The Mansion (One Direction)

T W E N T Y

littlethingss11 writing 2014 / updated 2017

Restraints curse my wrists as I hang in fear from the wall. Why am I here? Harry moves toward me, whip in hand. Niall, Zayn and Liam all carry weapons of sorts, smirks crossing each of their faces.

"You think you can escape us that easily?" Harry says slyly. Confusion and fear rush through my already shaking muscles.

"You got it easy, in fact you escaped completely unharmed." Niall continues from Harry.

"Unharmed? I have never been harmed more than when I was in the mansion." My voice breaks in fear, though they remained unaffected, emotionless and still.

"Was? Alex, sweetheart... you're still in the mansion," Liam's evil voice echoes throughout my head.

"No, no! It can't be!" I continue screaming, powerless.

"Remember this Alex, you will never escape us." Zayn says, fear is stirring inside me and before I can think any further, pain rings down my body as their weapons make hard contact with my body. Hit after hit, I continue to be abused by them. I scream and scream, my voice the only thing I can hear. I feel blood spilling over my skin.

"Alex. C'mon baby, open your eyes." The voice of an angel flows through my ears. Louis. His voice, even though it seems miles away, eases the pain of the lashings.

"You will never escape us, Alex," Harry haunts me further. "The tattoo will restrain you... forever."

"You're alright Alex," The angel speaks again. "Alex!"

I shoot up from my lying position, breath broken into broad gasps, almost on the verge on wheezing.

"It's just another dream darling, I'm here, you're alright." My blue eyes lock onto Louis, who is caressing my face and soothing my ragged state. Memories of my recurring dream flood my mind and I start to frantically search under the covers trying to gain access to my stomach to look for the tattoo, but to my relief it's not there.

"I keep telling you Alex, it isn't there... ever since I got you out six months ago. They're gone, remember? They're all locked away," Louis says, as if he read my mind. It's crazy to think it's been that long ago since we started our new life. "So, are you ready to go to school, Bianca Eileen?" I chuckle slightly at my witness protection name. It is to protect my identity to prevent the boys from the mansion from finding me. Louis took me to his police base and put me under the witness protection program. That's how I ended up here, a country away from the mansion, with Louis, and going to a public school where nobody knows who I am. It was really hard leaving everything behind, everything and everyone I had before the mansion, but I am safe now. I have been living with Louis since the change and he has been putting me in therapy and although it is helping, school is still terribly daunting because of how traumitised I am. Some days are worse than others. I am usually coming home every second day because I am drowned in bad memories and I have to be with Louis again.

Soon enough I am kissing Louis goodbye after he drops me at school and I head to class. As odd as the concept seems, going to school has been good because it makes me feel normal, mundane, but normal, which is what I need most. Class after class passes and I head back out of school in anticipation of seeing Louis. He did so much for me, putting me under protection to save my life. Over the past six months all we have done is care for each other and to me, that's all that matters. I stand outside school waiting for him, which is odd because every day he would come to meet me inside the school gates because I am too paranoid to stand outside of school, due to that fact that outside school was where Zayn took me in the first place. Today is different, because Louis isn't here and my stomach starts to turn. Louis isn't here. Louis is gone.