The Silence of Ana and Mia (Book 3)

Chapter 2: Meet Brenna

It wasn't about being skinny, it never had been. Well, it had a little to do with being skinny but it more had to do with routine. Wake up, get dressed, skip meal, go to school. It was just an everyday part of life now, almost like smiling when you see an aunt or uncle that you hated. Since starting my new regimen I had started to drop some weight, not like my parents noticed though. They never did. When you're not the oldest but you're also not the youngest, you get placed in the ugly middle. Except my ugly middle sandwich consisted of an older brother in the military who was absolutely adored and a younger sister who was a prodigy. My 7-year-old sister played Beethoven in her sleep and my 23-year-old brother fought to save our country. To say that I'm was a bitter disappointment is an understatement. I was exactly opposite of what my parents expected of me. Poor, boring, dark-skinned Brenna. I was told many times by my brother that I had been adopted, being the darkest in the family. I was a disappointment to my family and for a couple of years I had tried. It always ended with them saying "Brenna do this. Brenna stop doing that. Brenna why can't you be like Jessiah. Brenna when are you going to start trying like Kylie." I was tired of being the same disappointment that my parents expected so I started shrugging off what they said. They didn't matter anymore

"Brenna! Have you seen my dress?! I need it for the performance tonight!" My little sister Kylie walked into my room and started searching through my closet.

"Um no. Don't touch my stuff. Get out of my room. I don't know where your stupid dress is."

"You probably threw it away. You're so jealous and grumpy."

"No one invited you in my room. See yourself out."

"If I find out you hide my dress, you're going to be in big trouble."

I flipped her off as she rolled her eyes and walked out of the room. I had hide her dress in my dirty pile of clothes. My parents had wasted so much money to impress a bunch of nobodies just so Kylie's little head could grow bigger. Maybe I was mean for hiding the dress but I didn't care. My mom would be so quick to buy her another dress on their way there. They were so quick to make sure she got out there and exposed. It was always about Kylie or Jessiah. I guess I was jealous, but I guess I also didn't care. As soon as I turned 18 I would be out of this house and not give a damn.

I unlocked my phone and scrolled through my Instagram feed. It was mostly just models that I followed. That was my plan after graduation. I was 5'8 so I was minimum height for a modeling career. Once I got out of this house, I would make a name for myself. I would be rich and I would pretend that I didn't even know them. That was the least they deserved. I should shun them for life, considering they always made me feel like I wasn't worth it.

[Hey. Need your advice, ANA is hard.]

I smiled as I thought of how weak Tara was. She always begged me for advice when it came to extreme dieting. That girl couldn't say no to a cheeseburger even it was covered in shit.

[You don't need my advice. You need to stop being a fatass.]

Okay yes, I was a mean person but it was with good intentions. I had started my model project and was determined to get to 120 pounds. When I started dropping weight, people started noticing and they wanted my advice. I created a little group of followers that kept me accountable for my strict diet. I was the leader and the way I kept them in line was by mocking them. They knew what this was when they asked for my advice. I was not known for being a nice person and no one expected me to be. I was their Ana coach. I was what they were proud of.

[Fatass... haha who the fuck is talking about being a fatass. You want me to tell your girls that you binged out on chocolate cake on Wednesday?]

[Fuck you.] I smiled because even though Tara was weak as hell she was my best friend. She wanted to be like me and I needed her in the group to keep me accountable. She was the only person in the whole world that I trusted with my life. She knew how life was like for me but she didn't pity me. She was a foster child. She had finally found a family that kept her for more than 2 years and since she came she's been my best friend. She was smart, pretty, and a total bitch. She was perfect.