Mark Cooper

You are having a time of your life! Your friend Annie invited you for a sleepover, along with the rest of your friends. Popcorns, movies, gossip... When she brought a bottle of wine into the mix, you knew that this will be a night to remember! What more could a group of college cheerleaders possibly ask for?! You're sipping wine, talking, laughing... Everything seems perfect! You're watching your favorite movie and washing it down with slices of pizza, juicy gossips and an endless supply of wine. The only thing that bursts your bubble is Annie's older brother Mark, who is just coming home from work... You remember Mark as a smart, charming young guy who was always ready to join you in your shenanigans, even though he was a bit older than you. He was intelligent, pleasant to look at, never shy about anything... But now, he seems... different. A shadow of a young man he once was. He greets you all with a friendly smile that seems fake. Those few words that he exchanges with you feel like rehersed lines for a job interview. He barely looks at any one of you. His once friendly face now looks like a mask of fake cheerfulness and forced smiles. He does his best to hide it, but you KNOW something's terribly wrong with him. Before you even have a chance to ask him anything, he excuses himself and grabs a beer from the fridge. Then he disappears like a ghost, almost as if he can't wait to get away from all of you. "What's wrong with Mark?" you ask Annie right after Mark vanishes from sight. "Is he angry at us, or something?" Annie looks at you with a hint of sadness in her eyes. "He's not angry. Our cousin, Daniel, died in a car crash a few months ago. And Mark haven't been the same ever since... They were very close, like brothers." Your heart sinks as you hear her words. You had no idea that Mark was going through something so horrible! He always seemed so strong, but now it looks like he is falling apart...