I Was Abducted

Chapter 6 Nadia

My knuckles are white as grip onto his arm. Tears drip down my face and I feel powerless. My arms are weak and my face is frozen in a place of terror. Tears wet my cheeks and I want nothing more than this torture to end. Want and need have blended into one. My lips quiver as I say no, over and over again. My nails are embedded so deep into his arm, but he does not care. My throat is scratchy and closed up. I've given up.

My eyes snap open and I scream, "No!" My voice is so loud and I barely recognize it as my own. I quickly realize I'm in my bed. This time it wasn't a nightmare it was a memory.
~
My eyes are bloodshot and my nose is bright red. Last night was horrible. Hate is a strong word, but I hate him. I hate that I couldn't protect myself.

I leave the house again in my uniform, but this time I look like a total zombie. I don't own any makeup so, there's no hiding. I just hope nobody says anything.

Dad drove me to school. It was a comfortable silence the whole way there. He gave me a kiss on my forehead and I was on my way.

School is on a different schedule today because of the assembly. So, classes are shorter. I watch in the corner of the gymnasium as students file in.

My body feels loose from the stretches, except my back. It's tense and stiff. I don't know if it's from last night's horror or, from the nervous feeling from being in front of all my peers.

"Formation!" Kim yells and all of us cheerleaders scrabble to get into our position. I'm all the way in the back. I'm kind of glad.

My legs feel wiggle and unsteady which is no good. We've been practicing this for months. I know every step of the routine, but I can't stop my stomach from spinning.

I usually feel more comfortable around fellow cheerleaders at the competition because we're all there to cheer. But at school it's different. I feel sickly nervous.

The music begins, blaring loudly through the speakers. I start the counts in my head 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, 6, 7, 8. The smile on my face is fake and obnoxiously big. My feet switch and my fists are closed.

I try not to look and anybody in particular in the crowded bleachers. My balance is a little wobble as I stand on one and swing the other in the air.

Kim runs to the middle of all of us kicking her feet. Me and Avery jog behind her. All the girl twist her up by her feet. She switches onto of foot, jumps into a slit then falling back. I swoop in catching one of her arms and Avery catches the other. The other girls catch the rest of her. I seriously fought the urge to drop her.

The rest of the routine consisted of backflips and front handsprings. My forehead is sweaty and red. In the end, I'm gasping for breath. I jog to the bleachers behind us that are reserved for the cheerleaders. I grab the large water bottle and down the cool liquid.

My heart is beating insanely fast. It kind of hurts. I have tachycardia. I was diagnosed when I first started cheering, in 4th grade.

I place my sweaty hand over my heart and squeeze my eyes shut. I let out a low yelp and flop down on the bleachers. I need to get out of here.

I quickly stand up and my head spins. My mind goes blank and everything blurs. I feel airflow through each stand of air and whisk across my face. My eyes snap shut and it's dark. I collapse and hear my head smack against the cold gym floor.

"Oh my god is she okay?" I hear someone ask and gasps all around.

I pull myself up and pull my knees to my chest. I can feel my heart fluttering in my chest. I gasp for air and clutch my fist to my heart.

"Help! She needs help!" I hear a girl call. I violently shake my head no repeatedly. "Help!" She calls again.

"No!" I shout and pull myself to my feet. My face is beat red and I tremble towards the door. I pull the tall door open and stumble out. Did I just pass out in front of the whole school?

My head is too dizzy the even focus on where I'm walking. So, I blindly make my way to the locker room. I fall to the ground as soon and I enter. Usually, I just get winded, but in this routine, I have to do a lot.

I let a whimper out from the pain. I can't keep doing this. It's not worth it. I need to quit. I crawl to my locker and turn the dial to the right numbers. I swing the locker open and pull my school backpack out. I unzip the bag and pull out my prescription pills.

I dry swallow two pills and huddle in the corner. I can feel my heart becoming slower. It's only gotten that bad a couple of times. Cheer is becoming too much for me. I need a shower.
~
10 minutes later and I'm freshly showered, using the school showers of course. The assembly is still going on and I don't dare go back in there. That was too embarrassing. I knew something was going to happen.

I put on regular school clothes. A floral print, short sleeve, black wrap dress, and I pair it with black flats. I look very girly, but I think I look cute. My hair is still dry because I avoided getting it wet.

I wrap the strings of my backpack around my arms and sit on the bench. I don't know how I'm going to face anyone now. I passed out in front of everyone. Did Jackson see? I shouldn't care, but there's something about him that makes me more nervous than anyone.