THIRTY-EIGHT

THIRTY-EIGHT

Nearly 2 years ago

It was the rebellious side in me. The side that wanted to seem impressive in front of others and show everyone that I could drive. I wanted to show them that my parents were the best, when in reality it was the furthest from the truth, for letting me drive a car around the area.

"I'll drop you off at home," I told my best friend Versa was seated securely on the passenger seat. She was clutching on the seatbelt like her life dependant on it.

"Relax," I giggled, glueing both my hands on the steering wheel. "My driver instructor said I could take my test right now and pass but it's just my age. I have to be seventeen at least to go for the test." I assured Versa who seemed like she would rather I focus on the driving than speak to her at all.

"Just take me home safety and leave the car at mine." She gulped loudly. "And uber it home or something."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh come on!" I exasperated. "Everyone thinks this is so cool."

Versa snapped her head to glare at me. "You're already cool Ori! You have Brandon as your boyfriend for godsake!"

I turned away from my friend, biting my lower lip as the short car ride became completely silent. We just came from hanging out with our other classmates at a house and everyone was completely shocked that I had a car, let alone drive it! They were all gushing around me, and Brandon who I was only seeing for a few months had his arm around my shoulder. I felt all warm inside, giddy even and completely happy at how everything was turning out for me amongst my friends.

I pulled up a few inches away from the curb in front of Versa's house. She didn't even wait for me to fully switch off the car as she unbuckled herself and reached for the latch. She opened it and jumped out, without even saying goodbye.

I rolled the window as soon as she slammed the door shut. "Feeling the love!" I shouted at Versa's shoulder.

She turned her body around and started walking backwards. "Wish I could say the same!" She shouted back.

I frowned at her. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"You wouldn't drive me around without having a license!"

I threw my head back and let out a laugh. "Oh get a grip!" I yelled at her just as she threw me a finger and disappeared into her home.

I started the car again and started driving home.

The car journey from Versa's place to mine was long. A mere five minutes, even less if I dared to speed up a little bit. It was the dead of night, most people were tugged in bed and fast asleep, leaving the road to sleepless wanderers as myself.

I drove by, my mind wandering back to earlier that evening where Brandon came from behind me and wrapped his long arms around me. He squeezed me tightly and pressed me back into him. I had blushed as he whispered something completely sweet into my ear.

The whole night was blissfully serene and I wanted to relive it for the next few days.

It was how far my mind had gone, how far deep it was in hoping to relive every sweet moments with Brandon that lead to a split second of losing focus.

It cost me a split second to ruin everything.

I felt it rather than beard it when I hit something. I felt as thought my body collided into this thing rather than the front of my car. I felt it in every single bone of my body.

I slammed the brakes as hard as I could, causing my front body to jolt forwards and the seatbelt to pulled me back in, a sharp burn slashing into my shoulder blade.

I thought the screaming came from outside but it was when I was fighting for air that I realised the shrilling scream was coming from me. I froze, clamping my mouth shut and holding onto the steering wheel for dear life. I saw my fingers had turned to white, all the blood disappearing from  them.

Willingly myself to move, I turned my head around to look back. What I saw chilled every cell in me.

Someone was leaning over a dead body. They were moving the hair out of her face and trying, and failing immensely, to wake her up.

I fought the urge to scream again until the one leaning over the dead body snapped his head to look at me. Link Dane caught my eyes immediately.

I turned around quicker than anything, quickly started the car and pressed down hard on the acceleration...

****

It was like seeing a ghost.

Which, for me, was exactly what I was seeing. Experiencing a rare, vivid form of paranormal activity could be the only explanation as to why Lauren Dane was standing in the flesh at the door.

"Are you okay?" Her really-alive voice reached my ears and that's when everything slowly but surely registered inside of me.

The first thing I physically felt was the sharp pain of the branches that sunk into my lower back. I was pressed against a tree which, for the better part, did the most job of supporting my own dead weight. My throat closed up together, blocking any air from reaching my lungs. My body started to complain from the lack of air as it began to quiver from my feet up. So much that I had no handle over the uncontrollable shaking. My mouth was dry and each time I tried to swallow empty air, it felt as if my whole insides were made out of tarmac.

