A/N: Another emotion exercise from my blog (the word is angst). This is how I depict the emotions of unstable teenagers. Written late at night. I'm gonna go ta bed now. xD

You look at me. All of you. I see your eyes staring into me, melting my flesh away until I'm exposed and shriveled in your presence. You like the power you have over me; I can almost feel the laughter rising up in your throat, the imaginary guttural sound a cruel blow.

You never bother pointing, but your glares do it for you. They tell me all that I need to know. Inside, I tremble from the hatred. I want to know what I've done to you for this rejection, but I'm too frightened to ask. Part of me still begs for acceptance, something I know you cannot give. This doesn't crush the hope in me.

I fight this lethal dose of animosity in front of the crowds. Tears are weak in your eyes and right now, they're all I have. I save the pain and the humiliation for my empty room, one mirror, the faithful witness.

And yet, you never say a word. You don't want the world to know your secrets, so you shut your mouths and let those terrible eyes to the talking. I don't understand what I've done. But you won't tell me so I can fix it; you like the balance of power. It makes you feel stronger.

When my face is forward, I hear all the hidden whispers of your minds flooding me with insecurity. You think it's funny when I squirm, so obviously ill at ease with myself.

It's not all bad. The others say I'm great. Talented. Intelligent. Even pretty. But I can't believe a word you say. Not one. It's too hard for me to turn on the rest of you. Only one clan can be right. I don't know what to believe anymore so I don't believe anything.

I can't denounce you as liars, because I know that I unconciously do the same. I keep a chart in my head, tracking score to boost my self-esteem. I do that better than her, I say. That must mean something. I justify. I offend. I hurt. My hands are washed in the same blood. We're all to blame.

I can't come clean; these stains never wash off. I step on others, crushing them with my weight to get to the top. The tower of bodies doesn't end. It's a long and deadly climb, the lies and malice a choking mist.

It suffocates me.