I Have A Fear Of Faces

my phone had been buzzing non-stop with messages from boys in my class asking my plans for the summer i put it aside as i decided what i was going to wear to my university admissions interview anyway i already had a pretty great boyfriend louie and i had much more important things to focus on than these random boys hi i'm mia and my life in high school was just perfect i had all the boys in class buzzing around me telling me how gorgeous i was that's probably because of my italian jeans from grandma it turns out i inherited something else from her too and my life became a nightmare overnight the day of my interview as i waited outside the dean's office i felt excited and anxious it was time i saw two men coming out of the office and walking my direction i looked at their faces and suddenly i felt terror grip me they had the faces of demons and they were staring right at me i panicked and got out of that office as fast as i could i heard one of them laughing saying i told you that beard makes you look scary look what you've done to the poor girl scared out of my wits i ran home to tell mom when i walked into the living room i cried out mom you won't believe what happened just then i noticed a devil woman sitting next to her on the sofa mom asked me to say hello to her new friend and i just went crazy i screamed mom get away from her she's going to hurt you mom looked horrified and angry mia what is wrong with you go to your room i'll deal with you later go now after a while she came to my room where i was hiding under the sheets and i told her about the interview and what i'd seen she sat down slowly on the bed her face pale she said this is impossible they said it's one case of millions completely confused i asked what are you talking about mom she told me that my problem was called prosopophobia which means fear of new faces the wet phobia mom explained that grandma suffered from the same condition she saw monsters and demons in the faces of strangers i had just always assumed she was senile her symptoms started to appear when she was older that's why she lives in a special care home and only people she recognizes can visit her my head was spinning would i become a prisoner just like grandmother all i could think about was louie so i called him and told him about what had happened to me he came over straight away and i burst into tears when i saw him i can't believe this is happening what am i going to do louie he held me close and said he would help me get over this maybe it was just my nerves i always relax at the park i need to be around people so i can feel normal again he promised that he would go with me every day the first day was straight from hell each time i looked up i saw bloodthirsty faces i could hardly bear it but louis stayed close to me the whole time one day louie told me to sit tight while he got us some ice cream and suddenly i heard a familiar voice he said hey gorgeous fancy bumping into you here want some company it was so good to see someone who didn't look like a monster even if it was this annoying guy from school laughing i said how many times do i have to tell you i have a boyfriend he said well you look like the kind of girl who could have too oh so sleazy just then he said oh hey me my cousin and before i could say anything a strange guy popped up in front of me he said oh you're the girl he's always talking about ciao bella demon i screamed get away from me you hideous ogre he said what are you crazy i literally have hundreds of girls watching my insta stories every day just to see me brush my hair louis came running back and took me away quickly i was really shaken and refused to go anywhere for a couple of weeks louie came by to see me a few times but he seemed distant i couldn't help thinking that maybe he was getting tired of my condition one day i texted him that i'd like to try going to the park again and he came to pick me up while we were sitting on a bench a woman called out his name louie told me not to look around as there were many people there and he said he'd be right back but he kept me waiting for a really long time by now my curiosity was getting the better of me i squinted my eyes so i couldn't see anyone too clearly and turned around there was louie sitting on a bench not too far away with some leggy blonde in a red dress when he finally came back i asked him who she was oh just my elderly neighbor truly wants to say hello i feel really angry but stay quiet on the drive home that was definitely not the voice or the legs of an old woman when i went back home i saw dad's car parked outside i walked into the living room and he hugged me tight saying he'd been out of town and had come to see me as soon as he could he said honey why don't you come stay with me for a while maybe the change will do you some good dad lived on the opposite side of town and i was pretty sure louis wouldn't come and see me there and i really wanted to find out if he was cheating on me the next day i just decided to confront him i asked mom to drive me to his place just when we were a couple of houses away mom and i saw