First of all, take the word "need" right out of that sentence. A need is something you cannot go without. Your body NEEDS water. I will tell you now, before I continue that you do not NEED to be liked by people who treat you poorly.
I know it's hard. I know that you may be sitting in certain clothes right now or picking out your outfit for tomorrow based on how you think that the people around you will react to them. Meanwhile, the people who's opinions you are concerned about are sitting at home doing the same thing. Stop arguing with yourself about whether you want to wear your bright blue converse shoes and walk around happy or your beige UGG boots and walk around looking like the average kid. You ARE bright blue converse shoes.
You don't need to date the popular kid. Shocking, I know. In high school, there is so much pressure to "fit in" and sometimes that means hanging out in front of your locker with the popular boy as you watch the other girls walk by looking hella jealous. Hunny, you think this is love and honestly, it may be a glimpse of it. But please, for the love of everything human, stop maintaining an unhealthy relationship to please the people around you.
Work hard. It's okay to fail, but it's not okay to fail on purpose. You think the boys like the "dumb girls" so you want to act like you don't know anything? S.T.O.P. You are bright and the world needs leaders like you to prove to everyone that you are so much more than what people think about you.
Tell me one more time that your "friend" was rude to you. Friends aren't rude to you. They don't say mean things behind your back and they don't laugh at you when you fail or judge you on what you do in life. Friends lift you up. Friends are motivating and supportive and once you understand the idea of sunshine, you will understand what I mean. Sunshine makes you feel warm and happy and gives you a sense that you can accomplish anything. Surround yourself with people who make you feel like that. Surround yourself with people who feel like sunshine.
Your grades matter. In post-secondary, you will wish that you tried harder on the test. You will say to yourself on multiple occasions "I wish I cared more in high school"... "If I tried harder, I definitely could have gotten better grades.". HUNNY, JUST TRY. Don't wait until high school is over to finally realize that you've got some brains in that beautiful head of yours.
Last but not least, smile. Be happy. You are so much more than the opinions of others. Your light shines so bright that it only seems appropriate to let it shine rather than to cover it up just because no ones else's light is shining with the same strength. Be fierce. Be you. You do not NEED to be liked by people who treat you poorly.
