I was a quiet kid. I was smart, but very shy and timid. My family was very religious and my pare nts were strict. My dad didn't drink, smoke, or use drugs, neither did my mum. My dads only vice was his promiscuity and the word fights he regularly had with my mum. I hated those fights because my mum always cried after them and I hated seeing my mum cry. But my dad never hit her. He tried to hide his promiscuity from his kids but my mum always told me everything. We were very close.

I had a strong bond with my mum, but I hated my dad. I felt he never liked me. There were times when I asked my mum if he actually was my dad cause I perceived he treated me different from my other siblings. Don't get me wrong, my dad knew how to shower his kids with money and clothes and food, but that wasn't what I wanted, I wanted his love, attention and approval but I never got it. He easily took offense with everything I said or did and I was always trying to please him and I couldn't. All this just made me hate him more.

When I was about 16, I underwent a surprising metamorphosis.I was no longer the shy and timid kid I was. I became more confident and more extroverted. I began to learn and perfect certain social behaviors because I realized that people who behaved in such way were accepted by everyone. I began to learn how to talk in a certain way and act in a certain way and dress in a certain way. I practically became a new person. There was still some tension between me and my dad, but I didn't care about pleasing him anymore and we even got into lots of fights.

I am now 22 and I have grown into a handsome, intelligent, socially flexible but terribly scarred individual. But aren't we all scarred?