Alex's (POV)
My hands dangle above my head.
The cuffs bite into the soft skin of my wrists, sending drizzles of warm, itchy blood down my arms.
The grief of Jacks' death two days ago, still sitting heavily on my chest.
I deserve the pain.
Staring blankly at the cracked and worn stone wall, I wait for Razim to come back.
And soon-enough, the door opens and he strides in. Julie's follows behind, his normal smirk plastered across the face I see every time I look in the mirror.
Razim stops in front of me, his arms crossing behind his back. Looking me in the eye, he smiles.
My eyes slightly widen in response. Razim doesn't show emotion. So why is he showing it now of all times? Maybe the stress of everything that's happened has finally broken his emotionless facade....?
He stares into my eyes, hate filling them to the core. Turning away, he walks over to the little table that's located in the middle of the room.
Julius just stands in the corner, the smirk never leaving his-my face.
I look between the two.
What are they planning now?
Sweat rolls down my forehead, stinging my eyes.
Razim picks up a knife, plucking the sharp end with his pointy finger. Turning, he walks back over to me.
With arms trembling from the stress of holding me up and blood pounding in my ears.
I defiantly stare him down.
Getting up close to my face, he smirks. Twirling the knife expertly in his hand, he looks over at Julius. A message passing between them.
Julius steps out of the room.
"Poor Alex." Razim circles around me, and I shiver as he lightly traces the cold knife across my bare chest. "All alone." He stops in front of me again.
"His dear friend, Jack...Dead." He mocks.
I feel anger build up inside me, the need to release it becoming too much. So I do the only thing I'm capable of at the moment.
I spit in his face.
He stares at me, that emotionless face that I knew coming back. Slowly, he raises his empty hand up to his face. Wiping it off, he smiles.
"You'll pay for that." He quietly seethes. "Although, you'll be paying for everything soon enough." He finishes.
With my heart now hammering in my chest like a piston at full speed, I recall what he said the other day....the day he killed Jack.
"I'm going to destroy everything you ever cared for."
My throat closes up, chest clinching in fear.
No.
Frantically, I pull on my chains.
He laughs. "Yes Alex, you guessed it." He motions towards the door. "We brought you company."
With dread filling me, I look over at the door.
Rat and Stick come in carrying a struggling person. His hands are tied behind his back, a blindfold covering his eyes, and a gag in his mouth.
In a instant, I take in the black spiky hair, the short stature, and what I can of his face.
My heart stops.
Tom.
Quickly, I look back over at Razim. "Don't bring him into this...he didn't do anything!" I plead, desperation clearly in my voice.
No one else can die because of me.
Please no.
Razims' eyes flash with hate. "Oh yeah?" He walks over to Tom who's been dumped on the ground a couple feet away from me. "He didn't do anything you say?" He crouches down in front of him.
"Well he's your friend!" Razim yells, ripping off the blindfold. "And I'd say that's enough reason."
Tom blinks, eyes adjusting to what little light is in the room.
He calmly looks around, taking everything in. And when his dark blue eyes land on me, they widen, and he immediately begins to ramble into the gag.
Not able to understand a word he's saying, I shake my head.
He stops.
Taking in the room again, I watch as his brave facade starts to shatter. His eyes fill with fear, body starting to tremble.
My own eyes begin filling with fresh tears.
I know what's going to happen. Just like with Jack.
"Tom." I croak out, my throat closing up.
He looks back over at me.
"I was going to be nice and let the two of you spend the day together....to say your goodbyes." Razims' voice brings my attention back to him. "But after that little stunt you pulled, Alex.....you get to say goodbyes now."
Julius walks back in.
No...this-this can't be happening again!
"Do what you want with me." I rush out, looking back at Tom. He shakes his head at my words, already knowing what I'm going to say. "But don't hurt him......please." Tom begins to mumble into the rag again, his fear being replaced with stubborn anger.
And that's how I know he's going to do something stupid.
Quickly, Tom kicks out with his right leg. It connects with Razims' shin, a resounding whack echoing in the room.
Razim's eyes widen in pain.
He hops onto one foot, reaching down to hold onto his injured leg. He looks up at his minions, his face thunderous. "You idiots! Your supposed to contain him!" He yells.
Tom shouts something into the rag - which probably wasn't very nice, his eyes staring over at Razim.
Typical Tom.
