Mental Health Issue Addressed: Self-Esteem/Bullying

Exposition:

Seth, a very thin 16-year-old high school junior, is the only child of a middle-class family that values education above all else. Seth has a good relationship with both of his parents but has few friends at school. Seth enjoys learning and gets good grades. However, he is depressed and is considering dropping out of school because the popular students pick on him for being smart and not being good at sports. Seth feels like he could stop going to school and no one would even notice.

Rising Action:

Seth is late to school one morning and while rushing to get to his first period class, he notices Elisa, one of the most popular girls in school, crying next to her locker. Before he has a chance to get too nervous and pretend that he doesn't see her, Seth approaches Elisa and asks her if there is something that he can do to help her. Seth is not normally the type of student that Elisa would ever be caught talking to, but because she is upset and no one is around to see, Elisa tells him that she is upset because she found out that her parents are getting a divorce and her older sister is leaving for college. She feels like she is all alone and has no one to talk to because she is embarrassed to admit to her circle of friends that she is not the perfect person that they think she is.

Turning Point:

Seth and Elisa begin to form a friendship after their conversation in the hallway. They start to talk on the phone every night after dinner and even make plans to study together on Seth's house. However, Elisa always refuses when Seth asks her if she wants to go out for pizza, hang out at the mall, or go to the movies. Elisa is afraid that her popular friends will make fun of her if they see her and Seth together.

Falling Action:

Seth and Elisa are in the same personal fitness class at school. One day the teacher tells the students that they are going to dress out to play basketball. Of all the sports, this is Seth's least favorite, because he cannot dribble the ball and continue to run down the court. When the students get on the court, the popular boys take the first opportunity to throw the ball at Seth. Seth falls and the whole class begins to point, laugh, and call him names. Elisa has witnessed this type of bullying before and it always made her uncomfortable. Finally she is unable to take it any longer and she approaches Seth to help him up. She then tells the class that Seth is her friend and they should be ashamed of themselves for treating people the way they do.
Denouement:

Seth and Elisa are now openly friendly at school. The rest of the students treat Seth better and Elisa continues to have her old friends. Everyone, from the most popular to the least, has problems and everyone needs friends that they can talk to. Although the issues and concerns may be different, everyone needs to feel accepted and supported. Seth is now proud of his academic successes and realizes that he too has something to offer, even if he is not good at sports.