Milena Konvalinka grew up in Dresden, Germany from a wealthy Czech family. She received a fine education from her family, getting some of the best tutors and going to the best schools in the country. However, Milena grew up unloved. She did think about how fortunate she was to have money, but rather looked around at her friends and how happy they were without immense wealth.

She remembered the times her parents missed her figure skating competitions… or school plays… or even academic competitions. In the crowds of people attending these events were her friends’ parents, screeching and rooting them on! They would scoop up her friends in their arms, caressing them, and telling them that they did well, even if they didn’t get first place. Milena had to be frank, she was envious. 

There were times when Milena was locked up in her room for not doing well on exams (in that context, basically getting a 100 on every single one of them). There were times when they starved her. Sometimes, they would beat her. When they raised the fireplace stoker, her eyes would grow wide each time, trembling in fear. However, the worst of it all was when they shrieked at the top of their lungs—like banshees—telling  her she wasn’t good enough. They would tell her she was constantly disrespecting the family name. There were so many times when Milena thought it’d be easier for them to  throw her out,  Milena knew it wasn’t normal to be accustomed to this kind of treatment. 

When she became the ripe age of 18, Milena finished her school and was immediately accepted to the Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich. Milena was completely satisfied for now. She  made two amazing friends, Emma and Laura, both in the same major as her.  These two girls were special to her as she was able to confide in both of them. 

Things changed after Milena met Lenka. Emma and Laura had introduced her to Milena the day after hitting up a party hosted by the international business department students. Lenka had blonde hair, styled in an above-the-shoulders bob. Her eyes were a light green, similar to that of tumbled jade. She was quiet, but well-spoken and kind.

The more time Milena and Lenka spent time together, the more Milena noticed odd things about Lenka. Lenka never revealed anything about her personal life. Nonetheless, Milena could never forget how Lenka would comfort her. Lenka would listen to how Milena complained about her family. She showed true empathy and compassion. Lenka would nod and hold Milena’s hand as Milena described how her family members always resented her. Lenka’s embraces were the best. There were times when Milena was just simply exhausted and Lenka would hold her head in her arms. She would stroke her hair, and hum some sort of folk song. If Milena had to be honest, it seemed as if Lenka could be her own mother. 

“Lenka… you know, I was wondering,” Milena started one afternoon. They had finished up classes for the day and were walking to a nearby café in the city. 

“Yeah, Milena? What is it?” Lenka replied. 

“You never really talk about yourself. I know you like to console me and some other girls, but it feels a little weird. It’s like we don’t know you at all. That’s all,” Milena blurted hesitantly. 

“I’ve had a troubled past. It’s… just not too easy to talk about.”

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to upset you in any way.”

Winter vacation eventually came after the semester was over and Milena reluctantly said her goodbyes to her incredible friends. She did not want to see her parents again--her mental health would spiral. Lenka promised she would call her when she was back in her hometown, but even after half of winter vacation passed, Milena received nothing. If Milena had to be honest, she would admit that she was  absolutely bored in her home. There were piles of powdery snow everywhere, which prevented her from going outside. She decided to spend her time quietly in the family library, mostly because she was afraid of being beat. 

“You come back from your fancy, new university only to avoid us again,” her mother huffed, “I thought you’d come back changed, but all you do is look depressed, Milena.”

“Your mother is right, Milena,” said her father, his face hidden behind the large German newspaper he fetched the other day. “I thought you’d be glad to see us for the winter holidays again. What happened to you?”

Milena didn’t respond. She continued to eat her goulash, not bothering to look up and meet her parents’ gazes. Was this all a joke? Her parents should have known by now that they abused her, physically and mentally, yet this was what they said when she came back? She instantly regretted not taking up Henrik’s holiday plans to meet his family for a skiing trip in Switzerland. 

Upset from her parents’ comments, Milena left the dining room after finishing her meal to go to her bedroom. She spent the rest of the night without coming out of said room. 

It was Christmas Eve the next day, so Milena knew her mother and father were shopping for the holidays. Milena stayed at home, but felt trapped. She wasted the day at the TV, German Christmas specials airing all day. Her parents returned before 7pm, loads of bags in their hands. As they were unpacking the bags, her father cleared his throat in the living room. She knew it was to grab her attention. So, Milena decided to turn to face her father, eyes gazed downward. Her mother took the cue to leave the room, most likely going to prepare dinner. 

“Milena, your mother and I would like to invite you to celebrate Christmas tomorrow. I know we have not always been the most loving parents to you. Your mother and I want to try and make things up,” her father said. “Of course, it is entirely up to you whether you want to be with us or not. But, we realized we were in the wrong for so many years. When you left for Munich, we realized how we should have cherished you more instead of setting you aside...and hurting you like that.” 

Milena took some time to process her father’s words. It was conflicting. For the entire winter holiday, they didn’t do much to try and reconcile with her. They barely exchanged words with each other. In the end, Milena said she would join them. She wanted to see how things turned out, and if her parents had truly changed. Of course, there wouldn’t be any issues with this, right? After Milena agreed to join her parents’ Christmas plans, Milena finally received her first call from Lenka. She was taken aback at first, but they bantered with each other. Milena would never see Lenka’s plot from this call. 

