Alice in Wonderland

Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Everything seems so different, like everything I thought I knew turned out to be the opposite of the truth. Even the sky looks brighter and wider, a lighter blue than what I saw through the trees outside my bedroom window.

My stomach feels nervous from the fast speed of the car and the constant swerving. I grip the handle on the door as tightly as I can, trying to calm my nerves as the woman continues driving.

I want to get out, I never imagined a car would feel so scary and I'm scared that my breakfast might come up. Every time I look out the window and see another car, I want to scream because I fear we'll crash. This is what Mom and Dad were protecting me from.

The houses on both sides of the street are huge, but I've never seen one besides ours. I want to ask where we're going, but I'm sure she's already told me and when I try, no words leave my mouth. I overheard some of the doctors at the hospital say I have extreme anxiety, but Mom always told me to never listen to anything unless it came from her or Dad.

The car stops and my heart does the opposite, beating faster and faster like a drum picking up speed. The lady unbuckles her seat belt and turns to peer at me through the front seats, where I refused to sit after an hour of screaming that I didn't want to go.

"We're here," she smiles kindly, waiting for me to move, but realizing that I'm not going to.

She gets out of the car and I'm both scared and happy that she might be leaving me on my own. I watch her walk around the car to my door and open it, watching me stare at my lap.

"Com'on, Lilly. They're very nice people," she promises, still smiling at me like I'm a lost puppy she's trying to save.

After a few minutes of silence, she sighs sadly and moves around to the trunk to get my suitcase that someone had packed for me. I never expected the world to be so scary and big, no wonder Mom and Dad never wanted me to leave.

"Only Mrs. Sharpe is home and I'll stay until you get settled."

I know that I have no say in going inside the house. For the past two weeks, I've had no say in anything and I regret ever wanting this freedom. I'd do anything to get my old life back.

With shaky hands I unbuckle my seatbelt and hastily glance at the large house behind her. It looks like a mansion, but it appears that nothing is what I thought it would be in the outside world.

I gently place my naked foot on the driveway, feeling my heart race from the unfamiliar touch. The last time my feet touched the ground outside my house, my father-

"Take your time, Lily. Remember, nothing is going to hurt you," the lady attempts to reassure me, but I know she's lying. Everything and everyone wants to hurt me. That's why Mom and Dad never let me leave.

I hesitantly stand on two feet, wincing from the sun that I've never seen so openly. My eyes burn and everything goes black for a moment until my body adjusts to the unfamiliar environment.

"You and Mrs. Sharpe will be alone for the day," the woman explains as she takes small steps beside me as I dart my eyes around my surroundings. "Maybe you can talk to her about how you're feeling."

They think it's so easy. These strangers come into our home and take my parents away, even though they did nothing wrong. They force me to leave my home and pass me along from doctors to nurses to therapists and plenty of others I can hardly remember. Then they expect me to just openly explain how I'm feeling, as if being in this situation isn't hard enough. I don't even know what I'm feeling.