At first, I assumed he was merely interrupting class and refusing to draw attention, but when I realized the true cause, I was completely stunned.

That lesson is etched in my memory like it happened only yesterday. Everything seemed ordinary: formulas on the board, children writing, pencils scratching. Yet one boy behaved differently from everyone else.

He sat down, then stood up a few minutes later. I scolded him — he sat again. After five minutes — up once more. At first, I believed he was fooling around, seeking attention, or testing boundaries. His classmates chuckled, convinced he was purposefully disrupting the class.

I tried remaining composed, but unease stirred inside me. Why did he keep repeating this? His eyes held no trace of playful mischief.

When the bell rang, I stopped him at the door:

— Daniel, wait a bit. We should talk.

For illustrative purpose only
The room emptied, leaving us alone. I crouched to his level and asked gently:

— Why are you acting like this? Are you uninterested? Were you trying to upset me?

He flushed, faltered, and whispered faintly:

— No… It just hurts to sit. It really hurts.

I froze. I asked him to show me. When he lifted his shirt and revealed what he was hiding, my knees buckled. In that instant I realized: this wasn’t a game.

When I saw those marks, something shattered inside me. They couldn’t be accidental. I tried to remain steady, though my hands shook:

— Daniel… who did this to you?

Weeping, he whispered:

— My stepfather. He always does… if I disobey.

At that moment, it struck me: I could not keep silent. I reached out to the school psychologist and that very day reported the matter to the right authorities.

Days later, specialists and police visited the boy’s home. What they found only confirmed the darkest fears.

Daniel’s mother greeted them with terrified eyes, her whole body silently screaming: “I’m afraid.” She herself had long endured constant pressure and fear. The stepfather maintained total control over them both.

For me, this was a horrifying discovery. Genuine abuse can exist so close to us, unnoticed until someone dares to uncover it.