Alter Ego
Three months ago if you would have told me that I’d have to break my best friend out of jail I would have laughed in your face and called you crazy…..

Melanie Trotman was supposed to be a lawyer, straight A student, always the “good girl”, but Victoria Sanders on the other hand, ever since she could remember, has been pinned as the “Juvenile delinquent”. How did a straight A law school student get involved with a delinquent? Well they have been best friends since kindergarten. Victoria’s criminal acts all began innocently enough when every now and again a bra would go missing from a local J.C. Pennies store, or a perfume bottle would mysteriously vanish from the town’s beauty department, and they would all wind up in Victoria’s possession. Melanie was always the “goody-two-shoes” while Victoria was… well, Victoria. The crimes were petty, and never involved anyone but herself, until Victoria decided to steal a car on her eighteenth birthday that her life of crime finally caught up with her. It was the perfect plan too, break in, steal a car, get out… and no one would ever know,

“It’ll be easy!” she promised, with a smile, the day before. Victoria has never been the brightest, considering she hadn’t noticed the cop posted outside of the dealership, the very moment she attempted to break into the car. Needless to say, Victoria was caught, arrested, and tried as an adult for grand theft auto and was sentenced by the California court of justice for four and a half years in prison. Sadly, the bail was way too high for Melanie to pay off on her own, but she needed Victoria to be by her side. Victoria, even with all her flaws, was the only one Melanie felt safe with; it was now up to the “good girl” to be the best friend that Victoria needed. Eventually, after playing through all of the possible scenarios in her head, she decided that the only possible course of action would be to break her out.
Melanie had all the ideas, but she on her own, would never have the gumption to execute such an ordeal. After days of trying to recruit people to help her, she realized that all of the planning was not getting her best friend out of prison. It was after this revelation that Marissa was born. Melanie decided that in order to gather up the courage to spring her best friend from prison, she would need to change not only her identity, but also her mindset. This new alter ego had to be everything Melanie wasn’t: cold, manipulative, relentless, and carefree. Melanie spent weeks perfecting this alter personality, tweaking the little actions and expressions that seemed so opposite from her own.
When the time was right, she broke the mental barrier separating Marissa from herself and let her completely take over. The transition was almost seamless, like liquid water running through an empty stream. She entered the state prison where Victoria was being held, and easily distracted the guards with her sexual appeal and swiped the keys to Victoria’s cell without anyone realizing they were missing. Victoria herself looked very happily surprised to see Melanie there, but noticed something was different about her. Melanie tossed her the keys slyly with a peculiar look in her eye.
“Hey Mel, since when have you been bad?” Victoria asked curiously as she hid the keys secretively.
“Mel isn’t here right now,” Marissa replied with a sinister smile, “Marissa’s your best friend now.” she finished coolly.
“Huh,” Victoria replied with a smile, “I think I like this Marissa,”