Coming Clean
Okay, okay. It’s time for the truth. Who here has ever said something bad about someone behind their backs—that they know isn’t true? I think we’ve all been there. Everybody makes mistakes, the important thing is that we admit it and come clean. With all this rumour talk, I’ve been wondering about the best way to do damage control after telling a lie that spirals out of control. We’ve seen the different reasons why rumours start. When someone’s in competition with you, they might start a rumour to look better in comparison, like V’s co-worker. Kelly proved that jealousy can make you crazy enough to create lies about even your best friend. Chris didn’t seem to care that to prove his own reputation, he had to ruin someone else’s, and Olive found out the hard way that getting noticed for the wrong reasons isn’t as fun as she thought it would be. But when something as powerful as the rumour mill takes over, is it even possible to reverse the damage that’s been done? What happens when someone sees the error of their ways? I can’t say what the best way is, but I can tell you what Jason did.
Jason knew from a young age that he was not like other guys. He wasn’t interested in girls, and when he hit high school, he realized that he was gay. Unfortunately, he went to great lengths to deceive his classmates for fear of being ridiculed. But when his crush Roy realized the truth and admitted that he liked him, Jason freaked out, insisted he was straight and started telling malicious rumours about Roy. The whole school was tormenting Roy, and Jason realized that he couldn’t do this to someone—especially not the guy he liked. So, during a school assembly, Jason took to the stage, came out of the closet, called Roy up on stage and kissed him in front of everybody. After that, the only thing the school couldn’t stop talking about was the hot new couple that was brave enough to be themselves. So you see, the rumour mill works both ways, it can spread lies, or if you’re courageous enough to tell the truth, it can make you known for all the right reasons.
Have you ever took a stand against something you knew was a lie? Have you ever started a rumour and then tried to reverse its negative effects? What’s the best way to let the truth be known?
