Hiding Behind A Mask | ✔

C H A P T E R E L E V E N

"I like how confident you were today, Annie. The way you glared at her and moved out of the way before she could do anything to you," Chance says as we both sit on a bench at the back of his house with the sun shining down on us. The sun is really hot, but the little breeze that is blowing helps me to feel a bit cool.

Really? Thanks, I text him and look to my left to find him already looking at me.

He looks at the message, then he looks back to me. "You know what the next step is, right?" he asks, and I nod, remembering the two ways he told me on how to stand up to Sandra.

I look away from him and stare at the trees as the branches and leaves move in the way the breeze is blowing, and I close my eyes as I picture myself without my mask in public.

Memories of me being happy with everything and everyone, flood my mind. I think back to the amazing moments me and my mom had before I started wearing this mask. How we would go to the beach and eat ice-cream, the singing contests we would have with each other almost every Friday night, and how we would look at each other and smile for no reason, but just knowing how happy we are.

My heart aches in my chest as my eyes start to well up. I miss having those kinds of moments with my mom, and I'm sure she misses them, too.

I open my eyes and a small smile forms on my face as I turn to face Chance, who sits next to me silently as I have my moment of thoughts.

I'm ready, I text him, and he looks at the message, then back at me.

His eyes widen not believing what I just texted him. "You know you don't have to do it... I mean, if you want to, you can... I'm not forcing you to go along with it..." Chance rambles, and I can hear in his voice that he really doesn't want me to do it if I don't want to.

I take a deep breath as I text him the next message, I want you to count to three and take off the mask, okay?

A small frown lines his lips as he looks at the text. He then looks up at me and nods his head, fixing himself on the bench to face me, getting ready to do what I said.

I close my eyes as his hands hold the mask on either side of my face. I listen as he counts to three very slowly, probably giving me my last bits of moments behind this mask. But, to be honest, I want him to get over with it quickly.

"One..."

"Two..."

"Three..."

When he says three, I hear as he lets out a breath and slowly pulls the mask off my face.

I keep my eyes closed, not wanting to open them to see the expression Chance may have on his face. I'm afraid to see the look of disgust on his face as he stares at me like everyone else would. But I have to open my eyes and face reality.

I open my eyes to find him looking at me deeply, almost as if I'm an animal he's never seen before, and so he's observing me.

"Woah..." Chance says, his expression turning from observing to surprise.

"I know, I know, I look horrible... with my dark circled eyes and-" I say only to get cut off by him.

"No, no... It's not that," he says, grinning, causing me to look at him in confusion like, what other possible reason he would say 'Woah' for?

"Then, what is it?" I ask.

"Well," Chance starts. "One, because I can't believe I actually took your mask off. Two, because you just spoke to me. And last but not least, three, you're not horrible, but amazing."