Get out of my head

I can't move… All I can see… is nothing. All I can feel… Nothing… Yet everything at once… I can feel my mistakes clawing at my back… Hungering for my attention…

Get out of my head

Get out of my head

Get out of my head

Get out of my head

I repeat this… yet they don't listen… Still they hunger… They push me… They push me to my brink… I can't take it anymore… I'm falling… deeper into insanity… I'm gone…

***

    I awake to the sound of my alarm. My head is pounding. I'm covered in sweat. In the back of my head I hear a chant.

Get out of my head

Get out of my head

I wonder what it means? Just then it dawns on me…

Shit! I have to get to school! I throw my damp blankets off of myself and leap out of bed. I trip over my assorted Shrek plushies that are scattered across my floor.

No time to shower, I'm already late.

Furiously shoving my toothbrush in my mouth, I pull on some jeans. I grab a shirt and I throw it over myself. I spit in the sink and throw myself at the door, grabbing my backpack on the way. Another stunning realisation hits me… I forgot to put on a bra!

Wait, there's no time… I can just keep my jacket on.

    My name is Valerie Shelstrop, and I'm in high school. I don't talk to many people, and as a result of that, my supply of friends is fairly limited. I hang out with a select group of people, with which I have forged a bond tighter than Flex Glue. But all friends have their secrets.

    Recently I have been suffering from panic attacks, and severe headaches. I was fairly normal until my parents died. I have no immediate family and I'm almost 18, so it was decided I would fend for myself. I work at a convenience store, and that helps me stay afloat until I get a better paying job. That, and the fortune my parents left behind. I turn the corner that takes me to school.
Cool! I made it on time. Now I got to get to class.

    While walking I pass people, but make no eye contact. Some say the eyes are the window to the soul, and I want to keep mine as secure as possible. I can't let people know what's been going on lately. When they know, they ask questions. They try to get into my head. I don't like that.

    The day goes by, monotonous as ever. None of my friends were here today. That's strange… they usually never miss a day.

No bother… I wasn't in the mood for talking today anyway. Because of my recent behavior, they have been distancing themselves. Only making contact to ask questions. I hate questions. I hate when they try to get into my head.

    I walk home, the sun turning the sky a deep mesh of purple, yellow, and orange. As I make the bend, I fall. My head strikes the ground, and my consciousness fades away.

    You did it again… The same thing you always do… The reasons your friends left…

The scratching continues… Going deeper… Deeper…

Get out of my head

Get out of my head

Get out of my head

Get out of my head

    I awake yet again. I'm in my apartment. How did I get here? I thought I passed out in the street…

We carried you back…

I look at my hands. Dried blood clings to them. My mind races… Frantic worried thoughts crossed my mind. This is not the first time this has happened. It happened after my parents died… I told no one. I knew they would think I'm crazy…

Oh but they do…

I wonder what it means… I do what I always do… I sleep… They can't hurt me while I sleep.

Oh but we will…

I dream of a dimly lit house. Wait a minute… This is my old house…

I can't move… Yet I do. I look down. I'm me. This is my body.

I'm walking forward. Down a dark hallway. A single door at the end leads to my parents’ study. Against my own will, I lean my ear against the door. I hear them both. The sounds of pens scribbling on paper… Important documents being shuffled. Knife in hand, I gently open the door…

    My head raises from my pillow. I step  into the living room, where the TV is on. Static darts across the screen. Instead of turning it off, I feel compelled to change the channel. I press a button on the remote, and the news flashes on. The headline makes me freeze.

3 teens found dead in their homes

But that's not the reason I stop. I see their faces.

My friends…

I slowly reach for my phone and call their parents.

“Hello?”

“Yes it's me, Valerie.” Not an ounce of shakiness… Perfectly calm.

“Valerie! Where are you?”

Put off by the sudden question, I fail to answer.

“Valerie!! Where. Are. You…? They're looking for you Valerie…”

I freeze yet again. “What do you mean they're looking for me?”

They know you did it… Get out while you still can…

I drop the phone and run. I throw open my front door and sprint out, not bothering to close it behind me. Dashing to the exit of the complex, I'm tackled. I'm shoved to the ground and a gruff voice says to me;

“Valerie Shelstrop, you are under arrest for a triple homicide and the murder of Victor and Susan Shelstrop. Anything you say can and will be held against you.”

My head is throbbing from the tackle yet I still manage to choke out an objection.

“W-What…? What's going on?”

I try to stand up, but I am tased. Consciousness slips from my grasp yet again.

They found you… You got sloppy…

They're back… The voices… My sins… Clawing at my back yet again…

Get out of my head

Get out of my head

Get out of my head

Get out of my head…

It's no use… I let them take me… I let myself fall… further and further off the edge…

I'm gone.