8th Grade Short Story

Fake Face

by Alexa F

“Which one should I wear today?” Carly asked herself as she dreadfully opened the closet door. It was her first day of work, so she had to put on a good expression. The thing about a smile is that it's not too hard to fake it. All you have to do is turn the corners of your face upward and flash a simple set of teeth. Even if you're hurting inside, that doesn’t matter. All you have to do is sew your lips to your gums so you never quiet your simper.

Carly grabbed the happiest looking face she could find and pressed it on. It was the last one she had, since she had broken all the others. She splashed cold water on her face and looked up at herself in the mirror. Today was the day that she would make her smile someone else's smile. But If only smiles could spread as easily as a frown could.

The cold mid-day Autumn breeze caused the leaves to swirl around as Carly walked to the bus stop. Her mouth was glued on wide open and filled with glee. Everywhere she looked she saw agitated, angry faces staring back at her. Just then someone bumps right into her at the blink of an eye. It was subtle, but definitely on purpose. They locked eyes and he grunted in response. He furiously walked away and didn’t even bother to apologize. Carly’s smile faltered a little, but she kept on going. It isn't their fault that they are having a bad day or maybe life? Besides, so was she, she just refused to let it show. As Carly got on the bus, she noticed it was filled with more unhappy strangers. She kept her expression joyful, and tried to start a conversation but no one seemed to take notice.

Carly arrived at the coffee shop, apron in hand. Her platinum blonde hair was tightly wrapped in a bun, but her smile was even tighter. She clocked in and began to work at the register. As she began she made sure to emphasize her smile. A happy, big, long, loud SMILE! And, she made sure to lace her voice with joyfulness and politeness.

With every smile she gave she got a glance of disapproval. They knew what she was trying to do, and they didn’t like one bit. With every customer she attended, she searched their face anxiously, but none even hinted at the feeling of happiness. They were either just in a rush, emotionally drained or unreadable. At this point her mouth was stretched out all the way to her ears and her flushed cheeks were shaking. Her teeth were clenched and her face was completely frozen. Her veins were a twisted barb wire fence piercing through her pale skin and her breathing was becoming unsteady. She was aching! Not only physically but mentally. But, she had to maintain the act. She couldn't be selfish! Come on, don't you know? You never under any fate to let your true feelings show! After a while her eyes grew desperate and the screaming inside her became louder.

“Why wouldn't anyone just smile? Why couldn't anyone just SMILE!”

There was a little version of Carly--yelling. She was locked up in her ribcage and Carly threw away the key. She was really loud but she had a little luck, because every time she tried to talk, Carly told her to shut up.

Just when all hope was lost, Carly noticed a young woman that looked around the same age as her. Her hair was a mess and she had bags under her eyes, but that didn’t matter. She stood out because she wore a smile and she wore it proud. Carly's eyes began to brighten up and her cheek muscles felt less strained. They each got lost into each other's eyes for a split second and shared something Carly couldn't seem to remember the name of. Carly furrowed her brows in confusion. This feeling she was having was real and felt…. nice? But that second was brief. Very brief. This woman’s beautiful, charming, gorgeous, delightful, smile--blocked, by the customer in front. And his face was filled with something quite familiar. Pain--but mostly fury.

And just like that, Carly cracked.

Her smile began to tremble and pools of water began to flow out of her ocean eyes. And that's when her face completely shattered. Every piece of her happy, big, long, loud smile was on the floor-- in fragments. She had pretended enough. In tears, she quickly picked up the remains and ran out.

The rain was falling in crazy chaotic drops, and the wind began howling as the water droplets began growing larger. Though it was almost dark, the streetlights didn't even bother to turn on. Carly's mind was so drenched in chaos that not even windshield wipers could sweep it clean. She was so stuck in her head that she didn't even notice she collided into a young man walking to the bus stop. For a few seconds they made eye contact, despite the murky weather. The young man’s smile slowly began to fade, but Carly didn't care. She just turned back around, and kept on swiftly walking. Why should she be concerned about a stranger's happiness when she didn’t even have her own. Why bother trying to spread happiness when you don’t even remember what it feels like.

When Carly got home she threw every remaining piece of her in the trash and looked at herself in the mirror once again. She couldn't recognize herself any more. All she saw was a stranger looking back without a sense of direction and lacking self worth. She got in bed and pulled the blankets to cover her full body--just like how a coffin or body bag would. She hugged herself so tightly that she was wearing a straitjacket. So tight that she couldn't move. It's holding her together, but when the time comes, she'll die in a padded room.

“Which one should I wear today?” Carly asked herself as she dreadfully opened the closet door. It was her first day of work, so she had to put on a good expression. The thing about a smile is that it's not too hard to fake it. All you have to do is turn the corners of your face upward and flash a simple set of teeth. It doesn’t even matter if that means your face is breaking…