Diane bobbed her head to the music, singing the song on the radio under her breath. You laid your head on the window, the cool glass relieving some of your discomfort. You felt like you were on a roller coaster, the world around you spinning one way then the next. You looked over at her, slightly jealous that she felt fine. She noticed and took her eyes off the road long enough to get a good look at you. She frowned and put her hand on your knee, caressing it with her thumb.
"I can turn around if you want. I think you need the rest," she said, drowning out the music.
You shook your head, groaning. For some reason the pounding behind your eyes grew stronger. You shouldn't have done that.
"I need to see Mandy. I need to talk to her face to face. I won't stay long, but I still need to do this."
Diane bit the corner of her lip, thinking about something. She nodded in response, removing her hand and then sticking it in her coat pocket. She pulled it back out, holding out her hand in front of you. In her palm sat two different pills. You sat up, looking over at her.
"What are those?"
"Aspirin, to help your headache," she said quietly, forcing a smile.
You picked up the pills and looked at them. One was different from the other.
"One of them isn't the same as the other though," you said, wondering if she had accidentally pulled out the wrong pills.
"One is an aspirin, the other is a stronger pain killer. A full dose of aspirin isn't enough to knock that migraine out completely, but a full dose of a pain killer would knock you out, and I know you want to be as coherent as possible during your meeting with Mandy."
Diane smiled nervously at you. You couldn't help but smile back. You knew she didn't want you to go off alone right now, but the fact that she was trying her hardest to make sure you could do what you wanted just made your heart sing. You threw back the pills and swallowed, eager for them to kick in.
Diane watched you for a moment longer and you raised your eyebrows at her, chuckling nervously.
"What? Do I have something on my face?" you asked.
She smiled and blushed, turning her eyes back to the road. Her smile remained though.
"No, just making sure you took your medication since I can't trust you to eat your breakfast," she said, her voice laced with a sassy tone.
You laughed, even though your head protested. You reached over and hit Diane's shoulder and she gasped, holding her arm dramatically.
"Watch it missy, or I'm going to have to punish you."
Suddenly the air in the car seemed thick, and she looked over at you in a way you hadn't seen before. Something was different in her eyes and her smile was curved... differently.
You laughed nervously, unsure of what to do. She looked at you for a moment longer in silence before coming to and turning her eyes back to the road. She cleared her throat and her eyes seemed to dart around the road.
"So I am going to run by the pharmacy when you're with Mandy and pick up some flu medicine. I think that's what going on with you. It wouldn't be surprising after that week you spent cramped on a bus with God knows who," she said. She said it in a completely normal tone as if what just happened, hadn't.
You slumped in your seat and nodded.
"Yeah, sure. Okay," you mumbled as you turned the other way. Diane confused you.
Diane dropped you off a block away from the coffee shop. It was a real fight for her to agree, but she finally said okay if you promised to take the mug of tea you hadn't touched with you. You told her you just wanted to stretch your legs and walk a bit, but really you just didn't want to look like you were a little kid being dropped off by your mom to a playdate. You agreed to meet her back in two hours and you went on your way.
You saw Mandy in the coffee shop window, early as usual. She always liked to be the first one to arrive, no matter what the circumstance. She was on her laptop, sipping her drink, looking beautiful and healthy. You could barely contain your excitement and your chest tightened. You quickly took a puff of your inhaler and ran inside, another sweet little bell signaling your arrival.
Mandy looked up and met your stare, her face nearly splitting in half from her smile. She hopped off the stool and ran to you. You met her in the middle and you crashed into one another's arms. You nuzzled into her hair, letting it hide your tears. You had missed her so much. It had been so long since you had seen her face. She pulled back, looking you over. Immediately her face fell.
"What happened to you? What is this cut? Why are you so pale?" she asked, her hands frantic on your face, turning it from side to side looking for more injures.
You laughed and knocked her hands away.
"Well hello to you too.. I had a little bit of an accident and I think I'm coming down with something, but truly I'm fine."
She lead you to the table and you sat across from her. You forced your face to remain normal, even though climbing onto the stool was painful. You placed your cup on the table and leaned on it. Mandy stared at you for a while.
"So, what was this accident that left a dent in my baby sisters head?"
"Someone accidentally.... hit me with their car?"
The silence between that followed was deafening. Her face was void of any emotion, unblinking.
"I'm sorry, what? Someone did WHAT?" she hissed, suddenly exploding.
You leaned back, afraid Mandy may actually smack you.
"I walked into the street without looking. But it's okay because the person who hit me with their car had medical training! They took care of me. Really, I'm fine."
Mandy looked at you, dumbfounded.
"Okay, we are gonna touch back on that later. Do you want anything to eat or drink? I'll cover you."
You shook your head and pushed the travel mug towards her on the table.
"No I'm okay. I promised I'd drink this."
"Who brings coffee to a coffee shop with them? And what is that? Why does it smell like that?"
"I promised I'd drink it. It's some sort of herbal thing, I dunno. Supposed to help with my immune system or something."
Mandy took a bigger sniff of it, gagging. She pushed it back towards you again.
"Please tell me you didn't take that from someone off the street. You don't know how to say no and Y/n I'm pretty sure that's someone's pis-"
"No! Why don't you have more faith in me? The woman I'm staying with makes it for me," you said, grabbing it and taking sip, suppressing the grimace you felt. You hated it, but she didn't need to know that.
"Ahh okay. Yeah, please tell me more about this mysterious woman who just let a random stranger into her home with no ulterior motives," she said, taking a dramatic sip of her own drink. She coughed, choking on it. You tried to suppress a smile, but you couldn't and she saw it so she kicked you under the table.