I feel myself give a small smile in-spite of our situation.
You can always depend on him.
But that smile instantly reverses as Razim angrily storms over to Tom. With a quick movement, he stabs down, hilt deep into Toms' shoulder.
Tom screams into the rag, his eyes squeezing shut as he rolls into a ball. Whimpers falling from his mouth.
I close my own eyes, trying to block the screams of my best friend from my mind. His pain filled whimpers that fill up the room, the sickening laughs of everyone but Razim.
I open my eyes as I feel a hand tightly grasp my chin, angling my head upward. Razim stares into my eyes, cold and unyielding.
He forces me to look back over at Tom.
Julius walks over to Tom. Bending down, he grabs the hilt of the knife, twisting it around before roughly jerking it out.
I flinch as more screams fill the room.
Razim squeezes my chin harder. "You see this?" He looks deep into my eyes. "THIS, Alex. Is because of you." He growls.
My eyes widen.
He's right.
A smirking Julius suddenly steps down onto Toms' shoulder. Another scream hitting the walls of the room, tears falling from his eyes. Gasps for air.
"No!" I shout, frantically pulling on my chains again.
I will not stand quiet for this.
"Don't you see?" Razim questions. "There's nothing you can do." He teasingly whispers into my ear.
Stick and Rat pull Tom up off the floor. Standing him up, they bring him closer so he's only a foot away from me.
Tom's eyes are heavy, his head rocking to the side. His shirt a bloody mess at the shoulder.
They roughly take off his gag.
"Alex." He mumbles out, eyes fluttering.
"Tom." I answer, looking into his eyes. Hoping he'll forgive me. "I'm sorry. So, so sorry." Tears fall down my cheeks, jaw trembling.
Before Tom can even try to form an answer, Razim interrupts. "How heart warming." He smirks, motioning for Julius to come forward.
My heart lurches as Julius brings out a large pistol. Pointing it at Toms' forehead.
"No!" I shout again, not wanting to believe what's about to happen.
I look into Tom's tearful, bloodshot eyes. He holds my gaze, his mouth suddenly moving. "Alex....I..."
He never finishes.
A loud explosion fills the room, echoing painfully in my ears.
I watch in stark horror as a bullet enters Toms' forehead like it was made of rubber, blood exploding everywhere. It sprays onto my clothes, my face, into my mouth.....Everywhere.
I stare in shock as my best friend falls backwards, his body hitting the ground with a stomach twisting smack. The life draining from his open eyes.
Tom.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
I gasp, the air spluttering through my lungs a mile a minute. The taste of blood still in my mouth.
Blood.
Bile rises in my throat, a choking sensation wrapping around me. Shakily, I sit up, raising my left hand up to my face.
Blue eyes staring lifelessly at me.
Biting down hard on my hand, I'm able to control my rapid breathing, my gag reflexes. The shaking, the memories.
Tom.
My heart thunders in my ears, and I squeeze my eyes shut, containing the tears that so badly want to show.
Moving to raise my right arm, I gasp as a sharp pain flares out from my shoulder blade, spreading down all through my arm.
Pain.
Deserved pain.
I shake my head, trying to keep the dark thoughts back.
Facts......I need facts.
Pulling my knees up to my chest, I carefully wrap my arms around them. Wincing as it pulls on my shoulder.
Today is.....Monday, it's - I look down at my watch I wear even to bed, 6:21 A.M. And I've been here with the Browns for eleven days now.
I feel myself calm down at just those simple thoughts, my mind moving onto something else.
Unfolding myself, I step down off the bed.
My eyes widen as my feet tangle in the pile of twisted covers on the floor, my balance leaving me for a split second.
Catching myself, I exhale a big breath.
Shakily, I step out of the danger zone, my foot suddenly landing on something uneven and slippery. With eyes widening again, I fall down, not able to save myself this time.
I open my mouth in a silent scream as my right shoulder hits the floor like a sack of potatoes.
Curling up on the wood floor, I hold my shoulder as a terrible fire spreads throughout my whole back and up my arm.
Tears fill my eyes as I look around for an explanation as to what I tripped on...again.
My eyes land on the ice pack Lucy had brought me up last night for my shoulder. It just sitting there all innocent like beside the mess of covers that must've fallen off the bed during my nightmare.
I groan.
Stupid ice pack.
When the pain passes, I hesitantly get up.
