The First Time I Realized I Was Different (Expanded)

Alone,
In a crowd, distinct,
Their words, sharp, succinct,
My soul, quietly infringed,
Unique.

They moved in patterns I couldn’t follow,
Laughed at jokes I didn’t understand.
I stood in the middle of all of them
And felt the distance like a wall of glass —
Close enough to see through,
Too thick to break.