Madison Miller- Short Story Proposal.

Exposition: Hailey, about 17, wakes up in a barn, with her head so clouded that she can't remember a thing. She doesn't know where she is, what time it is, or how long she has been there. She is about 5'6, jet-black hair with a pale complexion. She is laying in a pile of hay, in jeans and a gray t-shirt. There is blood on her shirt, which she assumes is from the large gash on her arm.

Inciting Incident: She stumbles around, and when she looks up she sees a barn owl staring back at her with huge, glassy eyes. She freezes. The eyes, the eyes remind her, they make her feel, they cause her to remember other eyes. The trusting ones, the scared ones, the eyes of her friend, Rachel's, killer. She remembers those eyes too well. She wants to find them, to ask why, to bring her best friend back.

Rising Action: She walks toward city lights blindly, and into a coffee shop. She sits in a booth, and the waitress comes over to take her order. Hailey looks up, and a warm feeling rushes over her. She sees those trusting eyes, the ones that think she can do no wrong and will protect her no matter what. Her aunt. She sees them, but is scared, tentative. She can't stay with these eyes, the trusting ones. They are not the ones she needs to locate, not the killer's eyes. The memories slowly come back to her, of her aunt hugging her and telling her everything is going to be alright when her parents died, making her brownies when kids were mean to her at school. She sees her house, and is compelled to go there. She sprints out of the booth and toward a now-familiar street. Down two houses, she stops and stares at her childhood home. She does not remember who lives in this house, she cannot remember anything except for her aunt and that Rachel is gone. Hailey walks slowly up the steps and knocks twice. A pair of giant blue, childlike eyes open the door and immediatly harden with fear. She remembers these eyes now. The scared, stone-like ones. The ones who wouldn't talk to her, only stare with concern and fear. She also remembers the memories, playing with their parents and laughing. She also remembers that he is still her brother, and shares the same drive to find Rachel's killer.

Climax: He asks Hailey quietly to come with him for a drive. She agrees. They drive slowly, silently, down to the police station, and pause. Her brother turns to her, searching her eyes for answers as she searches his. His eyes open up for a second, hope pouring out, and she does the same. They are both searching for answers. Finally, he blinks, looking dejected, and asks her to follow him. They walk into the police station, and he nodds to the police officer. He grabs Hailey.

Falling Action: She walks with the officer down a long hallway, still not comprehending. She tries to remember what she had done to deserve this, why they are keeping her from finding the murderer. Why her brother is acting so weird, why he is scared. She keeps walking, until they reach the cell.

Resolution: Hailey sits down on the metal bench and breathes. She closes her eyes, tries to concentrate on memories. Tries to remember what happened, why she was here, why she is acting like a mindless zombie. She looks down at her gray shirt, at the blood stain there, and freezes. It all comes flooding back to her now, like a dam that has broken. Last night, the conversation about her life, the accusations of ignoring the truth. She remembers Rachel, looking pained and her attempts at connecting to Hailey. Hailey also remembers the fight, the satisfaction she got by stabbing Rachel, how she felt she finally avenged her parents.

Denouement: Her brain is now completely wired. She gets up to wash her hands, to come to terms what she had just realized. She looks up, into the mirror. And sees the eyes, the eyes of Rachel's killer. She can't take it anymore, the pain, the suffering. Then she closes those eyes, and faints into oblivion.