Unstable (Sequel to Twisted)

Chapter 1

I bared my fists, tightening them into balls of uneasiness and edginess; my eyes widened, narrowed and glowering at the two men as they came to stop in front of me. They honestly didn't look like kidnappers or delinquents-they just looked like young college students.

"Wha-" One started to speak, but he was silenced when I slammed my hand right across his face. His head ripped off to the side from the powerful blow, and the guy standing next to him gasped loudly, exclaiming, "What the bloody hell?!"

I suddenly found my arms bound from behind, and I glanced over my shoulder to see the guy walking behind me holding me back.

"No!" I shouted, my voice echoing down the street. "Don't hurt her! Leave her alone!"

"Lady, what the hell are you talking about?" The man behind me asked, his voice breathless from having to run and stop this. I was struggling viciously in his grasp, my lips pulled back in a disgusted snarl.

"Men like you disgust me," I snapped. "You think you can just-"

"-what are you talking about?" The one I had slapped snapped, his hand now clutching his cheek. His blue eyes were shocked and wide, almost insulted at what I had said. He stammered a bit, glancing back at his partner before looking at me like I had grown 2 heads. "Are you saying you thought we were going to kidnap her?"

"Why else were you driving so slowly?" I protested, my voice gradually calming down when I saw the true confusion in his eyes. If they were planning on kidnapping the little girl, they would've either killed me or knocked me out by now. But instead, it was me who had hurt them-not the other way around.

"Our front tire was running low on air," The other man explained, pointing to the van's tire. "We didn't want to drive too fast."

I completely went limp in the man's grasp, my mouth falling agape. Guilt swarmed within me, and once again, I had overreacted over something. I automatically assumed something bad was to happen, when in reality, it was completely fine.

"We saw the girl fall on the bike," The man who had been slapped said quickly, "so we pulled over to help. We weren't going to kidnap her or anything for Christ's sake."

The man released me from behind, and I straightened up, my eyes ashamed and sheepish. By now the girl was leading, half running away, with her bicycle next to her. She probably got scared by how I had reacted...

"I'm sorry," I murmured awkwardly, shuffling my feet. "I-it's just...I thought..."

The man behind me scoffed a little before putting his headphones back in and walking away, his hands back in his pockets. The two men in front of me studied me closely; the one who I had slapped was gaining a reddening cheek by each second that passed.

The unharmed man simply chuckled bitterly before getting back into the passenger seat of the van. I wasn't able to fully look the man in the eye, especially after seeing his cheek.

"I'm really sorry." I muttered. "I...I hope your cheek gets better."

"I'm a tough guy; I think I can manage." He replied. "But are you okay? It looks like you're really disturbed or something. Did you really think we were going to kidnap that little girl?"

I didn't know what to think anymore.

"I, uh, just moved here 2 weeks ago." I told him quietly. "I'm still...adjusting."

"Where'd you move from?"

I looked up, my blue eyes meeting his lighter ones and replied, "London."

His eyes immediately flashed in recognition, understanding crossing his face. He licked at his lips, obviously grasping why I was like this. "Oh-I've, uh, been there once. I went a few years back...uh, I can't blame you for moving away." He cleared his throat. "Although I've heard the police have gotten things pretty under control over there. They don't talk much about it, do they? They've never even talked about it on the news. The only reason I know this is because my friend lives there, and he called me one morning. But Cheshire isn't like London." He smiled at me, a smile full of understanding and utmost pity. "Unlike London, it's safe. People aren't here to hurt you. So I can see why it's taking you time to adjust."