“My parents wanted to come to terms with me,” Milena started, twirling the phone cord with her free hand. “It’s a little surprising… but I’ll see what happens tomorrow. We’re going to my aunt’s house in Leipzig instead of going back for a full family reunion in Czechia this year.” 

“Is that so? I’m glad they do. But aren’t there so many things wrong with this? Why didn’t your parents admit their faults earlier?” Lenka asked. “Why would you agree to join them too? You’ve only been away from them for a few months. C’mon, they did absolutely terrible things to you!” Her tone was slightly different from her usual nurturing tone. She sounded pestered. 

“I mean, yes, no child should have to go through such trauma—or be pressured to succeed that hard in life. Either way, I believe it is some kind of opportunity. If they say things I don’t like, I’ll… Well, I’ll think of something.” 

“I hope it goes well, Milena. By the way, I originally called because I have a surprise for you. I guess I’ll just tell you now! I’ll be back at your place around midnight or so to give you a Christmas gift. I hope you’ll be back from the Christmas party by then.”

“Honestly, knowing my parents we’ll be back a little bit earlier than that. After all, the party starts around 4 or 5 in the afternoon. Ah shoot—I’ve got to get going. We have to prepare since it’ll be a long drive. See ya, Lenka!”
For the entire day, Milena felt like she was happy for once. Her family did not treat her with disrespect. In fact, her parents actually both seemed nervous about the entire day. On the car ride to her aunt’s home, they actually asked Milena how she was doing, how Munich was, and what happened so far. It was the first time they had interest in something other than her grades. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves at the party and Milena was able to let herself have fun. All anxiousness had left her. She left the party with a fluttery feeling in her stomach, and a wide smile. 

On that night, however, terror struck. They had arrived home around 10pm and had gotten into bed at 11. Milena’s parents were tired and quickly dressed in their pajamas, saying their ‘good nights’ to Milena before heading to bed. However, Milena was still up, as her body refused to go to sleep. She was jittery from the party, especially after having so many desserts. She decided to read a book of childhood fairytales. 

Suddenly, Milena heard a door creak open after two hours. At first, Milena didn’t think much about it. Her mom often got up in the middle of the night to fetch a glass of water, but then she started hearing screaming--two people screaming to be exact. Her father and mother! 

Milena tossed her book aside onto the bed and dashed down the hallway to check on her parents. The door to her parents’ room was wide open and she audibly gasped when she saw what occurred. Lenka, wielding a sleek, black pistol, was aiming at her parents. The two of them were visibly tied up and gagged, positioned back to back and could not move as they were settled on the floor. 

“Lenka! What are you doing!?” Milena shrieked at the sight. Her heart was pounding out of her chest--she felt the thumping throughout her whole body. 

“I told you I was stopping by, right?” Lenka said. “I’m here to give you your Christmas present, duh,” She proceeded to laugh, as if the entire situation was hysterical—as if there was no danger present. 

“Christmas present!? Clearly, this is insane! Lenka, are you even right in the head!? Put that gun down! What’s going on?”

“You know, it was funny Milena. Whenever you complained about your parents, I comforted you. I thought, ‘wow, this entitled girl sure has it tough,’ but I also realized that if I got rid of your parents, it’d be a blessing. Do you remember when you used to say how much you wanted your parents to disappear? Well, now that you’re here, you might as well do the honors.” She tossed the pistol over to Milena. Lenka stared at Milena, her entire expression completely deranged. Her pupils were wide, but dilated, and her smile was so large, it looked painful. It was if she was faking her happiness, in an insane, sinister way. 

Milena picked up the gun, but kept her finger off the trigger. She decided to be careful, especially when she didn’t know what kinds of tricks Lenka had up her sleeve. 

“Why are you doing this, Lenka? We just talked on the phone last night! My life was finally getting together with my parents. H-How could you even think about having me kill my own parents!?” Milena cried. Tears began to form in her eyes. Lenka was one of her closest friends; how could she even plot a scheme like this? Before Milena could think further, Milena’s eyes widened as she noticed Lenka’s smile widening. She casually walked over to Milena and tugged harshly on her free wrist. Milena could feel her embrace--but this time it felt icy, as if no blood flowed through Lenka’s body. It felt as if Lenka wasn’t human. The aura that radiated from her felt sinister, like a deep dark void, ready to get its next victim. 

“Fire the gun. I put in a bunch of bullets, so just go crazy! Don’t worry about a single thing. After all these years, do you really want to reconcile with your parents? You told me how they strained your body after your figure skating competitions. You told me how they starved you, how they locked you in your room for hours. They slapped you whenever you started crying. Now you want to tell me that you forgive them? Weren’t you abused for almost all your life? Milena, you’re eighteen years old and you want to pretend all of this abuse is fake? How pathetic.” 

