A/N: omg, I CANNOT believe I'm actually submitting something on this site! I've always dreamed of writing an original piece, and I've done it! I wrote this for an English assignment about first-person narratives: the topic was Bias. Please R & R!

WARNING: It gets kinda sappy during the end, even by my standards, sooo...just bear with me, m'kay?

Blind, But Still Seeing

They think I can’t see them, but I can.

In fact, I probably see things better than anyone else in this school. All they see are my pale blue eyes and white cane and they automatically think: “Blind girl. Worthless. Stay away.” It’s like I’m contagious or something. They’ve already judged me, and everyone knows first impressions are lasting impressions. It doesn’t matter to them that I’m one of the top students here, having picked up Braille quickly when I was 5, or that I’ve won 3 championship soccer trophies, or that I can play 26 piano pieces by heart. And how could it? They never bother to get to know me.

Those who don’t avoid me like the plague can be even worse sometimes. They give me fake smiles and put on a cheery demeanor, like I’m this thing to be pitied. But I can hear a smile, and I can see through their façade. I’m fairly civil to those types of people because I know they mean well (at least most of them), but sometimes the happy-go-lucky attitude really gets to me. How would you feel if everyone around you was pretending that the world was all sunshine and flowers?

Then there are those who are outright mean, saying things like, “Oh my God, Jessica, your dress is so adorable! Too bad you can’t see it, Alicia, you’d love it.” So far ignoring them seems to be the best way to maintain my dignity instead of stooping to their level. I try to hide how much their biting words hurt, and it’s gotten easier over the years. I don’t even mind being blind anymore – really, I don’t. It’s been a part of my essence for as long as I can remember, and I just wouldn’t be me without it.

Even though there are those who refuse to accept me, I have met someone who sees past my “disability” and unearths the real me. Claire is one of the few people who treat me like a normal girl, though at first I thought she was one of those people who think I can’t do anything for myself. I soon realized that this was just her nature – she liked to help everybody! On those days when I was feeling really low, she always knew just what to say to raise my spirits. Even when I yelled and was awful to her, she just sat there and took it. When she smiles and laughs with me, I know it’s not fake. I can see Claire, and she can see me.