It started out a normal day, but then again.. They all do, don't they?

Walking home from the bus stop, books in hand, Jason ran up from behind her and squeezed her waist. Causing the brunette to jump slightly, she turned her head, sighing in relief and smiling when she noticed it was him. "Jason! Don't scare me like that" She spoke, slightly mad, but in a playful tone. Smacking his arm, he laughed. "Easy, easy! I'm fragile," he joked. "As if," she rebuttaled, rolling her eyes. Turning back on her heels, she shook her head and continued to walk in the direction of home.

"Wait up, wait up!" The taller boy called after her. She smiled and stopped in her tracks. "What Jason? I have to get home.. you know how my dad gets." He shrugged and put his hands in his pockets "I know, I know.. but can I at least walk you home?" He asked, reaching for her books "Here, I'll even carry these for ya'." She smirked. "Well thank you, I guess it would be fun to have company on my walk." She retorted before fixing the strap on her bag and beginning her stroll again.

Side by side they walked in silence for a brief second. Feeling the awkwardness, Santana bit her lower lip and crossed her arms, looking down at her feet as they crossed one another, again and again.

"So, umm.. How's Cheerleading? I haven't seen you around the field anymore with the other girls.. everything okay?" He asked, looking down at the girl, waiting for a response.

She could only shrug.

"I just haven't been feeling too good lately, plus my grades are slipping.. If I don't pull them up, I'll be kicked off the team anyway," she answered.

She didn't necessarily lie to the boy, but she wasn't telling him the whole truth either. Yes, her grades were going down, she guessed it's what she gets for taking all AP and honors classes. However; She knew the coach couldn't kick her off the team just because of a C average. The real reason behind it was something she was afraid to admit. When things get rough at home, she tended to keep to herself.. and she couldn't really show up in shorts and a tank top, if people were going to ask questions about the bruises she had.

Snapping back into reality, she looked up at Jason. She didn't understand, he had a look as if he was waiting for another answer.

"I'm sorry.. W-What?" She questioned, wondering if she'd missed something.

He smiled and shook his head "What's going on in that brain of yours? I swear you're getting lost in your imagination, more and more everyday.. But yeah! What I asked was if you were going to be at the game this Saturday?"

Looking forward, she realized she was nearing her house, so she quickly slowed her walking pace. "Umm.. Not sure," she said, coming to a stop altogether. Looking up she spoke once more "I'll have to ask my dad," she shrugged.

"Alright," he nodded. Looking up he peered across the street before reconnecting eyes with the shorter girl. "Well I better get going" He smiled, handing the girl her books back. "Here you go," he exclaimed. Leaning down he wrapped his arms around her, not noticing the wince she had as he did so. Hugging her tightly, he kissed her forehead playfully before releasing his hold.

She played it off with an 'You're such a weirdo' smile, but to be honest, she wasn't expecting to react the way she did. "Alright.. See you tomorrow?" She winked.

"See you then," he returned, smugly, before saluting and jogging away.

She smiled contently for a second before turning back around and heading the rest of the way home. No matter what happened, she knew Jason was there for her. Even if he was clueless and a dork, he was her best friend, and she needed him more than ever now-whether she knew it or not.

Finally out of the shower.

She reached for her towel. drying her face first. Sighing into the cloth as she thought of how much water she just wasted. "How was that even possible?" She thought. Shrugging it off, she knew under the warmth of the water is where she thought her most. About school, life, people, sports, everything. She felt safe in the shower, open minded, in a way.. Free.

Feeling a light breeze, she shivered, snapping out of her thought process.

Bending over, she slowly ran the towel over her leg, eyeing each and every mark she had. Distracting herself, she looked at the tiles instead.

When she finished drying she opened the bathroom door, which conveniently went directly into her bedroom. This was something she was always thankful for, due to the fact that she didn't always remember to bring clothes with her when she showered.

Passing the walkway that connects both doors, she passed the mirror on the way to her closet. Normally she passed it, got her clothes, and got dressed.. but not today. She paused. Looking at a person she didn't recognize, for the first time.

It couldn't have been her. She was strong, independent, and didn't take anything from anyone.. but that's not the girl she saw when she looked in the mirror. No. It wasn't even close to being that girl.

The girl she saw was weak, damaged, broken.. She saw a girl, full of fear and rage. So many emotions behind those dark eyes, too many to even begin to understand. She saw a girl who had been tricked, manipulated, and hurt, by someone who was supposed to love her.

She didn't know this girl at all, but she feared she would soon enough.

Stepping closer to an unknown reflection, she touched the girls marked skin, hitching her breath as she felt the small surge of pain she got from it. She couldn't believe it was her. She couldn't and she didn't want to.. but it was her, she knew it was. Looking down at her body and then back at the reflection, her eyes began to swell.

She couldn't handle it. Shutting her eyes tightly, she didn't want to reopen them, knowing that the image wasn't going away.

She pushed herself away, accidentally pushing the mirror over. It fell and shattered at her feet. Keeping her eyes closed, the tears began to cascade down her face as she stepped on the broken shards.

She couldn't help the next wave of pain that came over her.

Not only was it physical, but mental as well. Everything hit her. She had been living a lie, that was clear now. All the times she convinced others that she was okay, she was lying to herself. Trying to keep everything in only made the feelings grow. She tried her hardest to make everything disappear, but she knew it would all come back one day.

Today was that day.

She bit her lip, hard, almost to the point of drawing blood. She wanted to keep quiet but the pain.. The pain from her feet, the pain from the marks and bruises, the pain from the physical and mental abuse. It was a flood of feelings and she couldn't keep them from swarming to her head. Opening her eyes, she looked down at the floor. The broken pieces of glass, the newly found blood stains on her carpet, the marks on her legs.

It felt as if she had been punched in the chest. The wind knocked from her lungs as she gasped for air and fell to her knees.

If she wasn't already hurt, she was now. The glass pushed deeper into her skin as she hit the floor with a loud thud. Her silent cries, now turning into loud sobs as she took a deep breath, it was overwhelming. She couldn't help it when the screams began to fall with ease from her lips.

It began to be too much, causing a wave of coldness to overcome her body. Everything went silent. Everything went dark.