White

“Please,” she yelled, “Stop. I’m sorry.” Anna was pleading in front of her mother. But no matter how many tears she shed, her mother gave no mercy. Her mother screamed, “I tried. But every time I look at you, you remind me of your father.” Anna had nothing, no one, and nowhere to go. Her mother was everything to her. So even though she was screaming and crying, all she was thinking about was, “Where am I going?” And her mother’s next word had answered that question. 

Her mother said coldly, “Get out. I signed all the documents; so, all you have to do is state your name correctly.” An orphanage. She was going to an orphanage because she was being abandoned. Why? Just because her parents had left each other, and she reminded her mother of her ex-husband? Yes, but Anna knew better. She knew the real reason behind it.

Anna shivered as the cold hit her face when she swung the door open. When you think of an orphanage, you would think of children screaming and playing, older kids fighting, and the adults yelling how stressful the job was. But no, it was the exact opposite. Anna couldn’t exaggerate enough how cold, tense, and silent the orphanage was. As soon as the front desk woman spoke, Anna went white. It spooked her more when the woman was perfectly normal. She was wearing a pink and white polka-dot dress with full make-up. In addition, she was shockingly beautiful. The woman spoke very smoothly, “Oh, my poor dear. Don’t worry about anything. You will love it here.” Shortly after, Anna found herself in her new room. And for some odd reason, she felt comfortable. Anna’s room was for three people. Thanks to their belongings, she learned that one of the girls’ names was Anna. “What a coincidence,” she thought. She asked the woman what the other girl’s name was when she couldn’t find the name of the last girl. And the woman answered very strangely, “She does not have a name. Be careful, Anna.” Anna. She said her name. But as long as she remembered, Anna had never told her name her. 

Everything was white, everyone was wearing white, and there were no men. Some wore white scarves, some wore white clothing, and some had white shoes. Anna knew the difference between people staring at her and people glaring at her. But their stares felt strangely vague. The looks these girls gave made Anna feel as if she was an alien. And among those girls, she found one that was staring among the mountains very quietly. She had the aura that made her like one of those girls in her class that no matter how hard you try you just couldn’t get to know, not because you don’t want to but because you couldn’t. Without her realizing, she was slowly walking towards her, but the woman stopped her. “Anna,” she sighed, “That is the girl I have warned you about. Please, come this way. ” And as much as she wanted to listen to the woman, Anna stood straight up and walked towards the girl sitting by the window. 

The girl had looked up to Anna with a curious look. That’s when whispers started; but, Anna didn’t care. “Hey, I’m Anna. What’s your name?” The girl kept on staring at Anna until a girl came along and said, “We do not speak of her name. We call her the silent girl because she cannot speak.” 

Days passed on, and soon she was given white and gold shoes and clothes with white sequences. The time felt like it had stopped in this place, and Anna seemed to act out of the ordinary. She was allergic to nuts, but when lunch was served with Peanut Butter, she ate it so fine without having an allergic reaction. Anna became quiet as the others; and, she started putting on red lipstick. Something was bothering her; but she couldn’t quite act, think, or say something straight. 

A picture of Anna’s mom and her slipped through her pocket. That’s when it hit her. This was an orphanage, not Beverly Hills. So why are all of these girls wearing elegant outfits that are from luxurious brands? And right then, Anna gasped with a thought she had. “This place is weird,” she thought, “I never came here before, but why does this place feel so familiar?” She felt oddly curious as to why she wasn’t thinking of her mother and the thought that she was parentless. And just then, the silent girl spoke, “Anna, trust no one. Everyone is a lie and everything is a lie, so be careful.” And as heartless the girl spoke, Anna had chills running down her throat. Didn’t their roommate, Anna, say she couldn’t speak? And what did the silent girl mean when she said everyone is a lie? How can someone be a lie? 

The next morning, Anna was bothered with so many thoughts, she didn’t hear the silent girl talking to her. “I can speak. But no one knows I can because I don’t. But my name is Xenia and I think I need your help.” 

Anna was taken back. She needed to do a quick thought process, “First, a girl who cannot talk can talk. Then, she says that I can’t trust anyone. But, how could I trust her? And now, she’s saying her name is Xenia. Xenia, like a 90’s royal name and she needs my help!?” This was a little too much to take in; Anna couldn’t get over the thought that Xenia looked different. She was wearing white too, but she looked somewhat different from others. Xenia continued, “Anna, this place, it’s haunted. The girls here are addicted to blood spilling over white and so they kill others for fun. So, try not to get attention, or it may be your life. But Anna, I need to get out of here. My family thinks I’m dead; but, I’m still right here. Anna, please help me.” 

Anna wanted to help; but, she felt this twitch. It was like her blood was boiling. She was hungry. No, she was starving. She was craving something; but, she didn’t know what it was. And just then she spotted a pencil. The next thing she knew, she was holding a bloody pencil and was staring at a dead body. “I …. I …. No. No. No. No. What happened. Why … am I… Why am I in blood? What. Why… No, there’s no way I … I …. I killed her. I … killed... Why? Why did I?” It couldn’t be a better timing when the front desk woman came and sighed. “It’s okay honey. Calm down. She needed to be executed anyway. Come out, you have a visitor.” A visitor? She knew no one. Who would come to visit her? She couldn’t go out like this. Not covered in blood. She had committed a murder. She killed someone in daylight, but Anna couldn’t seem to be bothered.

A familiar voice kept shouting her name. “Hey, I’m her mother. I can take my daughter whenever I want to. Anna! Anna! Come now! This place, it’s weird. Honey, where are you?” And as soon as Anna’s mother faced her daughter, she went white.