03. Panic, Fear

14K 297 29
                                    

- Chiara Romero - 

Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.

- Chiara Romero - 

Entering the penthouse, I was faced with 6 pairs of eyes staring down at me. None of them smiled at me or said anything, and it scared me. I edged myself closer to the only person I had been with for the longest, clutching the straps of my school backpack as close as I could to myself. 

I really wished that I had my teddy so that I could bury my face into it and that they would all stop staring. It reminded me of Mark and Eleanor, when they would stare at me in such way. I had heard once that they had wanted to sell me, whatever that meant.  "Well, Chiara, this is the rest of our brothers" the man beside me gestured to the 6 men in the room.

They were all men. I didn't like men. Men scared me. I could already feel the tears brimming in my eyes at this. I really wanted to reach for my teddy in my bag, that I had been laughed at for. I was the only one that brought my teddy, but I didn't care. It kept me safe wherever I ended up. 

Looking up, the man I had stepped closer to, was looking at me too, so I just nodded, not knowing if they had said anything. I was so lost. And confused. Why were they all staring at me? Why was I even here? I could feel my chest start to move faster than I knew it should. I wasn't sure, but I did know I was nervous. 

It was like that time I was forced to show my family tree in class, and I was the only one that didn't know much. Everyone had a mommy and daddy but I didn't. They all had siblings and I didn't. I wasn't sure who these men were, but they were all scary, and none of them had moved, but I had. I had moved, inch by inch, towards this man next to me. 

I had known him for the longest, and he seemed the safest person to be around. "Oscar, calm down "a new voice from behind me, startled my already shaking body. That's when I did it, not considering the consequences. I clutched onto the back of the person in front of me, terrified of these new people around me.

My hands shook at the tightness of holding on, trying to hide myself. I shut my eyes, waiting to be slapped to the ground and punched and kicked. I didn't like this at all. I wanted to go back to Eleanor and Marks cause I knew what was coming then. I knew how much it would hurt and I was ready for it. I just wanted to leave here. 

"Baby, look at me" that's when I noticed that someone was crouched at the side of me, as I continued to clutch the man's blazer. I didn't like that name that he had used. I shivered, holding on even tighter if that was possible. I felt really small, like really really small unlike the rest of them. They were really really tall like Mark was. 

"I can't breathe" I whispered, squeezing my eyes shut even tighter. I didn't even know that I had said something or who was even there. I just blurted something out, and I knew it cause I was nervous. I think that was what I had been told by my mama when I first spoke to her. She said I rambled to her, but she never told me anything more than that. She just left. 

I then felt an arm slither around my waist, as the man in front of me crouched in front of me causing me to lose my grip, causing me to have to clutch my hands tightly in fists, digging into my palm. I tried to hold on as tight as I could, closing my eyes as hard as they would let me do so. I didn't want to see anything or anyone. If I couldn't see them, they wouldn't be able to see me.

Finding Home | ✍🏼Where stories live. Discover now