A lifestyle and beauty creator on TikTok, Nova Sterling, has resonated with millions of viewers after sharing a detailed account of what she describes as her worst day of high school.
In the video, we get to see her doing some skincare as she recalls a particular day in school as one problem after another unfolded!
Sterling has more than 815,000 followers on the platform and posted the video on April 2. It has since collected 1.4 million likes with viewers calling it painfully relatable. "High school was traumatizing to say the least," she wrote in the caption.
The nearly three-minute video begins with Sterling explaining that she overslept. She woke to sunlight coming through her blinds and assumed it was around 6 a.m. Her phone, however, reminded her that it was 8:30 a.m., and school had started at 8!
Instead of panicking, she tried to justify being late, "The school doesn't really call parents when you're late [anyway]. As long as I get there before lunch."
@novasterlingg High school was traumatizing to say the least.
♬ original sound - Novasterlingg
She ultimately did not make it to school before lunch. After encountering traffic delay, Sterling decided to make a stop at Sonic since she was already late and got a Dr Pepper and a corn dog.
Her mother soon called her and informed her she was aware of the absence and that Sterling was grounded. Still, Sterling made sure she reached school and went to class, where the day took a turn for the worse.
Male classmates began mocking her skin and started calling her "pepperoni face." Sterling said in the video that she had been crying about her acne the night before and was already on Accutane, which is a prescription medication used to treat severe acne.
Sterling said she tried not to react: "We'll cry at home later, but we can't let them know they're bothering me."
In the next period, classmates began spreading the rumor that Sterling had herpes. Why? Because Accutane is known to cause severely dry, cracked lips. She recalled one student even asked the teacher to be moved to a different seat so as not to be near her. Though she had never even "had a cold sore in [her] life," Sterling had to bear it.
Even after this, the day was not over. Sterling was called to the principal's office, which she initially thought was about her tardiness.
But she later learned she had allegedly violated the school dress code. She asked to step out and call her mother, to make it look like she was requesting a change of clothes. In reality, she broke down and "hysterically [bawled her] eyes out" as she begged her mom to sign her out of this school.
Her mother was also a school teacher herself, and at first said no. But after Sterling kept pleading, she gave in. Sterling went home to face the earlier punishment for skipping school, waiting for her. "And that was my high school day in absolute h---," she concluded.
Sterling wants to be a pilot in the future.
