#1

He was unusually friendly tonight, smiling at me and cracking bad jokes that I smiled politely at but didn't really respond to. He counted his money with his gimp hand, which was partially blown in half (taking several fingers with it) by fireworks that blew up in his hand a few years ago. I gave him his smokes and change, said thanks, and went about my business.
Before leaving, he stops, hesitates for a moment, and turns around to ask me if there are any job openings at the store. While I had heard him correctly, it's almost as if the words didn't register in my mind, so I asked him to repeat himself. He asks again, 'You wouldn't happen to have any jobs available, would you?'
I explain that we're sufficiently staffed at the moment, that with my sister and I around for the summer that we wouldn't be needing anyone else to fill in the hours, which were sparse enough as is. I told him to ask again in the fall, when I'd return to Montreal and my sister to university. He said that it was okay, but that he needed something now because he had just been left by his wife. He said thanks anyway and walked out.
Memories of him being a jerk flashed around in my head, and through these, a clearer picture began to form. When he had just graduated from h**h school, his parents broke up in a massive way, leaving a fractured home for his younger siblings to grow up in. Sometime in his life, he experienced his hand being blown apart by an explosive. He had amounted to very little, and his marriage was falling apart. And now, he had to come asking for a job from the local 'black' guy he used to make fun of and claim superiority over throughout his life. I'm half white and brown, btw, not black, but to people in this part of the world, if you're not white, then you're a target for racism.
It didn't feel good. I should have enjoyed it, but I didn't. While I don't feel bad for him, not in the slightest, I don't feel like any kind of justice was served, or that karma had given him his comeuppance. If the universe is truly neutral towards what is right and wrong, then this was just the way that life played out for someone who did a lot of harm to people in his time. He could have been rich, he could have been powerful, he could have kept the use of both of his hands. But it didn't turn out that way. Karma had nothing to do with it; there was no justice.
What occurred to me is that I'm not at all connected to this place anymore, this village where I grew up, not even to the pain and harsh memories that stayed with me for years. I've become my own person, capable of, at least on some level, sympathizing even with the s**m of the universe that tormented my childhood, and to forget about the painful memories that followed me well into my twenties, as echoes from the past.
I just wanted to share this because I thought it was interesting.
TL;DR: A bully from my childhood who used to attack me and incite others to do so came into my store and asked me for a job. Life's like that.
Depression, anxiety, borderline personality disorder, changes in sleep and eating patterns, loss of interest in once-fun activities, low self-esteem, feelings of shame, headaches, stomach aches, colds, and the list goes on.
These are just some of the issues caused by being bullied. Children who are bullied are also at risk of future health concerns, like higher stress levels and sleeping problems. And they're more likely to miss, skip, or drop out of school. They might struggle to make and keep friends and their romantic relationships could suffer later in life.
But it's not only the victims of bullies who suffer...
#2

#3

I few years back I was the assistant manager at my karate studio. It was a slow, quiet day, when in walked Paul, my old bully from public school. I wasn't sure at first, it had been a long time, and it was hard to tell.
I didn't say anything. Paul was interested in joining the dojo, and I showed him around, discussed pricing, etc. I didn't treat him any differently than I would any other potential client.
At the end of the tour, Paul decided to join our dojo. We sat down in the office and he filled out the paperwork. When he wrote his name out on the application, I knew for sure that this was, indeed, my old bully. The guy who used to torment me every single weekday. Who made me kneel in dog s**t.
I still didn't say anything until after pre-paid me for an entire year's memebership. As I walked him to the door, I smiled.
"I'm really looking forward to training with you." I smiled.
"Thanks, me too," Paul said.
"You don't recognize me, do you?"
"No, should I?"
"Yes. We went to school together, Grade 3 through 8. You bullied me every day, and made my life miserable. Can't wait to see you in class."
Paul went white, and walked out without another word. And never walked back in. He willingly threw away a year's membership payment, almost $500, rather than have to be in the same class with me.
**EDIT**: There have been some questions that I'd like to answer here.
1. I didn't say "I'm looking forward to training with you" with any odd voices or Clockwork Orange-like connotations. It was said normally, with a smile.
2. Someone suggested he could have put a stop payment on the check. He didn't. I was friends with the sensei, and told him everything that happened when he came back to the dojo. If the check had been cancelled, I would have known. Besides - and perhaps some of the more fiscally savvy redditors can help me here - there are legal complications to cancelling a check when you have signed a contract.
3. Some say I wanted to beat on Paul. Others say I just wanted to see him squirm. I admit that yes, I did want to beat on him, but I would not have. I had a position of responsibility, and I took that responsibility seriously. But yes, I did want to see him squirm. I didn't expect him to quit though. I figured there would be one or two awkward classes where he knew I was there and was nervous, but eventually we would spar together and I had planned to be as careful and respectful with Paul as I was with any other student.
But yes, my critics are correct. I could have handled that in a more mature fashion. I could have sat down with Paul and had a frank and open discussion about bullying, and how it wasn't allowed at our club. I did not do this. I'm not apologizing for this. The moment was extremely cathartic for me, and literally erased years and years of hurtful, painful memories that had been with me for over a decade.
If Paul had come to classes, he would have realized that he wasn't in any danger. Instead, he chose to throw away his $500 and never come back, which is the cowardly way out. As we are taught, bullies are all secretly cowards at heart.
"Bullying also impacts kids who are not directly involved but witness the bullying taking place," warns the United States official website, Stop Bullying.
Witnesses to bullying incidents have reported having increased feelings of helplessness or guilt for being unable to stop or prevent it. They also often feel unsafe at school and might have poor attendance as a result. This, in turn, can affect their academic performance, mental health, and daily life.
They're more likely to smoke, drink alcohol, or use other substances, and are at an increased risk of experiencing mental health problems, such as depression and anxiety.
#4

