Shattered Asylum

Chapter 5

Hello chipmunks. It's me again. There will be Italian language from here on out... I will be getting it from google translate and I KNOW it never is 100% right... Sorry. The girl in the picture is not what Aven looks like, I just wanted to show you what the dress looked like in this chapter. Okay with that being said... enjoy.

I got home around eleven. Everyone tried to get me to go to a party that was happening downtown, but I just wanted to head home. I couldn't shake this weird feeling that I was being watched.

I am scrolling through Instagram and decide to stalk all of Nora's friends. They all have a pretty big following, none under a million followers. Madison posted that picture from Buddy's, everyone asking if she's dating Grayson.

She pretends to be this loving and caring girl, and everyone falls for it. But then again, they wouldn't know how she acts through a picture.

I bite my lip, deciding to look at Grayson's account. I tap on a picture where he has his shirt off, smiling. The background is blurred, but it looks like he was at a beach. I put my phone up to my face to inspect it further.

Ah, he has a silver chain around his neck.

I drop my phone on my face when I hear a knock at my door. I throw my phone away from me before telling them to come in. "Com'è andata la partita dei tuoi amici?" (How did your friend's match go?) Grandpa asks, leaning on my door frame.

"È stato bello. Abbiamo vinto per touchdown." (It was good. We won by a touchdown.) Why do I feel like I got caught doing something bad? "Oh, bene caro, sono felice che ti sia divertito. Volevo solo controllarti." ( Oh, that's good dear, glad you had fun. Just wanted to check on you.)

My grandparents know my home life was bad, they just don't know the details. They used to come running in here every night when I screamed in my sleep. Sometimes, i'd wake up to the sound of the door creaking open, and their worried faces would be the first thing i'd see.

I hated how much they tried to comfort me, like their hugs could fix what was broken. I wasn't the fragile little girl they thought I was. I learned to keep the worst of it inside.

"Thanks nonno. Goodnight." I offer a quick smile, hoping it hides the panic rising inside me. He smiles and tells me goodnight before closing the door, but it doesn't feel like the door shuts on my thoughts. Instead, it feels like it's trapping me here, inside my own head.

I search for my phone that I threw across the room. Once I find it, I turn it back on to see that the once clear heart is now red. My eyes bulge out of my head. NO. This can't be happening, I don't even follow him. He's going to know I was stalking him!

I grab my pillow and put it over my face, screaming into it.

What the fuck did I just do?

~

Today is Saturday, and grandma woke me up at 7 a.m. to go shopping with her. I thought we were only going to be gone for an hour or two.

It is currently 4:30 and we are only half way done. "OH! Quanto è carino questo?! Puoi provare anche questo." (Oh! How cute is this?! You can try this on too.) Grandma says, taking it off the rack. "That actually is cute." It was a brown dress that had a sweetheart neckline with ruched front ruffles.

We went to the dressing rooms, and I tried on everything she picked out for me. She loves fashion and has always wanted a daughter to dress up.

I put on the brown dress and look at myself in the mirror. I turn side to side, trying to see every angle. " Uscire. Fammi vedere!" (Come out. Let me see!) She demands.