Do any of my 13 followers have an idea for a title for this its due on tuesday thx

Her blonde hair catches the sunlight just right as she looks up and smiles at me. I have always loved the way her hair turned gold in the sun. It always reminds me that as long as I have her, I’ll have all the riches I’ll ever need.

“Dad,” she says, “will you play with me?”

I smile and put down my research. I am busy, but Ellie’s contagious smile is not something I can easily resist. Besides, playing with my daughter is always far from boring.

When she was young, she was diagnosed with the rare mental disease of Schizophrenia. This causes her to not always be able to distinguish reality from fantasy, and she often has hallucinations. Many of them are ongoing, she has many friends that sit and talk to her when she is lonely. Many times, if I try hard enough, I am able to see them too. It is even rarer for symptoms to occur in children, and she is only 6 years old. Because of this, she will most likely never be able to live on her own. It is my job to protect her and watch over her at all costs. I am the only one who understands her. Most people would mistake her as crazy, but her wild imagination is one of my only joys. I love her more that life itself.

“What are we playing today?” I ask. I sit down on the rug beside her.

She smiles at me and says, “Sese Sleeper and Neo wanted to play tag. But I told them that it wasn’t good to run in the apartment. So they said it would be okay for us to play house. You be the dad. I’ll be the baby. Sese and Neo will be the pets. Ok?”

Sese Sleeper and Neo are some of Ellie’s friends. They always play with her when I am busy. But for the time being, I get to be a part of their game. We play for a few hours until I get a notification on my phone. I have another assignment that is urgent.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart, but I have to go to work,” I tell Ellie.

“That’s ok. I understand,” she says.

“Maybe you can get Grandma to play with you,” I suggest.

My mother lives with us in this apartment. My dad left us when I was very young, and I know that she is still sad about it. She was never the same after he left. I always thought that Ellie would help restore her joy, as I am trying to be the best father possible to her since I know how hard it is to grow up without one. But whenever I talk about Ellie she only seems to get sadder. She never acknowledges that Ellie is there, it’s almost like she doesn’t see her. When she tries, it almost seems unnatural, as if she has to force the words out. I guess it is painful for her. My childhood was hard on her. I was always in and out of doctor’s offices growing up; because my father was convinced something was wrong with me. “That boy is not right in the head,” he would always say. Once my father left, the doctor visits stopped. I try my hardest to keep my mother happy too. I know that her life hasn’t been easy.

Ellie shrugs and goes back to playing.

I sit down at my desk. My job is not one that many people have. I am an agent for one of the government’s most top secret organizations. My job for years has been to stop an evil organization known simply as The Company. No one knows The Company’s whereabouts or who is in charge, but for whatever reason, they want to end the world. I am honored to have been selected for this job, but it is extremely frightening. If The Company ever learned my location or who I was working for, they would most likely kill me and everything I care about. I constantly have to watch my back. More than anything, I fear what will happen to Ellie if The Company ever found out where I am.

Because of this, I have to constantly watch what I say and do. I do not leave the apartment. My mother thinks it would be best for me to get out just once. I tell her that I cannot, but she begs and pleads with me. She thinks it would be good for me to get a change of scenery. I know she wants what is best for me, but she does not understand the danger I would be in if I ever left.

One day I walk into the kitchen to find my mother crying. I hate to watch her cry; it always makes me feel so helpless.

“Mom? What’s wrong?” I ask her.

She says she is worried about me. I ask her why, but she only starts crying harder. I bite my lip and look at the ground. I made a promise to myself to keep her happy.

“Would it help if I run an errand for you?” I ask. I also made a promise to myself to never leave the apartment, but I am tired of seeing my mother in such great pain. I am sure one trip to the grocery store would do no harm. There have been few sightings of The Company recently anyway.

She looks up. “Really?” she asks. I nod my head slowly.

A huge smile lights up her face. “Yes!” she says. “Yes! Oh, Michael, that would be wonderful! I’ll go get my purse right now!” She jumps up and hugs me.

I go into the living room and tell Ellie I am leaving for a few minutes, but that she should stay here in case anything happens. I want her to be safe. “Ok, Daddy,” she says and hugs me. I kiss her forehead. My mother comes over to us.

“Are you ready?” she asks. I nod my head. I am beginning to feel afraid, but I know that if I stopped now my mother would be crushed. She opens the door of our apartment and steps out. I walk to the doorway and stare into the hall. It has been years since I have stepped out of this apartment.

“Are you coming, Michael?” my mom calls to me. I hesitate, but then I see the hopeful look in her eyes. I take a deep, shaky breath and step into the hall. The hairs on the back of my neck begin to rise. I sense danger at every turn.

I walk down the hall, stopping every few steps to make sure no one is behind me. My mother looks at me worriedly. “Michael….?” She says. It is almost a whisper.

Suddenly something above her head catches my eye. My eyes widen in terror. “Mom! Look out!” I scream. “Get down now!”