See, when we were teens, my brothers were always allowed to borrow my mother's car, but I wasn't. My grandmother even warned my mother that she would need me one day and I'd tell her no. Mom blew her off because why would she need me, and it's not in my nature to say no.
Fast forward a few years later when I have a car and my mom gets into an accident that leaves her temporarily car-less. Mom never asked to borrow my car even though she wanted to because she knew I had every right to say no, and she admitted it and apologized because she screwed herself over not being nicer to me as a teen.
The thing is, it's not in my nature to say no. If she had asked, I would have said yes. Her guilt was the karma.
#5

Back in 4th grade I just started at a new school and was scrambling to make friends as soon as possible. To do this I took the path of least resistance. I tormented this poor kid who had no friends and was already being picked on. It was a very shameful decision, but it did get me into the clique. I would spend hours alternating between calling him "turkey Burk" and "slowy Lowey"
Fast forward twelve years later. Im at a party and I see the kid. Only he is less of a kid now, and more of a Mr Universe contestant. I had grown up substantially by then and decided an apology was in order.
I bee-lined it across the room, straight too him. I introduced myself and offered an apology and put my hand out for a handshake of ashamed regret. He stood staring at me for what felt like 15 seconds. He finally took my hand. He enveloped my entire hand, with assured firmness. The guy could have broken my hand without meaning to.
"kids can be c***s, man. I really appreciate your words."
Wow. He actually was a really cool guy.
Later that night me and a mate were walking home from the party when we were jumped by 4 guys. They started laying into us. My mate ran, 2 followed him. The other two were on top of me I was doing my best at protecting my face and ribs while they sunk the boots in. Then they stopped.
Burk had come out of nowhere! From behind he smashed both their heads together and started plowing into them. They ran.
He laughed when I made a remark on how lucky I was to apologise in time.
TL;DR: highschool bully gets saved by timely apologising to the poor kid he tormented.
#6

Flash forward 20 years to now and we were "friends" on Facebook. I have a pretty cool job in the music industry, good money and I travel the world. I usually add these former "friends" just so they can see my life turned out pretty awesome while most of them are in our old home town working s**t jobs...anyway.
He updated his status saying that he was devastated that someone stole something from his son and karma this, blah blah blah. Amongst all the posts from his friends being sorry for him, I simply wrote something like "Yeah, its really terrible when someone steals from you eh? That must really suck. Karma does have its way of evening things out though." I immediately started getting PMs from mutual friends congratulating me, who remembered the incident in school. He "un-friended" me after that to my extreme pleasure.
TL/DR Karma eventually 20 yrs later.
As for the bullies, they too are more likely to turn to smoking, drinking, other substances and depression. Their school marks may suffer and they could drop out altogether.
According to Stop Bullying, bullies experience aggressive and impulsive behavior, resulting in higher risks of vandalism, fights, traffic offenses, and criminal charges. And here's another scary fact from the site:
"[They] perpetuate dating violence as early as eighth grade and [mistreat] their romantic partners, spouses, or children as adults."
#7

She came home one day to tell me about laughing at her new boss who had been hitting on her. Nearly choked when she told me his name - he was my childhood, neighborhood bully.
Warm fuzzies, right there.
#8

apologized for being an a****t, then asked for advice on going to college for the thing i have a bachelor of sciences in
*Edit*
this is not a billy madison rip. I have never seen that movie and only found out about it's existence from people replying to this comment. I generally don't like adam sandler.
#9

