Meet Jaden

💛 A Little About Me

What's up, I'm Jaden. I'm 12. I'm easygoing, athletic, thoughtful and quietly funny. You'll usually see me in my favorite pink hoodie. I'm into basketball, music and sneakers — I even design my own custom shoes. I share my lunch, I help my friends, and I stay out of drama. I say "It's not that serious" a lot.

I live with my mom, who's a nurse and sometimes works long shifts, and my grandfather, who's retired. My cousin Malik, who's 10, is staying with us for a while, while his mom works through some housing and family stuff.

I love Malik. But we share my bedroom now, so I don't get much privacy, or a quiet place to draw, and some of my stuff isn't just mine anymore. My grandpa says to be patient because Malik is adjusting. I want to be kind. Sometimes it feels like what I need is too small to mention.

⚡ Something That Happened

I spent evenings drawing a custom basketball shoe, with a logo I designed really carefully.

Malik borrowed my markers without asking. He left some caps off, and one dried out.

He said sorry. I said, "It's fine," partly because I didn't want him to feel worse.

But it wasn't fine. It was one more thing on top of a lot of things I hadn't said.

🏫 In Our Classroom

Then came a day when everything piled up. I didn't sleep well. My hoodie was missing. I forgot my basketball shoes. My water bottle spilled. My group partner showed up unprepared.

By the last class of the day, I was already frustrated. Then a classmate picked up my pencil without asking.

I shouted, "BRO! CAN YOU STOP TOUCHING MY STUFF?" He said, "It's just a pencil." My teacher said my reaction was unnecessary.

It wasn't just the pencil. It was everything.

🌱 What I'm Learning

Yelling wasn't okay, and I'm learning how to repair it. I'm also learning to notice when I'm getting frustrated sooner, and to set boundaries before small things pile up — like, "I don't mind sharing, but please ask first," or "I'm already frustrated today and need a few minutes."

And I'm figuring out how to talk to Malik about my stuff in a way that's still kind to him. I don't have to wait until I'm furious for my needs to matter.