She looks at me but does not move. “Michael, what’s wrong?” she says.

I point a shaky finger at the black object on the ceiling above her head. “The Company!” I yell. “I knew they were spying on me! I knew they were! They’ve found my location! They have a camera right there! I knew they were spying on me! They’re going to eliminate me! I have to protect Ellie!” I hastily turn to go back to the apartment.

My mom grabs me and looks into my eyes. “Michael,” she says. Her eyes look sad. “Those cameras aren’t from The Company. They’re the security cameras for the apartment complex. No one is spying on you.”

I grab the sides of my head and rock back and forth. Maybe she’s right. Maybe The Company hasn’t learned my location. But who else would put a camera right outside my apartment?

My mom hugs me. “Come on, Michael,” she whispers. “Let’s go downstairs. It’s okay. You’re okay.” She takes my hand and leads me to the stairs.

I’m still jumpy when we enter the lobby. My mom smiles at the lady at the front desk who looks at me oddly. Something about the way she looks at me sends warning signs through my head. Does she know? Is she an undercover worker for The Company?

I look at her computer and realize that all my suspicions have been confirmed. Another beady, black camera is pointing its lens right at me from the top of her monitor. I feel my face grow pale and my breathing begin to quicken. My eyes dart quickly around the room. Mounted on the ceiling I see another camera. And another. And another. All trained directly at me.

My mom is looking at me again with concern. She grabs my arm. I yank it away. “Don’t touch me!” I scream. “You’re one of them! You knew! You knew this whole time! This is a trap! You led me down here!” I look wildly around me for a way to escape. “Ellie!” I scream. “I have to get back to Ellie!”

I turn around and see the stairs. I sprint towards them. I vaguely hear my mother calling my name, but all I can think of is Ellie. I can’t let The Company get to her. She needs me. She needs me.

I run up the stairs and into the apartment. “Ellie!” I scream. I can’t see her. “ELLIE!”

I go into the living room and see her dolls strewn across the floor. In the middle is a note. I pick it up and read it.

You never should have left. Now you’ll have to come get her.

-The Company

Just then my mom runs into the apartment. “They took Ellie!” I yell at her. “I have to save her! They’re going to eliminate her!” I began sobbing. “This is all my fault,” I said. “I was supposed to protect her.”

I began to run out the door. “I have to go save Ellie! The Company took her!” My mother grabs me before I can make it.

“LET GO OF ME!” I scream. “I have to get to The Company! I have to save Ellie! Get off of me!”

My mother does not let go. Instead she looks at me with tears streaming down her face. “Michael,” she whispers. “You don’t have a daughter.”

I stare at her in silence. “What?” I ask.

“There’s no such thing as The Company. Your don’t have a daughter. You’ve never had a daughter!” She is sobbing now.

I stand there in silence. But I realize she is being completely serious. “LIAR!” I scream. I throw her off of me. I vaguely hear her head crack on the corner of the doorway. “Liar! You knew! You knew the whole time! You were working with them!” She lays motionless on the floor. I jump over her and go tearing through the hallway.

“ELLIE!” I yell. “Ellie! I’m coming! I’m coming!” I frantically pound on the doors. “Let me in! Give me my daughter!” I scream. Suddenly there are hands grabbing me. So many hands, from all directions. I try to fight them off.

“GET OFF OF ME!” I yell frantically. “Let me go! Where have you put my daughter? Where is she? ELLIE!” I twist and turn but the hands are strong. They pin me down.

“Let me go!” I sob. “Please let me go. I have to save my daughter. Please. Please.” But the hands stay put. I sob on the floor until I feel a sharp pain, and then everything goes black.

When I wake up, I am in a small white room strapped to a small white bed. My head feels fuzzy and my thoughts feel slow. People who I assume to be nurses come in and out of my room.

Sometime later a man comes in and talks to me. I learn that my daughter and I had something else in common- we were both Schizophrenics. When I ask about Ellie, he then goes on to tell me that my daughter wasn’t real. She was something made up in my head caused by my disease. So was The Company. I lay there in silence, unable to feel any emotion. Nothing matters anymore. Everything is pointless.

When they think I can’t hear them, the man and the nurses say that I am still convinced that my daughter is real. Every morning, they come in and make me repeat sentences, in order to “preserve my sanity” and to get me to learn how to talk again. “My name is Michael Huff. I am 35 years old. My mother’s name is Deborah Huff. I do not have a daughter. There is no such thing as The Company…”

I repeat these things without resistance, for I do not have the energy to fight. However, saying this does not mean I believe it. The papers say I am crazy, but I see it as more misunderstood. Just because no one can see my daughter does not mean she is there. Whenever I am feeling lonely, I look up at the light shining through my window and can see Ellie’s golden hair catching the light perfectly. If I close my eyes, I can hear her laughter. When I open my eyes again, she is standing over my bed. “Dad, will you play with me?” she asks.

I smile back up at her. “Of course, sweetheart.” I say. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”