Bryan is having a hard time at school. He doesn’t like going there anymore because he is tired of being bullied. Some of the bigger boys at school are mean to him. They push him to the ground. They hide his books. They call him names. They are bullies. When things get really bad, Bryan tells his mother he is sick.

“You should stay home and rest,” Mom says. “You’ll feel better tomorrow.”

Then Bryan gets to stay home. He reads books. He watches television. He eats what he wants. He is not scared. He doesn’t like lying to his mom, but he thinks this is better than going to school. He’ll do almost anything to avoid getting bullied.

The only person who knows about Bryan’s problem is his best friend, Link. “You should tell someone you are getting bullied at school,” says Link. But Bryan is scared. He doesn’t want to tell an adult.

“That will make things worse, Link,” says Bryan. “You don’t go to my school. You have no idea how mean these guys can be.”

“You can’t keep missing school,” says Link. “Your grades will fall. You will be in trouble at home. And besides, you don’t want to be stuck in the fourth grade forever, do you?” Link knows that Bryan does not want to hear this. It hurts to tell him. But Link also knows that sometimes the truth hurts. It is better to tell Bryan the truth than to be dishonest with him.

Bryan thinks. After a while, he concludes that Link is probably right. He will tell his mother about the bullies when she gets home from work tonight.

Bryan will see what happens.