One of them moved away, and i never saw her again, but When the other graduated that year (from jr high to high school), I bought her a box of chocolates. She cried her eyes out and apologized for being a jerk, and we became friends.
"Kids who have been bullied themselves while also bullying others suffer the most serious consequences," warn Stop Bullying's experts. "These kids have the highest risk of mental health and behavioral problems, making it crucial for adults to connect these youth with support and resources like mental health counseling."
They add that kids who are bullied and bully others are more likely to become young/teenage parents, struggle with making and keeping friendships, have trouble keeping a job and/or honoring financial commitments in adulthood, experience mental health issues like anxiety, depression, and antisocial personality disorder, on top of other similar physical health concerns to kids who were bullied but didn't bully others.
#10

But one day at a Little League baseball game I was playing in, I saw him on the opposing team and my blood started boiling. He was the 2nd baseman and he would laugh whenever I would go up to hit the ball.
In the last inning, I was up to hit and missed the ball twice and heard him laughing from 2nd base. That got me really mad and when the pitcher threw the ball I hit a line drive straight for the bullies face.
After it hit him, he dropped and cried and the players ran over to him, but no one called time out so I ran all the way to 3rd base without getting out.
I sat there on 3rd with a HUGE smirk on my face while they picked him up and walked him to the dugout. I didn't feel bad about it all and still dont feel bad about it.
#11

She basically accused me of plagiarising a paper in class. Honest to God I did not do it.
She called me a liar to my face, and ruined a lot of my life for a few good years. She reported the incident to the administration, and she tried to make them take legal action. But all I ended up getting was expulsion. My school took this stuff really seriously.
In the long run, it basically caused me to loose five or six scholarships that I really needed for college. I ended up having to go to community college. Nothing wrong with it, but she basically k****d any chances I had at become a doctor(Childhood dream, spent all of highschool prepping for it.) I got most of my general stuff out of the way, and I have a great job now giving out loans at a bank. It pays well enough, but I don't live any grand life, and I am not a doctor. On top of that most of my friends made fun of me for years about it.
One year after she accused me, her husband cheated on her. The year after I graduated, she got fired for being drunk on the job. About a month ago, the best thing ever happened. Guess who walked into the bank and asked for an extension on the loan she just recently took out to pay for her house? And guess who got the extension denied?
Needless to say, Karma related or not. It was one of the highlights of my life!
Tl;Dr: B***h of a teacher messed up my chances at medschool, she got cheated on, fired, and now begged me to give her a loan for her house at the bank I work at.
#12

I imagine seeing that bully as a complete wreck was one of the greatest moments of your life. Unfortunately not everyone gets to see their childhood tormentors later down the line. I'll tell you this though, I felt f*****g amazing when I stood up to my bully in Grade 9 of highschool. How did I do it? I don't remember to be perfectly honest. All I remember was a snarky racist remark.
"Shut up, you're (Insert Background), you dont have the right to speak"
Thats when I lost it, I mostly remember grabbing him by the shirt and then throwing him against a wall. Once he was pinned against the wall I alternated between punching his face in and and making sure he stayed against the f*****g wall. Details are mostly lost to me, but I definitely remember winning that fight.
I was suspended for the rest of the day, he was suspended for 3 days due to the racist nature of his remark. Possibly one of the greatest turning points of my life.
More than 30% of the world's students have been victims of bullying, while one in ten has been cyberbullied. That's according to data from UNESCO.
Zoning in on the United States, and around 20% of students aged 12–18 say they've been bullied. Across the pond, the figures are higher. Bullying U.K. found that 69% of kids reported being bullied, 20% reported bullying others, and 85% had witnessed bullying.
#13

