Trust Is A Work In Progress (editing)

3*FARE WELL (REVAMPED)

I stand completely still and completely surrounded. There are one of me and five of them. Adrenaline pulses through my veins now, and suddenly I'm only half here and half still training in the woods with my father. He would talk me through everything.

6 YEARS AGO

"Breathe," my dad says, "know the power you possess inside yourself. You have willpower and determination, you have hope, free will, passion. You have strength in your head, in your arms, your stomach, your legs, and your feet. You have power spreading from your fingertips to your toes. You are in control."

Every time he drags me out into the woods, and he always says the same thing. The first time he took me was the day after my two brothers and I moved from my grandparents house and to our own the with my mom. Meanwhile, dad stayed in a shabby apartment not too far away to stay close to us kids. It has been a year and a half since then and two years since the divorce. Three times a week he takes me out into the woods, always by myself.

At first I thought it was his way of spending quality time with me. He would bring the pool noodles out to the woods the first couple of days and sword fight with them, but in time, he grew more serious. He pushes me to learn how to read my opponent and how to always protect my face. He teaches me how to be light on my feet. Now, however, I think that he blames us kids for the divorce. He chooses me, the girl, as a weak link and decides to make me pay for it. This is his way, and his cover is teaching me self defense. I'm not fooled.

We don't have the pool noodles today. He said we wouldn't need them because we were just going for a run. We did go for a run, but we just ran inside the woods. He lied. He wants to spar with me.

"I'm the one who gave you this power. You certainly didn't get it from your mother, and now it's only fair that I help you use it," he says finishing his speech, and he attacks me.

The first guy that attacks me shoots out from straight in front of me. He runs up to me and reaches out, using both hands to go for my neck. I use that against him. Grabbing both of his wrists with my hands, the rope digging into my wrists, I jump up and kick both of my feet into his chest throwing myself back and letting my grip on his hands go to watch him sail backwards. I land hard against a person behind me, knocking him down. My head makes contact with the hard mass of his stomach shooting pain through my head and down my neck. I recover faster than him, expecting the fall, and sit up elbowing him hard in the face. I hear something crack and break with the connection.

Someone then is on his knees in front of me, straddling my legs and trapping me. He pulls his fist back, preparing for a punch, but I evade to the left side, feeling the power behind his punch as it whistles past my ear. His fist rams into the face of the guy behind me, again knocking him back. He follows his punch through with his whole body, and his shoulders swing to the side. I take advantage of his momentum, swinging my fists backwards at his temple and throwing him off balance completely. Hopping up on my feet, I brace for who's next, my knees bent. The night seems to be growing darker making it harder to see. I focus my ears to hear over the adrenaline.

Bending down on one leg, I swing the other out in a fast circle behind me kicking one of the guy's feet out from under them. He lands on his back with a string of curses at my side and punches at the ground in frustration. With my hands tied together I lose my balance falling to my knees. Breath in and hold, then out and repeat. Another crunch comes again from behind me, and I push off rolling forward, just barely out of reach. Before I can stand, he is on top of me.

Everything becomes sharper as my head wrenches backwards by my hair. I scream out in pain as the guy pulls me up against his chest, locking my elbows in place at his sides, my back pressed against him. My hands remain useless at my stomach as the rope cuts into my wrists. A dark shape of another man steps in front of me and punches me hard in the face.

"This slimy little bitch is tougher than he said," the man from behind pulls me harder into him. I kick out in front of me, aiming for the precious jules. I make contact and the man hits the ground in front of me. I keep kicking my legs, forcing the man to physically carry me up as I buck against him. Pain roars in my shoulders as he supports my weight through my elbows pulling my arms up and back. He slings me down with a curse, and I land straight on my back. He straddles me and again pushes on my elbows, this time to the ground. Two other guys walk up to stand above my head, and I feel more hands at my legs.

They've got me completely held down as I push and pull uselessly against their holds. The man straddling me pushes in more, making unwanted contact, and I scream in protest. He punches me in the face, making contact with my mouth, and I scream again. I press the side of my face to the ground, looking away.

"Polk, we're not here to play with her," one of the men says beside me. He approaches closer, and I glance up taking in what I can. That's what I need to be doing. Trying to memorize what I can see of their faces and their voices... and that name, Polk.

"What the hell's your problem, Taylor?" The man on top of me returns rolling his hips in deeper, closer. "You don't want to have some fun?"

"Get the hell up before I make you," Taylor threatens now standing above me too. I can practically sense the testosterone levels rising as Polk inhales loudly like a hiss as he splays his fingers across my bare stomach under my t-shirt. He stands up from where he was sitting on top of me, and I again strain against the men. "Let's get this done Polk."

"Fine, lets get this done," Polk says before turning towards me and kicking me in the ribs. Unimaginable pain shoots through me, and I curl up into a ball bringing my arms up and around my head as the men follow the lead and kick the life out of me.

After what feels like an eternity, I feel one of the men grab me up by my head picking me up off the ground with incredible strength as more pain, excruciating pain, screams throughout my entire body. I am then yanked down, my head slamming into a knee before I drop again to the forest floor.

My vision goes black and my every being is engulfed in waves from numb to pain. I squeeze my eyes shut tuning out my whimpers. I know I'm on the verge of unconsciousness like six years ago, or maybe I'm already out cold.

I feel my dad's breath on my face as if we were still in the woods, and he whispers the words, "Fair well."