after school I walked back to our apartment, usually more or less alone, which was a whole lot better than being chased and tripped and shoved against vending machines or into bicycle racks filled with bicycles. I knew I wasn’t completely out of danger yet because sometimes my classmates would follow me, but they always stayed across the street or half a block behind me, and even if they made comments in loud voices about my slummy ghetto neighborhood, at least they never attempted to talk to me or touch me.
