Six Days

CHAPTER 1

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Tammy stood before her full-length mirror, scrutinizing her appearance. If it were up to her, she’d ignore the vanity—the makeup, wigs, and extravagant outfits. But every day, she went through this routine, knowing it was essential for her other life.

Her darker life.

She lived with her family of five in a three-bedroom apartment, about thirty minutes from school. They could never afford to live there without the secret income from her double life.

To everyone else, Tammy Stones was just a snob. With a permanent frown, she seemed aggressive, distant, cold. But this facade only masked the guilt gnawing at her, guilt she had to hide because she saw no other way. Poverty had marked her life since childhood. Her father had died struggling, her mother wore her years like scars, and Tammy knew that if she didn’t do something, their suffering would never end.

This was the only way she knew to help. And so, until she graduated, she’d carry this burden, providing for her family in the only way she could.

“I won’t be coming home until tomorrow,” she told her mother, her voice steady. The old woman didn’t ask questions anymore. Tammy sensed her mother’s suspicions, and it broke her heart. Still, she didn’t ask about the late nights, the absences, or the money. She only offered that sad smile of hers, and Tammy told herself that maybe her mother didn’t truly know. Maybe it was just the guilt in Tammy’s own heart, pulling her down.

Quietly, she closed the door behind her. Guilt, she reminded herself, was a luxury she couldn’t afford right now.

As she reached campus and made her way to the lecture hall, she noticed a crowd gathered around the department’s notice board. She edged closer, curiosity piqued.

An extracurricular activity?

A six-day jungle adventure promising fun and life skills. An opportunity to meet students from other colleges. A trip to teach students to live without luxury. The irony made her want to laugh. They thought they could teach her to live without luxury? They’d have better luck training a church mouse to live without crumbs.

Yet, a small part of her was tempted. Not by the idea of learning to “live without luxury,” but by the promise of escape. Six days away from her life, away from everything that weighed her down. Six days to pretend she was someone else. Six days of freedom.

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The blare of an alarm pulled Styla Evelyn Blue from her sleep, shattering the dreams where she’d felt truly loved, where her parents’ affection wrapped around her like warmth. But reality was colder. Money, it seemed, was all life had given her, taking everything else in return.

“Ma’am,” her maid called from outside, “your class is in two hours.”

Styla groaned, stepping out of bed. She was only nineteen, and yet she had a personal maid, a mansion, and every luxury imaginable. None of it mattered to her. Her parents—Donald Blue, an electrical engineer and owner of Blue Energy Inc., and her mother, who ran a fashion house—lavished money on her but never time. She saw them more in the headlines than in real life.

She absently stepped into the bath, trying to ignore the emptiness that echoed around her. From the outside, her life looked like a fairytale. To her, it was a gilded prison.

After a silent breakfast, she checked her phone. A new email notification had arrived:

FROM: Department of Student Affairs
TO: Styla Evelyn Blue
SUBJECT: Six-Day Camp

> This is to inform all interested students that the school, in collaboration with five other institutions, will be organizing a six-day camp for our undergraduates. The trip is designed to teach the value of unity and prudence, encouraging students to live without luxury. Interested students should notify the school, as spaces are limited.

A six-day trip without luxury? Styla scoffed, but something tugged at her. Maybe, for once, life could take away her luxury. Just for a little while. Maybe it would give her something she truly wanted in return—love, peace, a chance to feel normal.

She’d go. And, perhaps, in those six days, she’d finally find something real.

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