I wince. Definitely isn't any better today, especially after that little incident.
Grabbing some clean clothes, I make my way towards the bathroom. Splashing some cold water on my face, I place my arms down against the cool sink, hanging my head down low as I try to get rid of what's left of the nightmare.
After a few minutes, I continue with the usual. While changing my shirt, I check my shoulder.
I sigh. It looks the same, if not worse.
Going out, I head down to the kitchen. Lucy's at the stove, evidently no one else downstairs yet.
She turns towards me, a smile on her face. "Good morning, Alex!" She good heartily says.
Not able to muster up an answer, I give her what I hope is a convincing smile.
She doesn't buy it.
Her smile turns upside down as she frowns. "What's wrong?" She walks over to me, trying to catch my gaze.
Might as well tell her my shoulder isn't any better.
"My s-shoulder s-still hurts." I quietly stumble out, avoiding eye contact. Well it is the truth. It's just not the main reason I'm upset.
She looks a bit relieved, which just makes me feel guiltier. "Well, I'm sure it'll be a couple days before it's much better." She assures, leading me over to the table. "Your to sit today and just ice it, no strenuous activities. Alright?" She raises her eyebrow.
I give her a nod.
Sitting down, Lucy leans over me as she places some bacon and eggs down on my plate.
As she moves to back-away, her arm brushes against my swollen shoulder.
I suck in a breath.
She notices. "I'm sorry, Alex." She pauses. "It hurts that bad?" She asks, puzzled.
"Yes." I answer, shrinking down in my seat.
That's an understatement.
She's quiet for a moment. "And your sure it's nothing more than just swollen?" She questions, obviously getting worried.
It's not.
"It's fine." I mumble.
"Alright...." She relents. "But remember, your icing it all day." She firmly states, walking back to the stove.
Don comes in through the living room door.
Lucy looks over at him. "Did you get that ATV back to the shop?" She asks.
"Yeah, got it loaded and ready to go. Ben's taking it now." He answers while taking a seat.
A heavy feeling envelops me.
Mr. March.
"Morning." Don says to me with a smile.
I mumble out a reply, picking at the eggs with my fork.
I hear a thump in the hallway, then a muffled yell.
Don seems amused. "Looks like sleeping beauty's up." Lucy gives Don a hard stare.
And sure enough, Mack - with his crutches, comes hobbling in through the kitchen door. "Morning everyone." He grumbles.
Don raises his eyebrows. "What happened to your good mood yesterday?" He laughs. "You were all rainbows and sunshine then."
Mack frowns. "That was yesterday." He deadpans.
Lucy wraps Mack up in a hug. "Did you sleep alright?" She questions, kissing him on the forehead.
She pulls out his chair, taking his crutches from him. Mack then takes a seat, letting out a sigh.
"Yeah, it didn't really bother me then." He digs into his eggs, his mood turning brighter with each bite.
"What would." Don quietly mumbles under his breath as he gets a drink of coffee.
Macks' gaze sweeps back to Don. Giving him the stink-eye, he continues. "I fell down the last step on the stairs. That's why I'm in a bad mood." He explains, jelling up a biscuit.
I look back down at my food.
Not really having an appetite, I eat one forkful of my eggs before taking my pills.
"So Alex, you up for going to the fair tomorrow?" Mack questions, his attention on me. "It's a yearly thing." He says as-if that explained everything.
I don't know. That involves people.....a lot of people.
Mack seeing my hesitation, adds more. "It'll be fun." He says, eyes genuinely looking hopeful.
I shrug my left shoulder. "Alright." I decide.
Might as well.
Mack smiles. "Awesome!" He looks over at Don. "What time are we leaving?" He questions.
Don looks thoughtful. "Twelve thirty I guess will work."
"Is Polly back from Florida yet?" Lucy asks Mack while she finishes something up at the stove.
Mack chews up the biscuit in his mouth, swallowing. "Yeah, she just got back on Saturday. She's planning on meeting us there." He says, not bothering to elaborate anything for me.
Who's Polly?
Lucy brings a bowl over to Don, setting it down before she takes her seat. "Would anyone else like some tomato soup?" She asks.
Mack makes a face. "No thanks. I'm good." He looks over at me, fake gagging.
I shake my head as an answer for Lucy, who's rolling her eyes at Mack's reaction.
