After, Media Tie-In

Chapter One chapter one
My alarm is set to go off any minute. I've been awake for half the night, shifting back and forth, counting the lines between the ceiling tiles and repeating the course schedule in my head. Others may count sheep; I plan. My mind doesn't allow a break from planning, and today, the most important day in my entire eighteen years of life, is no exception.

"Tessa!" I hear my mother's voice call from downstairs. Groaning to myself, I roll out of my tiny bed. I take my time tucking the corners of my bedsheet against the headboard, because this is the last morning that this will be a part of my regular routine. After today, this bedroom is no longer my home.

"Tessa!" she calls again.

"I'm up!" I yell back. The noise of the cabinets opening and slamming closed downstairs makes it known that she is feeling just as panicked as I am. My stomach is tied in a tight knot, and as I start my shower I pray that the anxiety I feel will lessen as the day goes on. All of my life has been a series of tasks in preparation for this day, my first day of college.

I spent the last few years nervously anticipating this. I spent my weekends studying and preparing for this as my peers were hanging out, drinking, and doing whatever else it is teenagers do to get themselves in trouble. That wasn't me. I was the girl who spent her nights studying cross-legged on the living room floor with my mother while she gossiped and watched hours of QVC to find new ways to improve her appearance.

The day my acceptance letter to Washington Central University came I couldn't have been more thrilled-and my mother cried for what felt like hours. I can't deny that I was proud that all my hard work had finally paid off. I got into the only college I applied for and, because of our low income, I have enough grants to keep my student loans to a minimum. I had once, for just a moment, considered leaving Washington for college. But seeing all the color drain from my

Anna Todd (writer/producer/influencer) is the New York Times bestselling author of the After series, the Brightest Stars trilogy, The Spring Girls, and the After graphic novels. The After series has been released in thirty-five languages and has sold over twelve million copies worldwide—becoming a #1 bestseller in several countries. Always an avid reader, Todd began writing stories on her phone through Wattpad, with After becoming the platform’s most-read series with over two billion reads. She has served as a producer and screenwriter on the film adaptations of After and After We Collided, and in 2017, she founded the entertainment company Frayed Pages Media to produce innovative and creative work across film, television, and publishing. A native of Ohio, she lives with her family in Los Angeles.