PART 2 — Not “Just an Opinion”

I stepped in before I even realized I was moving.

“Don’t say that,” I told him.

Louis rolled his eyes almost instantly.

“What? It’s just my opinion.”

That word again.

Opinion.

As if that could somehow soften it. As if calling someone something offensive, something meant to degrade, could be brushed off as personal expression.

“It’s not an opinion,” I said, steady but firm. “It’s offensive.”

He tried to argue.

Tried to twist it.

Tried to convince me that he “didn’t mean it like that,” that people were “too sensitive,” that it was “just how people talk.”

But here’s the truth he didn’t want to hear:

Words carry weight.
Words leave marks.
Words can follow someone long after the moment is over.

And sometimes, words cross a line—they don’t just hurt, they become something more serious. Something that can be considered harassment. Something that isn’t okay anymore in any space that claims to be safe.

Geoff still hadn’t said anything.

But I could see it.

That quiet kind of hurt that doesn’t shout… it just settles in.

And that’s the part people don’t understand.

It’s not always about the loud reaction.
It’s about the silence that comes after.

I took a breath and said it clearly:

“Be careful what terms you use. This isn’t harmless. It’s highly offensive.”

For once, Louis didn’t have a comeback.

Just a shrug. A half-step back. A silence that felt different from Geoff’s.

Not heavy—just uncertain.

Later, I kept thinking about it.

What kind of day and age are we living in where people still think this is acceptable?

Where harm gets dressed up as humor…
Where disrespect hides behind the word opinion…
Where someone like Geoff has to stand there and pretend it doesn’t hurt just to get through the day.

This isn’t about being dramatic.

It’s about being aware.

Because the smallest words can leave the deepest impact.

And sometimes, the right thing to do is simple:

Speak up.
Call it out.
And remind people—

Respect is not optional.