Pills

Starting.

I've always wanted a nice home. Nothing too big; just a few floors, some tinted windows, a large pool in the back; that sort of thing. I hated being made fun of for my small, rundown trailer. I would just need a million dollars or so. That would be nice.

I didn't think it would actually happen.

I woke up in a blinding white room, off-white lights reflecting off marble floors. I squinted, not used to such bright lights. 

Needless to say, this wasn't my house.

I sat up and looked around. My eyes adjusted quickly, allowing me to see around the dust-free room. Smoky quartz pillars stood scattered across the room, patterns and details etched into the beautiful mineral, one of the pillars holding up a small fountain spewing crystal clear water. It took my breath away. That alone must've cost a grand or so, and that's just a small decoration in this room. Speaking of which, this room is probably bigger than my entire house.

Large gold symbols were neatly written on the walls. I couldn't figure out what they meant, but it was most likely profound and intelligent. I traced my fingers along the smooth material, hoping some of the sparkling gold would bleed onto my skin and make it beautiful. My footsteps echoed, despite the fact that I was walking quietly.

Perhaps the footsteps weren't my own?

I slowed my walking, but the sounds kept at the same pace. There was someone else here.

I started walking towards the source of the sound, the loud clacking reminding me of someone wearing heels. Perhaps this new person could tell me how I got here, or why I'm here. That would be nice.

Continuing my stroll, I came across the other pair of footsteps. Short, dark pink hair complemented pale skin and navy blue eyes. A strong jawbone showed off the playful smirk on the man's face, luscious pink lips curved beautifully. Dark blue cloth covered the man's spindly figure, golden buttons keeping the suit closed. Thigh-high boots covered thin jeans, the heels giving the man a somewhat feminine appearance. His smirk soon morphed into a large grin, white teeth seeming to be somewhat sharp. I smiled kindly, trying to make a good first impression.

"Ah, Hope, there you are!" My smile quickly faded as the strange effeminate male in front of me said my name. His voice was obviously meant to be calming, yet it sent off every alarm in my mind. My body immediately tensed, a chill running down my spine. "I was wondering where you ran off to! Follow me, I'll bring you back to the others."

"How... How do you know my name?" I stood still, refusing to follow the stranger. His smile grew wider.

"Oh, let's not talk about silly stuff like that. Now come on, I know you hate to leave people waiting!" He grabbed my wrist forcefully, dragging me along with him. I guess it's useless to struggle. He's surprisingly strong for his thin form.

We soon reached an even larger room, other children lined up against one of the walls. Fear and confusion filled the room. I was dragged to the same wall as the others, forced to stand close to another girl. The man backed up, stepping onto a small box, making him even taller than before.

"Listen up, my sweet little children! You all wanted better lives, so I'm giving you a better life. There's just one little thing you'll have to do every day." He paused, most likely for dramatic effect. "Just take one little pill, and you'll be allowed to stay here." He reached into his pocket, taking out a small blue pill with a smiley face printed onto it. It was actually more of a liquid capsule than a pill, but I guess they're similar.

The girl next to me raised her hand, almost hitting me. "Excuse me, sir? May I ask a question?"

The man chuckled. "Oh, silly Olivia, you just did!" Collective sighs could be heard. The girl, whose name was apparently Olivia, kept smiling, yet it seemed forced. She continued talking, ignoring him.

"Three questions. One, who are you? Two, where are we? Three, what do the pills do?"

He twitched at the first question. "One, I will not disclose my true name, but you can call me Dad, Daddy, or Father." Ugh, weird. I will not be calling this creep 'Daddy'. "Two, we're in a very nice home where you now live. Three, they don't do anything, if you're lucky."

"If I'm luc-"

"Oh shush you, unbridled creature. You'll find out soon enough. Now hurry along to your new rooms, I'll bring the pills as the clock strikes twelve." He started mumbling incoherent tongues, walking off to another room. I looked around at what I assumed to be my new housemates.

Olivia, the girl next to me, had long amber hair, blue eyes shining like diamonds. Those beautiful eyes, filled with only a hint of confusion. She seemed... smart. Like she would somehow find a way out of here.

I went to look at the others, but apparently they already left while I was looking at Olivia. She was looking at me too, a confused smile on her face.

"C'mon, let's go to our rooms. I remember where they are; I was exploring earlier." She motioned for me to follow her, holding out her hand cautiously. I reluctantly grabbed it, loving the feeling of her soft skin. She looked me up and down, most likely examining me too. We started walking together to the rooms, and she decided to break the silence. 

"Hey, what's your name?" She glanced over at me, awaiting a reply. I hesitated for a moment before talking.

"I'm... I'm Hope." I shut my mouth quickly before I said anything stupid. She waited to see if I would continue before she spoke again.

"That's a nice name..." An awkward silence ensued. "You're not much of a talker, are you?" I shook my head, slightly ashamed. "Oh, hun, don't be upset about that! That just means that you're good at listening and that people should value your voice when you decide to talk!" I smiled at her compliment, not sure what to say. "Well, we're here. Do you want to share a room?"

I peeked into the room she was pointing to. A bunk bed stood at one side of the room, a small desk at the other.

"Sure... This is a nice room." I stepped in, opening the drawers on the underside of the desk. A gun and a bloodied knife were poorly hidden under stacks of blank papers.

"Yeah, this place is amazing! The beds aren't too big, and I've always wanted a bunk bed and the walls are such a nice blue, and..." I tuned out her rambling, my eyes locked on the contents of the drawer.

Why? Would we need this? Whose blood is this? Is the gun loaded? What was the knife used for?

Do I get to use this...?

"Hope! Hey, Earth to Hope, you there?" Olivia's voice brought me back to reality. I closed the drawer and turned to her, forcing myself to smile and act as if everything were normal. "Are you a top or a bottom?"

...

What?

"Oh gosh, I meant for the bunk bed! Do you want the top bunk or the bottom bunk?" Oh.

"I'll take the bottom bunk... I tend to walk around a bit at night and I don't want to wake you by going down the ladder."

Olivia looked at me curiously, cocking her head. "Hey, you ok? You look like you've just seen a ghost or something."

"I... it's nothing. Come on, we can go introduce ourselves to the others, right?"

"Oh, yeah, let's go do that! That's a really good idea, Hope!" She grabbed my hand and dragged me out of the room.

Suddenly, she screamed.