"No one can appreciate a good old fashioned breakfast these days." Don says, sounding mildly upset over it.
Looking over at him, I catch a glimpse of inside the bowl.
Red.
I tense up.
Like....blood.
My wide eyes stay glued to the bowl.
I wouldn't usually act like this over a simple bowl of red liquid. But after that specific nightmare....
My breathing hitches, hands growing sweaty.
Blood spattering my face.
Everything's gone quiet....foggy almost. Surreal.
In my mouth.
Something at the corner of my eye, catches my attention.
Looking over at the far end of the table no one sits at, I literally stop breathing.
With wide eyes I take in the black spiked hair, the blue mischievous eyes, the short stature, a goofy smile that looks as-if it permanently resides on his face.
Chills race down my back, goosebumps rising on my arms.
Tom?
With my heart hammering in my ears, I watch in stunned silence as a small dark spot begins to steadily grow in the middle of his forehead.
His eyes that had been so full of life, suddenly turn to a dull blue. The smile turning into a scream that never came.
Bright red seeps down his face like a river.
Jerking my gaze away, I quickly stand up. Wincing as my chair hits the ground with a loud bang, the noise echoing in my ears.
My throat feels extra tight, my chest growing itchy. Making it hard to just breath.
"Alex." A voice says.
Glancing back over at where I saw...him. I see he's gone.
I look with unfocused eyes, back over at everyone else.
They're staring at me with wide eyes, apparently having called me more than once during my little episode.
Before they can say anything else, I reach down with a trembling arm, pulling the chair back upright.
Not bothering to even excuse myself, I wrap my arms around my middle, heading towards the front door as I avoid everyone's questioning gazes.
With my breathing coming out in short, quick gasps, I make my way out the door, over towards the tree.
Sitting down, I take my normal position.
Bending my head down, I run a shaky hand through my hair.
He looked so real, so....alive.
Well, he did until the bullet hole showed up on his forehead.
It's not fair that....he's dead, and I'm....alive.
I feel a tear hit my hand.
It's all my fault.......all my fault.
All your fault.
His last words were probably that he hated me...and wished he'd never even met me.
It's normal for people suffering from PTSD to have...vivid images - as I've been told multiple times anyway. I had them almost everyday when I was at the hospital for the first couple weeks after I was.....rescued. Ended up scaring a couple nurses during that time.
After a few minutes, I can finally breath again, the tears gone.
I jump as something suddenly touches my left shoulder. With my heart speeding back up, I look over.
Mack's standing there, confusion etched across his features.
"Are you alright?" He timidly asks, almost like he's shy or something.
No.
I shrug my left shoulder.
He holds out an ice pack. "Here, Lucy said you needed this." I hesitantly take it from him.
He looks out over the fields, shuffling his feet around. "You wanna go play some Xbox?" He shoots out.
I raise an eyebrow.
I didn't know they had an Xbox.
Though, maybe it would help keep the thoughts from invading my head? And I'd do anything to stop those.
"O-Okay." I say through my bout of hiccups I've suddenly come down with.
Wiping my face off, I make a move to stand up.
Mack reaches his hand out towards me, the meaning obvious. I stare at it, the feeling almost foreign.
Accepting his hand, he pulls me up to my feet. Smiling, he hobbles over towards the house.
Taking one last look back out over the fields, I follow.
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A/N
Hello again!!!!!
Sorry guys that's all I have time for today.🤗 let's see this chapter took me at-least five hours to write, and I've listened to Christmas music the whole time.😍😆(I love Christmas music!!)
So questions.....
1. Why do you think Alex avoids eye contact as much as possible??? (Think really hard, it's been all throughout the story so far.)
2. Who's Polly??
3. Don't you feel bad for Alex?? (I feel horrible, and I'm the one writing it)
I'd love to hear anyone's opinions!!!!😍
Thank you again everyone!!!!!
Special thanks to RheaKatariya, GlitzyDiamond, and ThatOneCrazyChick25!!!! Thanks guys!!!😃
Next update: Thursday.
Alright everyone.....Vote......and please Comment, I love COMMENTS!!!!!! (Remember I like at least four comments, and votes before I update....cause I'm evil) 😇😁
And guys.....*squeals* this story has 1k reads now!!!! Thank you all so much, it means so much. I just never thought this would be possible!!!😭😍🙂
Maggy
Edited: 6/12/17