happiness begins [joe jonas]

19

The rest of the week came and went. There had been many more articles, discussing all of the possible theories on who this 'mystery girl' could be. But so far, no one had figured. Emmie was relieved, knowing that although she was the topic of many people's conversations, they actually had no idea who she was. She was able to go about her days, not having to worry as much. She finally felt slightly more at ease.

It was Friday afternoon, and the orders at the cafe had finally slowed down once more. After the busy lunchtime rush, Emmie was excited to eventually head home and relax over the weekend. After the stir of rumours, she craved the comfort of the silence in her own bedroom.

The three friends were busy closing up. The blinds had been pulled down, the pastries and cakes locked away for the night. The lights were dimmed, before completely leaving the building.

Emmie began to collect up her belongings, packing everything away into her bag. She smiled to herself as she began to plan her quiet weekend in her head. Once she had finished her final tasks, she waved goodbye to Bobby and Faye, leaving the cafe and stepping outside.

The sky was clouded, the sun no longer shining. But she didn't mind. Although the appearance of the warmer weather had recently brightened her mood, today it didn't matter that it was cold. Emmie was just excited to get home. But as she continued to walk down the street, she felt an unsettling feeling in her stomach.

And that's when she noticed. The huge crowd of photographers with brightly flashing cameras heading straight for her. Emmie was so stunned that she didn't get the time to process anything, before they were quickly surrounding her. Her hands flew up to her face, trying to dodge the cameras and the bright lights.

Everyone began talking at once, trying to get a reaction out of her. And it was working, but it wasn't the reaction they were hoping for. Instead, she began to panic. Her eyes glanced around the many people surrounding her, as she tried to push her way through the crowd. She felt dizzy. Her breathing became short, realising there was no escape. Whenever she moved, the people moved with her. Emmie could feel herself getting hotter every moment.

"It's Joe's mystery girl!" Someone yelled, followed by cheers from the surrounding people.

"Emilia?" Another voice called, a tall man pushing forward, in attempt to get a reply.

Emmie tried to speak, but no words came out. She didn't know how they found out who she was, but that was the least of her worries. Her palms were sweaty as she grasped onto her bag for a sense of comfort. Having so many people in her personal space, made her extremely uncomfortable.

The voices continued to shout, people shoving her from every angle. Emmie had no idea how to escape the situation. She wanted to curl up into a ball on the floor and disappear. But she knew that wasn't an option. She ignored the commotion around her, trying to find a way out out the crowd. But then, one singular sentence caught her attention.

"How has it been? After loosing your best friend?"

In that moment, her eyes widened. Shock completely took over her body. Emmie could hear the voices around her, but she blocked them out. It was like everything went in slow motion. Tears stung in her eyes, as she stood there, letting everyone continue to shout over her. It was all too much.

"Please stop." She whispered, feeling the warmth of the stray tears rolling down her cheeks. She brought her hands up to her head, hiding herself away from the public. She let out a heavy breath, trying to calm herself down.

And then a hand grabbed her arm, pulling her out of the crowd.

She could hear voices raised, but continued to drown them out. She felt herself being led back down the street, still in a daze.