The hand.

Chapter seventeen

"Zac-" I tried to calm him down but he cut me off.
"IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT"
He yelled.
"Calm down! Take deep breaths and count to ten" I tried again.
"NO! I'VE BEEN KEEPING THIS ANGER INSIDE EVER SINCE THAT NIGHT YOU KICKED ME OUT! EVER SINCE ALEX LEFT!"
I bit my lip to stop myself from crying.
"Come on,lie down,you need to sleep and we'll talk about it in the morning. We're both very tired"
I put my hands out to try and get him to lie down but he slapped my hands away.
"NO! LEAVE ME ALONE! I HATE YOU!!"
I bit my lip so hard,I tasted blood. Hearing him say that hurt more than I want to admit. I thought I was going to cry in front of him but I surprisingly managed to control my emotions.

I didn't know what to do. How do I calm him down?
'Okay I can do this. He's just like all my other patients. I am a trained psychiatrist. This is my job. Come on Aubrey, use you knowledge. I've calmed him down before.'
By now he was curled up in a ball, sobbing on the floor.

I thought back to when we were in the hospital and he got upset. I calmed him down with a tight hug.

I kneeled down next to him on the floor and gently put my arms around him. He didn't calm down so I pulled him in closer.

Just when I thought it worked,he shocked me.
He suddenly grabbed my arms and pushed me off him.
I landed on my back and just stared at him in shock.

I could feel my anger taking over. I know he's upset but there was no need for him to push me like that. If he wanted space he could have just told me to get off.

He seemed to have realised what he'd done and a look of guilt spread across his face.
It wasn't there for long though and he walked out of the room.

I wanted to yell at him. I really did. And I nearly did. But then I remembered what happened last time. It's the reason this is even happening in the first place.

I stayed on the floor for a few minutes to calm myself down before going to sort this out with him.

I got up and went downstairs. I looked everywhere. I checked every room in the house but he was gone.
It was only then that I realised the front door was unlocked.
He left.

Without thinking,I ran outside to go find him. I was still in pyjamas,bare foot and without a coat. The cold, wet stones on the ground were digging into my feet and I was shivering but I didn't care. I wondered around the dark streets, tired,cold and scared but I didn't give up.
Why would he leave? Is he not afraid his dad might find him?
His dad. What if his dad got him?
What if he gets me?

With that thought in my mind now,every sound I heard made me jump.

Just then I heard a sound coming from around the corner.
My heart stopped. I slowly crept to the corner and looked round.

Phew! It was just an empty can.

You know when it's dark and everything suddenly seems terrifying? Well that's how I feel right now. terrified.
Why did he have to leave?

I bent over to pick up the can and put it in the nearest bin when a hand came from behind me and covered my mouth.
My eyes widened in fear.

"Shh don't scream"
The person whispered harshly.

I nodded my head so they wouldn't do anything but it really took everything in me not to scream.

They took their hand off my mouth and tied my hands behind my back.
I still couldn't see who it was.

They led me to a car and pushed me in the back seat.
They sat me up and put the seatbelt over me so I couldn't move.
They dug into their pocket and pulled out a cloth.
Oh no!
They put the cloth over my mouth and I held my breath.
They got impatient and pulled my hair, hard.
I gasped before I felt my eyes get heavy and everything went black.

———————————
I woke up and lifted my head trying to look around.
I felt so dizzy and everything was blurry.
From what I could make out, I was in an empty room with white walls,floor and ceiling. The only other thing in the room was another person who seemed to be passed out.

I tried to go over to them and see if they were okay but I couldn't move. My hands and feet were tied together and I was laying on the floor on my back.

I lay my head back down on the floor and closed my eyes.
Then it came to me. I was out in the dark and I was kidnapped!
Then I remembered Zac. Oh my gosh, Zac!
Is he okay? Did he go back home? Does he know I'm gone?
He probably won't care too much if he did.
All these thoughts were rushing through my mind and I felt a few tears start to roll down my cheeks.

The few tear turned into streams and before I knew it I was uncontrollably sobbing.

I heard movement coming from the corner of the room and saw the other person start to wake up. My eyes were still quite blurry so I couldn't see them properly but I could tell they were confused.

I wiped my tears on my shoulders and used all my strength to roll over onto my front,towards the other person.
When I had gotten fully onto my front, I tried again and rolled over onto my back.
I repeated this until I made it over to the other person. I lifted my head to look at them and I could see their familiar blue eyes looking back at me.

"Aubrey?"

It can't be.

"Zac?"