"She's not some weirdo. She's actually the one who hit me with her car-"
"OH MY GOD. You're making this up. This can not be real Y/n."
"Would you stop? You make it so difficult to tell a story! Yes, she is the one who hit me with her car. Her name is Diane and-"
"Diane what?"
You looked over at Mandy, angry for her cutting you off once again, but the look on her face made your stomach drop a bit. She wasn't playing. She was serious.
"Uh, Diane? Diane Sherman.." you squeaked, clasping the cup in your hand nervously.
Mandy shook her head violently, her face suddenly pale.
"No. No you can not go back there Y/n. She is dangerous."
"What? No she's not! She's been nothing but nice and has taken care of me."
Your voice shook. Why did Mandy have to be so negative about everything?
"Do you know her?" Mandy asked, her voice sharp and abrasive.
"She's a teacher, she lives alone, she had a daughter once, and she travelled and then settled down here."
Mandy shook her head again.
"No, she's NOT a teacher. She can't be around children after her arrest."
You sat and looked at her, shocked.
"Then, what does she do? She has a big house," you said, looking at the ground. You felt small again. So small.
"THATS WHAT YOURE WORRIED ABOUT? Did you hear me? She was ARRESTED! She didn't travel, she was in jail! Wanna know why, Y/n?"
"No-"
"SHE KIDNAPPED A BABY! She never had a daughter! She tried to steal someone elses! Right from the hospital! Went into the infant ward and plucked a random baby from a cot and tried to stuff it in a bag and run off with it! Thank God that baby was wearing a security bracelet or she could have gotten away."
You slumped in the stool, unable to keep your body up. Your head spun. Nothing felt real all of the sudden and you were sure you were going to be sick. Your eyes stung and you felt your chest tighten. You were drowning.
"No. Th-that can't be true. You're lying."
Mandy huffed and turned back to her laptop, smacking the keys violently. She clicked on something and turned it around to face you, the screen on a newspaper article.
Diane's mugshot was bright and harsh, staring back at you. Right above it was the headline "ATTEMPTED BABY SNATCHING IN ILLINOIS". You opened your mouth, but could find no words. Instead, tears fell from your eyes silently, landing on the table top.
Mandy could see your distress, taking the laptop and shutting it. She reached over and grabbed your hand and caressed it. You looked up at her, your chest aching.
"I'm sorry Y/n, but it's gonna be okay. We're gonna get you some where safe, okay?"
"But-but.. I am safe. That was a long time ago Mandy. She's changed. She's different," she murmured. You couldn't accept what Mandy was saying.
"No honey, she hasn't. I know this about Diane because she was stalking me. She seemed nice at first, but then she started following me. She'd call me nonstop, and just show up to where ever I was. I know she broke into my dorm and stole stuff of mine. Before I started suspecting something was up, I'd go over to her house for dinner and everytime would leave so sick and tired. I could never prove it, but I'm certain she was drugging me."
You shook your head. No, no, absolutely not. You stumbled out of your chair, your head pounding. Your vision was blurring, and you could feel your heart in your throat. You tried to pull in a breath, but your throat was closing. You stumbled and fell, knocking the travel mug onto the floor. You heard it shatter, but it seemed like it happened in another world. Nothing was happening here. It was just you, the cold floor, and your heartbeat.
You heard Mandy say something, running towards the bathroom. You weren't sure what she said, but you didn't try to move. You couldn't move, your body felt like stone. You gasped for air, but you began to choke and gag instead. You were scared, you were sick, and you were heartbroken.
You heard the little ringing of the door's bell in some far off land, and suddenly before your eyes was the face of Diane. You tried to move, and you weren't sure if your goal was to get away from her or to cling to her, but either was pointless. You had no control over your body. You were in one of your panic attacks
All you could do is search her face with your eyes. She looked scared, tears in her eyes, her nose running. She looked to something in the distance, her expression almost scary. She looked back down at you and kissed your forehead before leaning closer to you.
"Hey sweet girl. It's okay. I've got you. I'm gonna take you home now, but I need you to be quiet," she whispered so close to your ear that you could feel her lips on the shell of it.
You wanted to scream, to yell for Mandy, but you could not. You wondered where the coffee shop employees had gone and if they were going to get help. You looked up into Diane's eyes and she smiled desperately at you. Your heart ached. You were so scared, you did not want to go with her. Yet at the same time, part of you did. You could not believe what you had been told.
You felt Diane pick you up from the floor, leaving behind the shattered cup and rushed you out of the door, running down the block with you. She threw you into the passenger seat, not even bothering to buckle you up. You leaned against the door, slumped over. Diane got into the drivers seat and fumbled with the keys, her hand shaking. She turned the ignition and hit the gas, leaving town before Mandy even came back from the bathroom.
Diane drove fast back towards the house, biting her nails. She breathed heavily and you could only watch her out of the corner of your eye. Who was she? Why had she lied? What else was she hiding?
Suddenly Diane took a sharp turn, not breaking, causing you to fly from the seat and fall into her lap. You groaned, feeling a bit more in control. Diane looked down and smiled. Sniffling she petted your hair and shooshed you. You went to push yourself up but Diane pushed you back down. Your breathing became ragged again and you were afraid you were going to hyperventilate.
You felt the car go off road and then go into park. Diane reached behind your seat and got a first aid kit, opening it. Then, you felt a prick in the side of your neck. You gasped and cried out. You scratched at Diane, attempting to push yourself away from her body. Warmth spread through your muscles and your vision seeped away into a black mist, but not before you heard it. Her voice in your ear.
"It's okay baby. I'm here. I'm here now."