Page 30 of The Favorite Girl

“I’m done. I don’t care if they signed up. I don’t give a fuck; I’m out of here.” I smashed my hands against the door, screaming at it to open.

My heart pounded against my chest so hard, I swore it would burst through my flesh at any moment. The door wouldn’t open… there wasn’t a door handle, there wasn’t a key, there was no way out.

I’m trapped.

“Bradley, please, I cannot breathe. I can’t breathe.” I clutched my palms around my neck, choking on every ounce of air around me.

Cold hands turned me around as I pressed my back against the door, hyperventilating. My vision was hazy as my anxiety gagged me.

“I’m going to count to three, and then you’re going to take a deep breath and pull yourself together… Because if you don’t, Demi, then they won’t let you have the option of taking even one more breath,” Bradley said through clenched teeth.

I began to cry, not in a sad, heartbreaking way, but in a defeated, exhausted way. The kind of cry that only comes out of your body when you know all your options have been depleted.

I tried to inhale through my nose but instead, I opened my mouth and swallowed air as I sobbed against Bradley.

“This is not okay… this is not okay,” I cried out.

“Listen, you’re going to be alright, Demi. It’ll all be alright. You just have to play by their rules. You have to become the favorite girl and when you do… you’ll get to leave.”

“They killed Misha. That girl wasn’t her. Wasn’t Misha the favorite girl?” I sniffled, not caring that I had soaked his expensive suit with my snot and tears.

“She wasn’t the favorite girl. They’ve been waiting for you. Now, you just have to pretend to be a part of this family. Do as they say and don’t fall to pieces.”

“Waiting for me? What about you? Why are you here? How long have you been here?”

“I’ve been here for thirteen years. I’m a felon who fell into the same trap you did. A simple, yet glamorous, promise of a safe place to live and a steady job. They know I’m loyal enough and won’t leave. They… they have something on me—something they know I’ll never leave behind.”

“Shit. This is… horrible, and I don’t even know how I’m supposed to do this, Bradley. I’m scared. Really, really scared.” My body shook as I forced myself off a man I had just met.

“Fear is a simple reaction, but strength is a decision. Make the decision that can save your life.” Bradley shook me as if he were hopeful I would break out of this state of panic.

“Bradley…” My chest tightened as I tried to calm down.

“Tell me something you’ve always dreamt of.” I knew he was trying to divert my attention.

“When I was little… I wanted Nikes. So, I took a pair of raggedly sneakers with holes and with a Sharpie, I drew the signature check mark on them.” I shrugged.

A long pause of silence fell between us. “That’s really sad.” Bradley’s forehead creased as he looked at me with pity. “By the way, I found this in the trash. I think it was with your things.” He tugged out the crumpled Biltmore Estate brochure and my lips parted.

Taking it from him, I shook my head. “I don’t need it anymore. I guess I’m in the closest thing I’ll ever get to being there.” I tossed it into the trash bag.

He cleared his throat. “You should always have some kind of dream, Demi.”

“No, girls like me… we don’t dream. Dreams are meant for people who can make them come true. Nightmares, on the other hand… those are guaranteed.”

Blinking rapidly, he shook his head. “Shut the curtains, wipe down his desk and the shelves, and dust his wall.”

“What is that wall made of…? I’ve never seen something like it. It’s so bumpy and?—”

“You don’t need to know. But most of all, you don’t want to know, Demi.” Bradley pointed his finger in my face. “Just clean it,” he gritted through clenched teeth and shoved the duster from the cart in my face.

At this point, my fear was evolving into anger. Anger that I was born with bad luck, anger that I never had a chance to live, anger that every single person in my life, besides one person, hurt me.

Lifting the duster in my hand, I rammed it against Bradley’s perfectly coiffed hair. His lips parted in shock as his eyes widened. “What the hell was that?”

“Get out of my way, Bradley. I have to dust.” I shoved him with all my might and walked around him.

Looking ahead through the glass window, the woman on the bed was still laying there. I was going to get her out. I was going to save her and myself. I had escaped before; I had survived.

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