“People couldn’t separate me from my character,” Steele explained, according to a report fromE!

“I felt like I was being bullied a lot at parties growing up and even at the mall.

“Everyone’s pointing, everyone’s looking and throwing paper at you,” viaE!

Miriam McDonald and Cassie Steele smile together at a fan expo.

“That’s part of why we formed such a strong connection,” McDonald admitted, viaE!

“We were each other’s number one peers.”

“As a teenager, you read some of these brutal things that are written,” McDonald noted.

Miriam McDonald smiles next to Cassie Steele in a red shirt.

“And it’s very hard not to let that affect you.”

“It’s irreplaceable.”