I was the last stop on the bus, so there was always a lack of seats. I got on the bus and spotted one empty seat next to someone. I walked over and sat next to him.
He turned to me and said "I didn't say you could sit there." I replied "There were no other seats." I guess he didn't care, because he repeated his previous statement. I just ignored him.
Then he shouted at the top of his lungs "**GET THE F**K OUTTA MY SEAT!**" I was taken aback. I couldn't believe he just shouted that on the bus at me, the situation felt surreal. I saw everyone on the bus start to look in my direction.
I froze up. I started weighing my options. I knew I couldn't take this guy in a fight, he was f*****g crazy. As you should be able to tell from this situation. As I'm still pondering what to do, he shouts again "**I SAID, GET THE F**K OUTTA MY SEAT**!"
Then before I can find a way out, he kicks me out of the seat. I stand up in the middle of the bus and I'm met with roaring laughter from all the other kids on the bus.
The bully stands up ready to fight, and I just walk away. Even if I was able to beat him in a 1 on 1 fight, I knew he was the type to come back the next day with 5 of his friends to beat you to a pulp.
I walked to the back of the bus and sat in the half-seat with the mentally challenged kid.
I wasn't about to let things end like that though. So, I planned for my revenge. I started catching the city bus to school, instead of the school bus to avoid further humiliation. Things blew over eventually and everyone forgot about that incident.....but I didn't.
I waited until one day, I saw that bully on the bus with a grill lighter smoking leaf. Then he took the grill lighter and smacked a guy in the face with it, and he started crying. I knew this was my chance.
I created an anonymous email address and sent an email to my school officials. I told them about the bully smoking leaf on the bus and smacking that kid in the face with a grill lighter. I made sure not to say anything that could give my identity away. That way, no one would know who "tattled".
The school investigated the issue and found the evidence they needed from eye witness testimonies on the bus. That bully was expelled from school and I was free to ride the bus in peace.
**Tl;DR** - A bully humiliated me on the bus, so I anonymously got him expelled from school.
#14

There was a small group that were particularly bad and I was a smartass, so I'd always make it worse for myself. There were a couple of dudes and their groupies.
I was working in bars for around 3 years after high school, eventually ending up in management. But we all wear the same outfits and the only give away is the tiny in-ear earpiece that supervisors, managers and security wear. One night, the douchebags and their groupies walk in. At first they don't recognize me, I'm lucky that I have changed enough since high school and have learnt how to dress myself. So they're buying drinks and generally harmless, then one of them figures out who I am but doesn't say anything (distinctive deep voice).
The girls come up to the bar leaving the boyfriends in the background watching intently. They order a long island ice tea, which is something most would be embarrassed to order at this particular bar so good on them, I love me a long island too.
Now, I'm not a dude who dwells on the past, I don't really care about people who've wronged me in high school as it was so long ago and we were "stupid kids." Most are still living with their parents (eight years after graduating) and jerking it to ex-classmates on facebook anyway. But I was pretty satisfied when one of the girls spat the cocktail out across the bar and "accidentally" dropped the glass.
She starts asking to talk to my boss and how I shouldn't be working there blah blah (rich family). I mention that it is impossible to f**k up a long island and I wouldn't be manager if I didn't know how to make one. Their eyes go dull at this point, after hearing the word "manager."
Slowly, my hand goes for my ear and I whisper a single word, "security."
The look on their faces will never escape me, being dragged out of a high-class cocktail lounge when people they knew were all around them, would have to be an embarrassing experience and the looks on their faces certainly showed it. One of the boyfriends was yelling constantly at the security guard and was eventually pushed, by the face, out of the way before being grabbed by another and walked out. The remaining boyfriend separated himself from the others and hung around, at this point I don't care about him, I'll head back and let him know he has to leave in a second.
I'm at the entrance to the bar ensuring that the women and other irate boyfriend don't get back in. By this stage the irate boyfriend is asking security guards and myself to fight him. I'm getting bored and decide to head back in, security know what they're doing and I turn around just in time to duck and miss a fist from the other boyfriend, I quickly move behind him, drop my foot into the back of his knee sending him down as the security guards jump on him and put him in a lock.
They are then banned for life from one of the classiest lounges around and are thoroughly embarrassed. The boyfriend that tried to king hit me got to spend the night in a lock-up. (He later contacted me through facebook and apologized for that night, but also for how he'd treated me in high school. Apparently spending the night in a lock up is something he'd never done before and it gave him a bit of a wake-up call)
This isn't the only Karma I've had, at the same bar I also had something similar to the OP's story happen. But he got hired and it turned out he had grown into a pretty chill guy, we are still friends.
#15

I laughed. Karma probably kicked in earlier, but it was many years in between his bullying ways and him now.
A 2024 research paper titled, The adult consequences of being bullied in childhood reveals that being bullied as a child worsens well-being and labor market performance up to half a century later. It also lowers the probability of having a job throughout adulthood. Being exposed to bullying as a child can even result in a shorter lifespan.
"Being bullied in school, we find, has persistent and harmful effects through life and the magnitude of any impacts appear substantial," the researchers said. Interestingly, they add that the effects they've recovered are likely an underestimate.
#16

**Edit: I have chilled with bros and thugs alike in my later years. Many are decent people. It is only the ones who were a******s in general that I enjoy seeing fail at life.**.
#17

#18

#19

Still waiting on that karma to happen.
#20

*Edit:* For clarity, I am not suggesting anything about my looks with the last part. I just take great delight in him being alone right now despite all the try hard and being on the actual website for months without success. I never went on a date with him, I just deleted his message.


