"You can't stay there all day." I glanced up at my mum who was throwing open the curtains with the wild abandon of someone who's world wasn't ending.

"Moping never did anyone any good." She flung open the window.

"Come on. ..." she reached for my duvet as if to pull it away. I wrapped my fingers tighter around the edges, pulling it closer.

She rolled her eyes and gave it a harder tug.

"Mu-uuum". I complained. My voice sounding hoarse from all the crying. It had been days since I'd spoken a word.

"A shower. That's what you need....

"the tie-breaker question for 100 points ..."

Katy worried at her cuticles. There was a lot riding on this. Too much. She took a deep breath, trying to steady her nerves.

In....2....3...out....2....3.

The host took a dramatic pause. She could hear the clock ticking loudly. She moistened her lips risking a glance at the group on the next table. How could they look so calm? Was their heart not beating in their ears.

Dawn, next to her, said something she didn't quite catch. Whatever it was, it made Lisa guffaw. A big manly laugh at odds with her petite physique....

She was the most delicate girl in town. Or at least, that's what they all thought. With her prim private school uniform, glossy ringlet curls and polite smile, she had them all fooled. Everyone except me. Noone knew her like I did though. Sharing a bedroom gives an unprecedented view into a person's inner psyche. I'm not just talking about dirty washing left on the floor and mugs growing mould, though that's gross enough. It's not even just the boys, or increasingly lately - men, she would shimmy down the drain pipe to meet. It's not even that her straight...

Leaving was the easiest decision to make, and the hardest action to take. Nobody knows until they've been in those shoes.

"If he hit me, I'd hit him back!" scoffed one colleague.

"It should never happen twice." said my mum.

I know they mean well. I hope they do, but it's not so easy, is it? I mean, I've read the stats. More women are killed after leaving their abusive partner. I suppose its something to do with regaining power or something. Isn't everything about power. Being the top dog. I didn't want to be another number. A statistic to...

I always imagined that I'd feel nothing. Instead, I feel everything. Every paper cut, every broken heart, everything. It's like a million voices echoing in my head, vying for attention. I tip my head back, letting the wind rip through my hair. It's calming. I feel the knots in my shoulders relax, the pounding behind my eyes ease. This is it. It will soon be over. The pain, the misery, this life. It is almost over. I glance down at the crashing waves. It's a long way down. Noone will ever recover it. Its time to say goodbye. Time to...

"One scoop chocolate, one scoop..."

"Let me guess, vanilla." the man behind the counter grinned at me.

Was I really so predictable? I felt the colour rise to my cheeks.

"Erm..."

"I was right. I remember." he threw his head back and laughed.

"Actually..."

"2.53 every afternoon. One scoop chocolate and one scoop vanilla. Like clockwork."

He was starting to annoy me now.

"Actually, I was going to ask..."

I stopped. I was going to ask for vanilla. Truth is I only like vanilla and chocolate ice cream. Always have. But now I had started something. Alex was right, I...

Leila blinked back tears. Focusing on the skyline and it's twinkling reflection on the water, she took a deep breath. This was such a perfect moment, she almost didn't want to spoil it. James had his arm wrapped around her, the warmth of his body comforting, the sound of his heartbeat steady. The same heart she was about to break.
"There's something I have to tell you." she said, her voice barely more than a whisper.
"Hmm?" He wrapped her hair around his fingers, kissing the top of her head.
"I -" she stopped. She couldn't do this. How could...

It approached. Lisa's heartbeat quickened, her skin growing clammy, the room swimming. Oh my god, she thought, this can't be happening.
It came further - black and menacing, eyeing up it's latest victim.
Lisa knew she should do somehting, but fear had paralysed her. She couldn't think straight.
It stopped. Staring. Staring straight at her. Probably waiting to pounce.
She scanned the room, desperately looking for something she could use as a weapon. Nothing. Nothing that would do much damage, what could she do throw a pillow at it?
Without warning, it began to move again; faster than before. Almost...

Sasha stretched as she woke, the cold early morning air stinging her skin. Looking around, it took a moment to figure out where she was. The woodland near the playing fields. She had never come out this far before. She should hurry back before anyone realised she was missing. There was no way she was going back to see Dr Williams again. He gave her the creeps. There wasn't anything wrong with her anyway. She knew her parents despaired at her stories, but they weren't just stories. Why couldn't they see that? They were every bit as real as she...

It approached. This was it. Now or never. It's funny, through all the months of planning, I never really thought about actually having to pull this thing off. It was all diagrams and plans and discussing strategies. But, here we were. D-day, as it were. Time to do it. No time for backing out now.

I swallowed hard, unable to shift the lump in my throat. Could I really do this? It all seemed so big. The stuff of Hollywood movies. It didn't really work out in real life. What did I think was going to happen? We would drive...