Please Leave a Message After the Tone **Under Maintenance**

His glazed, snow-capped eyes matched the gentle snow falling outside the car window. She was the only one in his sights-- pristine and perfect against the shade of her sadness. This was the purest he had ever seen her. He had never been comfortable with her mask.

A breath of misty air escaped her lips and she shivered. "Happiness isn't as easy as you make it sound," she breathed. "There are things I need before I can call myself content."

"What sort of things?" he asked, unaware of anything else but her lips.

"I want to have power over something in my life. I want to feel like I have control over what happens to me, even if I lie to myself."

"Is that what you want most out of life?"

She shook her head as an affirmative no.

"Then what is?"

A hesitance broke the steady stream of conversation and she simply stared at the passing cars. It was calming to see something consistent-- something that whisked past and didn't carry her with it.

"I want," she paused and let her glassy eyes meet his own, "consent."

**WARNING! This book contains many serious topics such as child molestation and addiction. Read at your own risk. **

Beautiful cover by wutthefack