My name is Via. I am 19 years old and......it's all fake. My personality is not really my personality but rather what others want to see. They want to see me happy, so I put on a fake smile. Nobody really knows the real me, but I almost escaped when I was talking to....him. His smile made me smile a real smile that I didn't have to fake for someone else's pleasure. He's kind, generous, and knows how to make me laugh and I feel that I can really truly be me....and yet I still hide from him. I lie that I'm fine when they ask me. I lie and text I'm ok when they text me. I lie saying I'm good when my heart hurts. I don't want to lie to him but I've been so used to it. My past is dark. My father was a drunk and was abusive and my mom would sometimes look for a fight. One day when my father came home, I could smell the beer when he walked in. He slammed the door shut behind him and cursed under his breath. I ran back to my room as they yelled. I could still hear them shouting from my tiny room. I was going to a hotel with my friends for a vacation away from all the paperwork for colleges. There is Lily, Jessica(Jess) Kate, and Molly. Molly was the one who suggested the idea to get away. Her twin brother Allen and his friends also came because we were like one big group and I'm very close with all of them. There is Allen, Jack, Carson, Zac, and...him. Kadin. We took separate cars all the way to the hotel. I rode with the girls but when we stopped at a gas station, I switched with Jack so he could ride with Lily. They have been dating for years and have been so happy, but Carson, who is one of my best guy friends, said that he heard that they were fighting recently. I sat in the middle row of seats on the right window of Allen's white 2020 Toyota Highlander. I looked outside at the meadow that we were passing. Ugh..... Even though I have to put up an act, I really enjoy hanging out with my friends. They may not know the real me, but they do know that they mean a lot to me. My eyes start to droop and everything is blurred. Shouting. All there was, was shouting. Shouting echoed through the house. No matter where I tried to go, I could still hear the shouting. They didn't even try to hide it from me. I sit on the dirty floor of my room. Curled up in a ball, covering my ears, but I could still hear them. Mostly my father, who just came home from a bar. "YOUR WORTHLESS!!!" "WELL AT LEAST I'M NOT A F*CKING DRUNK *SS LIKE YOU!!!!" "SHUT THE HELL UP WOMAN!! ALL WOMEN ARE GOOD FOR IS TO CLEAN THE HOUSE WHILE THE MEN WORK THEIR *SS OFF WORKING!!!" "WORKING!?!? WORKING!?!? ALL YOU DO IS GET DRUNK" "SHUT THE HELL UP!!!!" I could hear him slap her, and the sound of her falling down onto the floor like thunder clapping throughout the house. I huff as I bolt up. I can feel someone holding my hand and trying to see what was wrong, but everything was blurry still. I then realized that Allen pulled over and everyone was staring at me. My right hand was clenching on the seat belt. My vision came back and I could see all the boys looking at me. I still had trouble grasping air and was panting. Allen called Molly and told her it might take a while for them to reach the next checkpoint. "Via, are you ok?" Carson asked worriedly. "y..yeah..i'm fine" I said, still breathing deeply. "are you sure?" Zac asked, not convinced. "...yeah, I'm fine guys," I said as I tried to calm down. "what happened?" Kadin asked in his soft, calm voice as he stared into my eyes. Of course since I've been lying to them all I had to be the same person they see. A strong but quiet person who is always happy and loves spending time with them. Instead of being the broken person who is scared at night because she can still see her past and the darkness. "it was just a bad headache," I said, sitting up straight. Carson, who was the person who had their hand on mine, moved his hand onto his lap awkwardly as he realized he still had his hand on mine. Kadin still looks at me worriedly as Allen starts to drive again. I look back at his dark brown eyes and push a fake smile on. It was really hard and I could tell Kadin didn't believe it, but he gave a forced smile too and looked back out of the window just like I did.