him exchanging a long kiss with that blonde girl from the park and then they both got in his car and drove away mom was beyond furious how dare he never in a million years will he be so lucky as to find someone as beautiful and smart as my bombina if he ever comes around our place again i'm going to box his ears i was hurt and shocked but more than that i was angry i wasn't going to spend any time being miserable over this jerk who was making a fool out of me when we got home i packed my bags and told dad to come pick me up i needed to get away for a while louie kept calling and texting me the next day and i finally picked up his call i said what he said whoa who woke up on the wrong side of the bed today you want to try going to the mall babe i said can't i've moved to dad's for a while why don't you ask that old neighbor you were kissing outside your house yesterday there was a shock silence on the phone and then he started laughing he said looks like your condition is getting worse babe are you hallucinating now i said louie you're a horrible cheating liar and we are done he said oh yeah i'm kind of tired of your whole attention seeking drama anyway good luck hope you get rid of your imaginary friends soon maybe then we'll talk i hung up and threw the phone on the bed how had i not known all along that he was such a child i tried to keep myself busy but it was hard with me stuck at home with zero friends and i also missed my shot at going to university that year dad said i had to focus on getting better i could always try again later but i had no clue how i'd ever be able to live a normal life again mom called me one day to check up on me and suddenly asked if i remembered mike from my last school of course i did he was probably my first ever crush i had journals with mike and hart scribbled all over mom said she'd bumped into him the other day and he'd asked about me and she'd told him all about my condition he said he wants to connect with you so i gave him your number i was kind of excited to hear from him sure enough a day later he sent me a message hey it's mike i hope you're doing okay it's been so long since we've seen each other and from then on we started talking every day my heart would skip a beat every time i got a message from him i was totally falling for mike when it was time for me to leave dad's place and go back to mom's mike said he'd love to come and see me there was nothing i wanted more than to see him but i was so afraid i'd see him as a monster and it would ruin everything between us the next evening before his visit i was pacing the living room nervously when the doorbell rang mom smiled at me and went to open the door my heart was pounding and i thought i was about to faint what would i see instead of mike's face i closed my eyes as soon as i heard him enter the room i felt him gently take my hand his grasp was strong and warm and he smelled so good he said hey mia open your eyes there's nothing to be afraid of i did and jump back a little when i saw his face was covered with a mask in his eyes with sunglasses he said i thought if you get to know me better it'll be easier for you to see my face as it really is until then i'll keep the mask and glasses on we started dating and i never been happier we would go to the park or for a walk by the beach and even though i still couldn't look up at anyone directly i felt less afraid with mike one day mom was really tired and needed groceries for dinner so i offered to go by myself she refused but i insisted that i'd been feeling so much better lately and i wanted to face my fears i kept my baseball cap on and made sure i didn't look at anyone directly as i picked up the things i needed when i made it to the counter and the cashier handed me my change i made the huge mistake of looking up at his face oh my god he's terrifying i felt like the walls were closing in around me i had to get out of here i left my grocery bags at the counter and dashed out of the store i couldn't stop crying and was trying to catch my breath i leaned against the wall and with shaking hands i started to dial mom's number just then a familiar voice called out to me long time no see belissima what's wrong louie he tried to hug me but i pushed him away just then to my relief i heard mike's voice hey you okay is this guy bothering you louis turn to him is it i'm an old friend jerk mia what's this freakin a mask i took mike's hand and said he's my boyfriend louie suddenly louie started cackling seriously this guy babe you deserve to be on the arm of someone who's as pretty as you are hit me up when you dump this loser i didn't want to stand there listening to him for another minute i took mike's hand and walked away he said he'd drop by to see me and when mom told him i'd gone out alone he followed me to check up on me as we walked back home he said mia what did the doctor say when you told them about your condition i said i never went to see a doctor i already know i have the same phobia as my grandma and there's no cure he looked shocked and said he couldn't believe i never asked for help and that we should go see a specialist