Peer Pressure

By Likith Manjunatha

While most of the people at my school were busy on their phones scrolling through social media, I was busy on my bed using my phone to study for a test. The name given to me by my parents is Likith, but I was better known as “the geek” or “teacher’s pet.” I did not have many friends except for three, the ones that stick around no matter what. In school I was not popular in school, nor did many people want to talk to me, all they said to me was, “Hey, give me your notes, because I don’t have mine,” they did not know my name either.

My parents did not want me to use social media, they said, “social media??? You are too young for it, and plus it fries your brain like cheese. You are not using it, EVER!” they would yell. Hence, I did not know much about the school gossip except when my friends told me.

Being a teenager, you know how our brains like to explore everything, likewise my brain was not trained and wanted to do some exploring too. Peer pressure and self-desire could not stop me. My friends finally convinced me to create social media without the knowledge of my parents. They gave me “tips” on how to hide my account from my parents which was by blocking them. I know it sounds simple but trust me it was so difficult to sneak around just to use Instagram and Snapchat. My soul used to ache when I was betraying my parents and disobeying them, but what did I get out of its recognition! Yeah, I started getting popular at school and I was no longer “the geek,” people started calling me Anushka and got to know my fun side which was a tremendous success for me as I finally felt like I was fitting in. It surprised people how fun I was when they thought I was nerdy. It was all going well until one day, a girl that hated my gaining popularity was at my doorstep talking to my parents. The look on their faces was not very welcoming. When I went to them the first thing, they did was take my phone and go through it. I knew I was doomed. I confessed. It made my heart and soul light after confessing to them and telling them everything that had happened. When I finished telling them everything and looked up to see them, I saw that their eyes were filled with pity.

They told me it was okay to stand out and be myself. They told me that social media had changed me, and I realized it then, my scores had dropped down and I had not known till then how much social media influenced me.

They told me, “Having social media is good to an extent but we do not realize how much it influences us.” The moment I deleted all my social media, my brain, and the rest of me felt like it was free from a trapped cage. When I went back to school no one cared about me, and everyone was busy with their own stuff. No one talked to me, but gave a smile, and went away. In the crowd I saw three figures waiting for me to go to class. They were my best friends, Chaitra, Ritesh, and Stuthi. That is when I understood that I did not need anyone, and I did not need to be popular. Being true to myself, loving myself and being unique is what I learnt from this. I found peace with not having social media and just having my best friends with me and living my life just the way it was.

By Likith Manjunatha