favorite Quote:
Don't change yourself to fit in with others. If they can't see you for you, then they don't deserve you


Author's note:

When I wrote this piece, I had a lot of emotions going through me and I could only express myself in colors. Words couldn't describe how I felt. I worked hard on this and I hope you like it.

Her mind was a whirlwind of colors, random flashes of red accented by splotches of blue, yellow and green danced the waltz over her thoughts. People say her colors are ugly, boring, plain, yet are in awe of how well they work together. No one ever cared to look closely, if they did, they’d see that yellow and green were fighting for the lead, for control, red was never random, it was always present, overpowering blue while blue beat at it’s weak spots. Even though red and blue were in a constant struggle to be seen, they cowered behind yellow and green, afraid of the problems that would occur should they show themselves. If people paid more attention, they would see the black cracks creeping up the wall that held everything in its place and the multitude of vibrant and royal colors and shapes that were trapped by the wall. Bright orange dots dashed about the confined space, several pink hibiscuses floated in a group near violet squares. White lightning-like streaks illuminated the colors, giving them a glowing appearance. A navy blue orb glided in endless circles around the rippling dark magenta cube. Sandy, confetti shaped colors rose and fell to no end. Separated from the other colors was an ominous cloud of black, growing ever so slightly. She hid these behind yellow, green, red, and blue because she knew no one would be able to handle the chaotic mess that are her true colors. She couldn’t help that her four major colors were plain or ugly. They had once shown with as much brightness as the sun, people couldn’t help but bask in her presence. She used to let her colors shine and oh how wonderful it was, but that was before she found all the new colors. The constant war she fought pained her a great deal, the four major colors had lost their beauty. Her peer's words played on repeat in her mind by blue and green. We’re ugly, we’re boring, we’re plain. We’re worthless. She tried to ignore the thoughts, but every time she looked into a mirror, she couldn't help but sigh at the fact that her colors were indeed ugly. 

Little by little, the black cracks crept up the wall, weakening the sturdy facade they had in place. No one or color noticed how weak the wall was getting. With green and yellow’s violent waltz and red and blue’s struggle to overpower the other, she had no time for any other colors and no time to focus on herself. She just kept going and going and kept on getting pushed down until one day, she realized that something wasn’t right. People were looking at her oddly, almost as if they were scared. The color of those around her was not bright red like it usually is, but a dull orange. The color of concern and wariness. Disregarding them, she focused on getting to class on time. She plopped down into her chair just as the bell rang. Her legs like lead and her heart heavy. She was angry yet jealous, happy and still sad. Classmates sitting next to her shared looks of concern with the teacher and others. Ignoring them, she averted her attention from the teacher to her own color wall. Something must be wrong. Why am I feeling this way? Yellow is supposed to hide red. Why is yellow not working? She withdrew into her mind and gasped in fright. Like ice creeping up a bubble on a cold winter's day, three great black lines climbed up the wall with hundreds of cracks branching out from either side of them. 

 She shuddered as a sudden wave of fatigue engulfed her. Oh no, no no no no. I can’t let the wall break. I can’t… I can’t, she started to hyperventilate. The room around her started to spin, itching to no longer be in a room full of prying eyes, she staggered up from her chair and stumbled out the door. Her head throbbed, and with each throb, the colors changed. Red then blue then green then red then yellow then blue... then the sound of ice splitting under a heavyweight. She couldn't think, she couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t even stand on her own two feet, she was so overwhelmed her mind couldn’t bear to stay conscious, she fainted and fell onto the cold, hard floor. The impenetrable wall that she had meticulously made, soon came crumbling down. The shapes and colors that had been captive burst forward, unsure of what to do now that they were no longer prisoners. Yellow and green stopped their dance, blue and red ceased their bickering, the four colors acquired an indigo tone, unsure of what to make of the chaos that surrounded them. The pink hibiscuses floated around aimlessly, bright orange dots swirled around in a frenzy. Sandy colors flew across the empty space while the violet squares aligned themselves with colorless gaps that filled her mind, making sure that all was colorful and none was gray. Lightning- like streaks danced across every corner, navy blue orb and magenta cube hesitantly crossed the ruins of the wall that kept them captive for so long. They were free, no longer forced to conceal their true beauty. They bustled about, occasionally one color bumped into the other causing a brief flash of a new color. They wouldn’t have stopped if it hadn’t been for a low rumbling sound that came from the depths of the space they once inhabited. A streak of white illuminated the black cloud that was coming out of the area. When the cloud made no indication of traveling further, the other colors began to move again, but at a slow, wary pace and their brightness dulled just a bit.



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