as soon as possible soon enough he made an appointment with the doctor and he and my parents came along with me for the appointment once we told the doctor everything he said that my condition was probably triggered by stress he said that even though it was a very rare condition he'd read cases of patients overcoming the phobia the condition is not really as scary as what you're experiencing you're letting the fear take over and your mind is exaggerating everything you have to train yourself to believe that this is not the reality when we left the doctor's office i started to feel hopeful that one day if i kept trying i would be normal again mike squeezed my hand and said he would do everything he could to help the next day i got a message from a friend at school inviting me to a reunion at her place i decided i'd go i'd already know everyone there and there would be no new faces for me to be scared of mike was more than happy to go with me and couldn't stop telling me how gorgeous i looked i felt like my old confident self tonight i knew everyone and it felt so good not to be freaked out by people they all looked at mike weirdly though i was by the table getting some food when louie walked over he said wow is it just me or are you just getting more beautiful by the day i've missed you and before i knew it his hand was sliding down my waist and he was pulling me in for a kiss i pushed him away with all the force i had and he landed on the table and knocked all the food over i screamed what is the matter with you stay away from me everybody was staring at us in stunned silence louis looked humiliated and furious as his friends helped him up i grabbed mike's hand and we left the party i was still really worked up when we got home mike held my hand and tried to calm me down and i felt a bit better i was about to get out of the car but he didn't let go of my hand he said softly you look so beautiful tonight i really want to kiss you my heart was racing i said mike i want that too but i'm not ready to see your face yet he said well maybe you are you won't know until you try the doctor said you're letting your fear exaggerate things i pulled my hand away angrily all my anger and frustration bubbled over you think i'm making this up too don't you just like louie nobody really understands what i'm going through just leave me alone i burst into tears and ran inside the next day i felt terrible for what i said to mike i knew i'd been unfair and he had done nothing but support me i called him a couple times but he didn't pick up while i was crying and watching video on my favorite youtube channel my story animated about a girl who kept mixing up faces the bell rang no one was home and i ran downstairs hoping it was mike it was louie i shouted seriously what do i have to do to get rid of you he said listen i just came to apologize for last night i have a surprise for you and before i could even react four girls came in right behind him i screamed when i saw their faces they looked like banshees straight out of a horror movie i cried and curled up into a ball with my eyes shut when i heard the door bang open mike shouted what do you think you're doing you lunatic i couldn't help it i looked up i'm getting a restraining order against you don't ever let me catch you near mia again louis scrambled away like a scared rabbit while mike came to me and hugged me i held on to him crying mike said i'm sorry mia i shouldn't have tried to force you to do anything you weren't ready for i only want to help you get better as long as it takes i said i don't know if i can overcome this i feel like it's going to control my life forever mike said people aren't all bad like louis the world is full of good people like me and you look at the good side of people no one wants to hurt you mia his words were so reassuring i instantly felt better mike told me when i was ready he'd take me to the amusement park we'll have great fun think about it i know you can do this yes i'll do it sitting here or not doing anything scares me more than seeing monsters the next day mike took me to the amusement park as we entered the park hand-in-hand i felt a marvelous strength in me i raised my head believing from deep inside me that i'd overcome my fear i looked around me everyone's faces still seemed distorted but this time it was different i was still a little scared but the fear wasn't controlling me i could control it as we sat on the ferris wheel i looked over at mike and felt like the luckiest girl in the world to have someone like him by my side i whispered hey mike i think i'm ready to see your face with a deep breath he took his mask and glasses off i gasped i never seen a guy with such beautiful green eyes and that gorgeous dimpled face i started crying i can see you i don't see a monster i see your face mike he said i knew you would he pulled me close and we had the most magical kiss high up in the sky

Channel: My Story Animated

Views: 585,789

Rating: 4.9097075 out of 5

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Id: FFv134VydVM

Length: 14min 2sec (842 seconds)

Published: Thu Mar 04 2021