After Alex Died by Dakota Madison

mountain, the tears were flowing and there was no stopping them. I was just glad that all eyes were on Cameron and no one was paying attention to me crying.
    Cameron continued. “Jay and Reggie thought it would be funny to do something to Alex at Homecoming. Like a grand finale right before basketball season was ready to start. I was actually surprised that he showed up at the Homecoming Dance. He had accompanied his sister to the dance. I remember how beautiful she looked in her emerald green dress that matched her eyes.”
    My breath caught when Cameron described the dress I was wearing that night. I didn’t think he ’d ever given me a second look. I wasn’t in the popular crowd or a cheerleader, which was the type of girl he normally dated.
    “Alex wore black slacks and a jacket with a green shirt that matched his sister’s dress. I could tell the two of them were close. They always seemed to be laughing and joking with each other. Alex’s sister always looked so happy when she was with him. I still remember how those smiles lit up her face. I can’t tell you how badly I wanted her to smile that way at me, just once.”
    It had been a long time since I really smiled one of the smiles that Cameron was talking about. A true smile of happiness. After Alex died, I felt like my happiness died with him and any light inside me faded away.
    Cameron went on. “Alex and his sister looked like they were having fun, dancing and goofing around. Jay and Reggie video recorded Alex doing some crazy dance moves. When we all went back to Reggie’s place after the dance, Jay and Reggie used some software to alter the video and add photos of men kissing and other stuff. They also added a lot of derogatory words and phrases to the video. They didn’t hesitate to upload it to YouTube and Twitter and email it to hundreds of kids at the school. By Sunday afternoon the video they made had gone viral. Everyone in the school had seen it and was talking about it and it didn’t take long for the YouTube video to get comments from people all over the country. Jay and Reggie never even considered how it would make Alex feel. They just wanted to get attention. My biggest regret was not doing anything to stop them. I was a willing participant in everything.
    “I learned the hard way that actions have consequences. By Monday night Alex was dead. He had killed himself. He’d said the video had ruined his life. It didn’t take long for the story to be picked up by the media. The media called what Reggie, Jay and I did a hate crime. Within a week the three of us were arrested for criminal harassment. I agreed to a plea bargain in exchange for testifying against my friends. You can imagine what people thought of me after that. I became a social outcast. A pariah. My punishment by the court was two years of probation, counseling and community service. But I was punished even more than that. I was thrown off the basketball team, so I didn’t get to play my senior year. My scholarship to Penn State was rescinded. It was during the Sandusky ordeal and the school said they didn’t want to have to deal with another scandal. My dad, who was the mayor of our small town, was asked to resign. He blamed it on me. My parents kicked me out of the house and have all but disowned me. My bright future was completely snuffed out. I didn’t even go the senior prom because I was afraid to ask anyone. I didn’t want to be rejected. The judge at Jay and Reggie’s sentencing said that we had failed ourselves, failed our families and failed our communities. She was right. But even after everything I lost and all my suffering, I know it doesn’t compare to what Alex’s family went through. They lost their son and brother.”
    As soon as Cameron was done with his speech, Destiny’s hand shot up. “What ever happened to Alex’s sister?” she asked.
    “You can ask her yourself. She’s standing right over there.”
    When Cameron pointed at me, there was a