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Chapter 1

There once was a girl known by everyone but no one and that girl was me, Evelyn Shire. I am sat in a police car looking out the window at the trees that I haven't seen for months. I can hear the police on their radios happily saying "we have found her." But it doesn't seem true what they are saying because I still feel lost in my mind waiting to wake up from this dream and face my sick reality but as I pinch myself softly and shut my eyes for a few seconds I'm still there, safe in a police car. "How are you doing back there?" one police officer asks me looking at me through the rear view mirror, I don't answer him not because I don't want to but because I can't, all I seem to be able to do is cough and stare. "Evelyn we are bringing you back to your family." He adds with a smile and I nod my head, this anxious feeling inside of my gut should fade away at the mention of my family but it doesn't instead it makes me worry about what will happen next, what will I do, how will my family react? The police car parks in a driveway that I recognize to be my driveway. The police get out of the car and then open my door. I unbuckle my belt with shaky hands and step out. There's a cold breeze as I walk out of the car and up the stairs to my front door. The police knock and the door immediately opens and I see my mum, her eyes water at the sight of me and she engulfs me in bone crushing hug, she weeps on my shoulder and I hug her back "I thought I had lost you." She cries and I just stand there. I see my father and his eyes light up with joy "eve!" he says running towards me and joining in with my mother. I hug them both tightly not sure when either of them would let go. After another five minutes of hugging me they slowly stepped back and let the police and I into the front door. We all sit at the kitchen table and then the police start talking "we don't want to bombard you with questions now but tomorrow at noon you and your parents will have to come down to the police station to answer a few questions for us." "Of course." My mother tells them "I don't want to talk about it." I choke out, and both my parents look at me in a new way "Evelyn I know this must have been a traumatizing time for you but we need to find the person who did this to you and get him in jail and the only way we can do that is if you tell us about him." I shake my head "I want to forget." I tell them quietly not having the energy to raise my voice, "we understand that but you need to do this, you will be okay we just need to know what has happened to you for six months." The police try to reason with me but the only thing I can keep my mind on is the way they said they "understand" because they wouldn't even be able to imagine what I went through, they know nothing. "Darling I know this is hard for you but they need to put the man who did this to you in jail." My dad tells me "I can't do this." I say "what can't you do? "The police asks "this whole thing." I say running my hands through my hair "honey you know what how about you just go take a shower upstairs and we will handle this." my mom suggests I nod and stand up slowly and then make my way upstairs to the bathroom. Everything in the house feels unfamiliar to me as I step into the bathroom and close the door. I stripe of my clothes slowly and then I see myself in the mirror, I look frail, my eyes are lined with heavy dark circles and my body is too thin, I sigh at the reflection of the broken girl and turn on the shower stepping in. it felt incredibly good to have the warm water massage my tense body, I took the shampoo bottle and rubbed it into my hair, finally beginning to feel clean. I stood in the shower for a few minutes after trying to take in the reality that I was free, that there was such thing as light and it wasn't all a dream. I stepped out of the shower and wrapped a towel around my body and then put another on my hair. I walked over to my room which felt so different then last time and I opened the drawers to see my clothes folded and neatly placed in. I see a pair of sweat pants and a t shirt so I put them on but they are very big on me because of my significant weight loss. I finish tying my pants up and then I go downstairs to my parents where I see the police have left. My father tightly hugs me "I've missed you eve." He sighs into my head "I've missed you too dad." I say quietly back. My mom smiles at the two of us. "im going to go make you something to eat Evelyn, grilled cheese?" my mom questions I nod my head, I haven't eaten a proper meal in ages it feels like. I follow my mom to the kitchen along with my dad and we sit at the table, my mother hands me a big glass of water and I drink it quickly and feel my dry throat begin to heal already. "so eve tomorrow the police recommend to us that you should go to the doctors and get checked up, is that fine?" my father asks softly as if he were to say it any other way it would break me, I nod my head. Soon later my mother made me a grilled cheese sandwich with a salad on the side, I smile and thank her quietly. I begin to eat the grilled cheese sandwich savouring each bite as if it was my last meal. As I eat my parents look at me, it's not their old looks towards me, the look is more concerned. "What?" I ask them "nothing darling." My mother smiles. I continue to eat my sandwich until my father says "Evelyn you need to tell someone what happened to you for the past six months." He says and I stop eating and look at him "it's better if I just try to forget everything." I say, "Evelyn the police have recommend you to a therapist and we believe it's a good idea." My mom says softly to me "I'm fine." I shake my head then my mother breaks into tears and my father tries to get her to stop. I watch the scene take place not sure what to say, "it kills me to see her like this." my mother cries into my father's shoulder, "mom I'm fine, I'm still alive I just need to forget about these past months." I tell her "Evelyn please for me just tell the police or even us what happened." She says and I finally see something that I never noticed before "mom have you been sleeping much?" I ask her "don't worry about me. I can finally sleep now because your safely home." She says and just like most of my life I agree to talk to the police not because I want to but because it would bring peace to my mother. "I'll do it, I'll talk to the police." I say to her and she looks at me "you're a brave girl eve." My dad smiles at me and I cringe at the word brave, because I am not brave, being brave would have been standing up to my kidnapper not obeying everything they said. I finish the rest of my salad and stand up "I'm going to bed." I say and walk upstairs. Everything feels foreign to me still like soon I'm going to wake up and be back in that dark room, I shudder at the thought. I get to my room and look around seeing photos with my friends, I wonder if they still think of me as their friend now. I go into my bed that makes me sigh in relief. As I lay down all I can think about is the way the soft mattress holds my weight, I put my warm fuzzy blankets over my body and a smile crosses my face at the sensation I have missed. I don't think I ever want to get out of this bed. I didn't turn off the lights, I was too scared to be left in the dark alone again. I heard the TV playing from downstairs that made falling asleep that much easier and soon enough my eyes were shut and I wasn't waking up from a dream instead I was living in it.