The first thing I could think of doing was to get out.

I closed my eyes and willed myself to do that. Everything I tried was to no avail as I stayed stuck in position, pressed against a tree and hardly breathing.

"Oh god, you've gone so white!" Lauren gasped. I flicked my eyes open just as I saw her make her way towards me.

Everything after that happened all too fast.

Link appeared behind her, looking as equally white as I probably did. He looked over his sister's shoulder to me and just as his eyes met mine, I saw everything unfold in them.

Lauren stopped walking to look over her shoulder. "Oh Link, help her!" she told her brother who was frozen in place.

It was that moment I had a sense of control back to me over my body and used it to bolt out of there. I dragged my feet, pushing them into the ground as I ran frantically out from the gates and into the road. My ragged breathing filled my are full ears as my feet pounded into the ground. Running wasn't something new to me, and no matter what it always seemed to be the best thing to do whenever I was faced with the impossible.

I heard some loud footsteps come from afar behind me which led to nothing but forcing myself to run faster. I had no sense of direction, no sense of anything to be quite frank as I made my way out the neighbourhood and into an unknown area whilst being well aware that Link was close behind me.

Quick thinking, I decided to round a corner and slammed straight into a brick wall. I stumbled backwards and fell hard on my back to the ground. My palm grazed the cold ground, a burst of tingles hitting them instantly. A sharp pain shot up the back of my leg as I tried to move it and painful cry escaped from out of my mouth.

"Now that can't seriously of hurt you."

I shot my head up what I thought was a wall but instead saw a dark figure looming over me. But that voice, I recognised it as soon as the first word came out of his mouth.

A feeling of pure relief washed over and I resisted the urge to cry then and there. He would take me. Regardless of what went on in the past between us, there was still the traces of what we had. Brandon was the one person that could take me somewhere safe and take care of me.

"Brandon," I breathed out, my vision turning blurry as my eyes filled with tears. "Brandon, help me." My voice broke at the last words I forced out of me.

I lifted a shaking hand up and waited for him to take it in his and lift me up. I looked at him as he stepped out from the dark.

I just caught the look of his eyes and instantly dropped my hand just as his fist slammed into me.

****

I held my cheek in my hand as the trail of blood from my head made a pool around my fingers. The heavy and festering smell of blood that surrounded me did well to suffocate me further. I thought I was in a slaughterhouse until I realised that all the stench of blood and flesh was coming from me.

He lifted his leg high just before it slammed into my side, causing a gut-wrenching scream to come out my mouth. I curled into myself, hoping that in some way or the other it would diminish the pain until he was done. Another whimper escaped from me as I covered my head with my arms. Repeatedly, until I was on the brick of becoming unconscious, he had slammed my head against the wall.

My mouth was filled with blood from the blow he had thrown moments before to my cheek. I spat it out below me without getting my head out from the safety of my arms.

A harsh tug came to my scalp as he pulled me back by my hair. I cried out again, not because of the pain the hair pulling caused but because he made me move all my wounded limbs.

He straightened me up with my back against the wall, giving himself a clear mark to my stomach. The blow came just as I expected it and I doubled over as he kicked and punched my stomach. I felt something burst inside of me and my whole body rang out in excruciating pain.

I was waiting, close to begging, for myself to pass out so I didn't have to endure this suffering any longer.

"Please," I croaked out, blood sputtering out from the corners of my mouth. I lifted the hand that didn't seem broken and wiped it across my eyes to remove the blood that had dripped down into my eyes, from the gashing wound on my forehead. "Stop." I begged him.

I could feel my heart giving up inside me as I watched him stalk towards the table next to him. I watched him hover his finger around something until he picked it up in his hand and turned back around to me.

A long pipe rested in his hand as he made his way back to me.

"Please no!" I screamed, pushing myself further into the wall to get away from him.

When the blow to my side came this time, I felt every single cell in my body cry out in pain and break down. And that's when I also fell into the waiting darkness.

////

> Link's POV next chapter? I'm feeling to throw one in before wrapping this whole story up (in the next few chapters)

> let me know what you think so far! <3