The Ugly Truth

Prologue

July 7, 2014. 11:24pm

Just breathe. 

That was all Mia could do.

Breathe. As she lay sprawled in her bed, her body feeling heavy and the suffocating Boston humidity surrounding her, the only thing that she could do was breathe and try to regain her composure. 

She wanted to think happy thoughts, but every time she tried, any positive images were invaded by a sinister onslaught of more menacing memories that made her heart thump painfully against her chest. 

So instead, she focused on her breathing. Suddenly, a dull thump coming from near her dorm room door startled her, inciting a frightened gasp from her and more painful heart thumping.

Could it be them? This can't be happening. 

Frightened but resolute, Mia sprung up from her bed, walked across her small room and carefully opened the door. There was nobody in the hallway, but she could hear two excited female voices increasing in volume as they approached her position.

She shut her door quickly, but as quietly as she could. She leaned against it and closed her eyes.

How did I get myself into this mess?

More painful heart thumping.

I'm trapped.

Suddenly, an idea popped in to her mind. Frantic, she rushed to her desk, which had a small printer and her laptop, two gifts from her mother to celebrate Mia getting into her first-choice college. She quickly typed in her password, and was greeted by a smiling picture of her and Lucy, her best friend.

 She found the files she was looking for, and instinctively looked around as her anxiety reached boiling point. Every noise, no matter how small, could signal danger. She hesitated.

Is this a good idea? 

She looked around again and paused for a moment.

I don't have any other options. 

She clicked 'print'.

Thirty minutes later, she had 8 thick stacks of paper on her desk. She was starting to feel a little better, if that was even possible. Methodically, she placed each stack into large brown envelopes, taking care to seal each of them tightly. Just as she was sealing the final envelope, she heard loud knocking on her door. 

She froze, petrified. The person knocked again, but didn't say anything. Mia's eyes darted around the room, keeping her breathing as silent as possible and hoping that whoever was at the door would walk away. She suddenly felt her back pocket vibrate.

Someone had just texted her. She slid the phone from her pocket and looked at the message. Her brow furrowed in surprise and relief as she saw who it was from. 

Are you in your room? The text read. I'm the one knocking on your door. Mia's shoulders relaxed as she threw her phone onto her bed and walked towards the door.

Maybe things aren't so bad after all, she thought.

I'm just being paranoid.

She took a glance at the large envelopes on her table, and instinctively dashed back to them, deciding to slide them into her underwear drawer. 

Her visitor knocked again. She rushed back to the door, feeling reassured. Mia swung open the door, and smiled at her visitor. "I wasn't expecting to see you tonight" she quipped.

Her visitor didn't smile back.

*********

Let me know what you think, everyone! Send me a message or comment below if you have any THEORIES/thoughts/opinions/questions :)

Don't forget to vote if you liked this chapter!