It's Not All Roses | Editing

Chapter 5

Rosa:
The city was caked in darkness making it near impossible to see my own hand in front of my face. Cars brushed past in a blurry mess, pushing the wind against my face. Cold shivered down my spine in the eerie blackness. My teeth began to chatter uncontrollably while the rest of my body shook in the bitter cold.

Whilst I shivered, a sinister, black fog spread around the city, dampening the little light left. The frigid air grew more unbearable every second. Soon there was nothing left but the black fog and the spine chilling fog.

All of a sudden, a tall lanky man appeared from behind me, cupping his hand over my mouth. I tried to scream for help but no words cam out. Within a few seconds, I was hauled into a black van. The tainted air around me grew thicker, suckjng out the remaining oxygen as it threatened to choke me.

Before I knew whag was happening, my kidnapper removed his mask. I finally let out a scream when my supervisor was towering over me. She slapped her hand across my face before she pointed a gun at my head.

Finally, I snapped my eyes open! I started panting, sweat coating my forehead. But it was over. I had escaped the nightmare I was trapped in. It was such a random dream, but it was a common one.

My breathing began to calm and I relaxed against the wall behind me. The covers were warm and comforting unlike the ones we had at home. Home? It's not really my home. The orphanage is were I live but I've never really considered it my home. I guess perhaps it isn't.

Collapsing in my pillow, I imagined what would happen once I left the orphanage. I imagined marrying someone and living in a huge house with them. Watching children run around the house laughing and playing. That would be home. But that's not an easy thing to get.

While I thought about my possible future, I attempted to drift off to sleep. However I was unsuccessful.

Unfortunately, the image of the nightmare still played again and again in my mind like a broken record. Tossing and turning, I ended up wrapping the blanket around my slim figure like a sausage roll.

Giving up, I decided to try walking around the room for a bit which sometimes helps. Although I walked around for about ten minutes, I still couldn't go back tk sleep. So instead I would see if I could grab a quick drink.

Unsurprisingly, the lights were shut off and no one was in the living room. Not daring to turn on the lights possibly awaking everyone, I attempted to find my way in the dark.

When I found the cupboard where the keep their glasses, I couldn't help feeling a little guilty. As though I was crossing a lime and trespassing. But it was only a glass of water. Right? Despite me reassuring myself, I changed my mind and closed the cupboard.

As began to walk i heard the faint sound of unfamiliar voices shouting. The sound grows gets louder as a gunshot is fired and a woman screams. I walked over to Lucas' room, where the sound is coming from.

He is wide awake and was staring at a tv show on his phone. The blueish glare from his phone prints onto his face. His hazel eyes reflecting the ongoing fight on his phone.

Accidentally, I stumble making the door creak loudly. As my eyes widened in fear, so does his. He quickly attempted to stash his phone underneath his blanket, assuming I was his mum was at the door. He relaxed though once he realises its only me.

"Hey, how come you're still awake?" Lucas asked relieved while he dusted his dirty blonde hair out of his face. "It's three in the morning."

"I could ask you the same thing." His mouth curved into a cheeky grin as he tried to come up with a clever excuse.

"I was watching Netflix on my phone. What's your excuse?" We both struggled to keep a straight face as he said this. "Being awake at three in the morning is just unacceptable."

He slid himself over onto the other half of his bed, leaving a space for me to sit next to him. I sat beside him in the space between the covers and his pillow, legs crossed.

"If you must know, I couldn't sleep. I heard something coming from here and curiosity got the best of me." I stated matter of factly. "Is that a good enough excuse for you?"

"No." He said jokingly, flicking his hair out of his eyes. "As punishment you are being banished."

As he said this he pushed me off the bed, as I tried my hardest not to yell. As I sat on the floor, I glared at Lucas laughing uncontrollably. Meanwhile, Lucas stared at me while he cackled maliciously.

With the amount of noise we were making, we were surprised Lucas' mum didn't come in yelling. Perhaps she slept like the dead. Or maybe she just didn't care. Whatever the reason, I was grateful for it. I wouldn't look forward to her barging in and screaming her head off.

Jumping back into the bed, I tried to push Lucas' off in revenge. However, he was much stronger than I was and just laughed at my failure. I whacked his shoulder with the of my hand sulking in my defeat.

In retaliation, I kicked at his feat making absolutely no difference at all. He gazed at me smirking when I looked away for a moment. My cheeks flushed red as I suppressed a smile. When I looked back up at him he was still staring at me. However to my relief his gaze had become a lot more playful than before.

"What?" I asked, confused. Why was he staring at me like that?

"I need to tell you something." He said, pressing his lips close to my right ear.

I could feel his warm breath on my neck as I waited in anticipation. What was he going to say? Was it important. Was it a secret? If it was, why was he telling me? I only met him two days ago.

"You're an onion." He whispered, laughing to himself. I pulled away both disappointed and annoyed.

"What the hell! That's not even funny it's just weird." Controversially, I still continued to laugh even louder after saying this. I looked like a complete idiot. What Lucas must think of me at this point.

"Do you want to watch something on my phone?" He asked quickly changing the subject as he pulled out his phone. While he scrolled through his home page I peered over his shoulder curiously.

In the orphanage we never got to watch tv so I'd never been able to watch anything like Netflix. Whenever I went to school most people would be talking about their favourite TV shows and films. They would would reference quotes and plan to watch them together. But I was always left out.

"I know a show you'll probably love. I mean you'd be crazy if you don't love it." I watched him scroll onto a TV show called friends.

He flipped his phone sideways pressing play on the entertaining comedy. Finally, I was able to understand why everyone loved these shows so much. Why so many people wasted hours sitted in front of their phones or tvs.

While each episode led into another, I unconsciously moved closer to Lucas. My head rested on his shoulder and his left arm was wrapped around my waist. I could feel his every breath and his heart beating. Nothing could take away this perfect moment.

After an hour, Lucas' phone turned itself off. Both me and him had fallen asleep and my head was lying on his chest. He still had his arm wrapped around my waist, making it impossible for us to be any closer.

Unknown:
I sat in my car, half asleep as I waited for her return. It was four in the morning so chances are she is probably staying somewhere else for the night. Why I had waited here this long was unknown to me.

There was no way I good truly know where she was but I could have a good guess. My assumption would be that she stayed with that boy. After all, he was the only friend she had made so far at that new school of hers.

Thinking its a fair guess I chose to go back home. I'd try again later in the day to see if she's made any progress. If she's anything like her mother, it would be dangerous to just let her walk free.

While I drove away, I thought of devious plans to get rid of her. There was murder, but we wouldn't have the option of using her. Kidnapping? There would be a search but that can be fixed. Then it hit me. The perfect plot. A twisted smile grew on my face as I began to pan out the details. What could go wrong?