I'm awakened by what sounds like a burning flame...the smell creeps into my nostrils, reminding me this is reality.

I hop out of bed to see a burning cross in front of my home. No...not again. When will this end? My question to myself is halted by the sounds of my mother screaming at me to move away from the window I was staring out of. As I attempt to move away, a brick shatters my window, nearly crushing my face into something unrecognizable.

Now under the arm of my mother, next to my brother, we race down the steps where we find my father pushing furniture in front of the door. Hopefully they don't attempt to come in. I hope this is the last time. Once more, I ask my brother why we are being treated this way. He puts his hand over my mouth and says “Shhhh...you've done enough”.

Now I'm thinking about the white girl I played with two days ago. She was my first white friend...we had so much fun that I knew we'd be friends forever. I lose myself for a moment and make my way toward the window in the kitchen to get a better look at the scenery. I notice her father looking at the house in disgust and he sees me make eye contact. He points with one hand while he grabs his weapon with the other. I look back into the other room at my family, knowing this will stop once the troublemaker is eliminated.

So I don't scream for my parents. I don't move...I accept my punishment. My dad always says when you do something wrong, you should accept your punishment like a man. So I did. “I hope he's proud,” I think to myself as I see the white man point and aim his weapon. I await my fate...I've accepted my punishment...and I am rea—.