Milena whimpered and now her formed tears started streaming down her face, her entire body trembling in fear. Lenka was right to some extent, but Milena could never  kill or harm another human being in her entire life. How was she expected to make a decision that runs that deep? 

“You’re right, Lenka. I suffered a lot. I went through hell and back because of them. But tonight was the first time I actually thoroughly enjoyed myself. It was the first time I felt like I had a real family, and a real relationship. Even though one moment can’t replace the mistakes of the past, they’re still my parents. They’ve realized that they were wrong and now they want to fix it. Do you know what it means to take away a human life? Over all of this?” Milena sobbed in between, but she forced her hand to steady around the gun. Milena kept quiet as her mind began to race. She didn’t know what to do. 

She then thought about her family. She never harbored any good memories with them in her mind, but there was progress today, and Milena believed there would be progress tomorrow. Did Lenka seriously believe she had such low standards? Her sadness and fear turned into anger—anger pointed at Lenka. Milena took a deep breath and raised the gun at her parents. Lenka did not say anything, but Milena sensed Lenka radiating a sinister happiness. Her parents began to scream as the white cloth gags muffled them. Milena looked straight at them, and she witnessed them crying, for the first time.

Milena gave them a reassuring smile. It would all be over soon. Milena quickly turned around, kicking Lenka in the leg with her knees. Lenka faltered and fell onto the ground with a thud. Milena’s hand was on the trigger of the gun, and it was pointed right at Lenka. 

Lenka did not try to fight Milena, but instead, she sat there and started laughing like a child. Milena looked at her, horrified. Her lips trembled.

“What’s so funny!?” Milena roared. “Tell me! This doesn’t just make any sense—I want you to leave! Why are you still here?” Almost immediately, Lenka stopped laughing. 

“The funny thing is… you’ll turn on your best friend to protect your family. We’ve known each other for an entire semester now, and you’ve chosen your abusive family? It’s ridiculous how you won’t even bother to take my advice! If you seriously want to, just shoot me!” Lenka shouted. She lifted her right index finger and pointed to her forehead.

“This should be enough right?” Milena was taken aback. She could no longer hold herself back in front of Lenka. As if her hands were another being, they automatically fired the gun. The gun slowly began to empty, bullet after bullet. She couldn’t even tell if Lenka had been hurt. Milena didn’t care, she just wanted Lenka gone. 

After the furious shower of bullets bolted into  Lenka, Milena lowered the pistol. There was no blood. There were only minor gunshot wounds in her body. Lenka sat there, frozen, like a broken doll. Was she dead? Milena had no idea, but her current priority was to free her parents. She turned her back to Lenka, trying to comfort her parents.

However, after untying her parents, the entire Konvalinka family looked back to see that Lenka’s entire body was gone. That night, the Konvalinka family dared not to report the incident to the police. It simply confused them all, how Lenka was able to escape from the room without a sound, and without a trace. It was as if she simply became invisible. It frightened them. They could never explain what happened. 

Lenka decided that she would no longer pursue Milena. She had already done enough to traumatize the Konvalinka family. She left with multiple bullets in her body, but she didn’t need any medical treatment. There was no blood in sight. When Lenka wobbled back to her apartment complex, she headed straight to the bathroom. She looked in her mirror, her soft blonde hair disheveled. Lenka began to remove the bullets from her body carefully, one by one. She dug through her wounds with her fingernails, grotesquely pulling away at the skin. 

“No matter, this was just a slight mess up,” Lenka muttered to herself. “I’ll find someone else to save. I suppose Milena proved herself that she was never worthy of my love and care.” 

When Milena came back to her home in Munich after the winter holidays, she found her home ransacked. Her clothes were everywhere, scattered around her bedroom. Furniture was turned upside down. However, nothing except for her clothes were missing. Emma and Laura had visited, and helped Milena file a police report to help find out if there was any thief, but deep down, Milena knew it was Lenka. 

Lenka found herself settled in at a university in Berlin. She befriended a girl named Lorraine, a student that grew up in Hamburg. She was troubled, like Milena, and Lenka ultimately decided to be Lorraine’s new savior. 

Before Lenka was going to meet up with Lorraine, she got dressed. Lenka’s hair was now a dark brown, like Milena’s. She had ransacked Milena’s home and nabbed some of her clothes. She wore a white graphic t-shirt and a pair of jeans, topping it off with a periwinkle cardigan. She remembered Milena sporting that look all the time when she went to class. 

Lenka had arrived early, and met Lorraine at their usual spot near the library. She plopped down next to Lorraine, who was already sobbing. 

“Milena,” Lorraine whispered, “Please help me… free me from my misery.” Lorraine sobbed into Lenka’s pastel blue dress. It was one of Lorraine’s rants, this time about her boyfriend that lived with her. 

“I hate being with him. I don’t even know why we got together in the first place.”

“Everything’s all right,” Lenka said. “You won’t have to fret anymore, Lorraine. Stay with me tonight to get away from him.” Lorraine nodded gently as her tears continued to wet Lenka’s dress. 

Lenka smiled at the sky. The world was full of bastards, Lenka thought.