Anguished

"Go hide under the bed." She ordered me frantically. I didn't understand, I couldn't. One second, we heard scratches on our door, the next we were cowering for our lives.

"Where are you going?" My voice cracked. Tears threatening to spill as I held onto her.

"I'm just going to have a talk with the bad guys." She told me like it was nothing. But even my immature mind could sense that it was anything but nothing.

"There are bad guys?" I asked, also wondering why she would talk with the bad guys when we could just clearly make a run for it.

"Stay here." She pushed me under the bed, big enough to fit my 10-year old body. However, she ignored me, why wouldn't she tell me?

"Who are they?" I asked again, hoping to catch her attention this time, but she paid no mind again.

"Do not leave this place until I tell you so. NO MATTER WHAT!" Her voice was firm and it had no room for objection. I trembled, waiting for my father to come and save us.

She went out the door, locking it. I could hear other footsteps inside the house but I did nothing. I waited, for anything. A sound or movement. Nothing. I waited. Just like she told me to. Wait until she tells me that I could leave this place now and that everything was alright.

But it didn't happen. The next thing I know, the floor seemed colder, the bright light blinding me as it seeped from the spaces between the curtains that my mother hurriedly closed. The moon had gone, so had my mom.

The face that next welcomed me was my father. He had a sullen look in his face, I could tell. He pulled me out from under the bed, lifting me into his arms as he whispered comforting words in my ear that I couldn't comprehend.

"AAAH" I woke up sweating and shaking, the rest of my body still adjusting to reality. I haven't had that dream in such a long time. There was a period in my life that for every day, all I ever dreamt about was that. And it haunted me, even scarred me. I thought I have gotten over that night and forgotten it all. I guess I was mistaken.

I let my eyes roam around the room, taking in the dark marbled walls. I could feel the ocean in my back, only to be faced with a plain white, and extremely soft and comfortable mattress.

"You're awake." I startled at the voice. I didn't even hear the door open because I was too busy taking in my surroundings.

"Where am I?" I asked first, once my eyes settled and I could see clearly, I could finally make out who it was. "Reez?"

"Yeah. Are you okay?" He asked me, then I noticed the tray that he was holding. It had a glass of water, green tea, and a bowl of soup on top of it.

"I-I guess? Where am I?" I asked again, still visibly shaken.

"You're in my room. Here I brought you food. Eat up and drink the tea, it might help with your hangover." He said before sitting down next to me. I only noticed that the bed was huge and that it could probably fit two more people with Reez and I already in it. I didn't even have time to be shocked that this was Reez Clemming's way of living. This was luxurious. Makes me wonder more about him.

"Thank you." I said nonchalantly, taking the tray from his hands. Seconds later, as if a bell rang in my head, I whipped my head to him. "W-wait! Hangover? I didn't drink last night!?"

He seemed to be shocked at my words. "You didn't? But you seemed pretty drunk last night. Like, dude, I left you for five minutes and the next thing I saw, you were-" He stopped his words, thinking over what he hesitated to say.

"What? What happened?" I squirmed in my seat. If this was something bad, I'm sure I had my life down the drain just like that.

"You were beating up, Harry." He flinched the same time as I did as he heard that name.

We all knew who Harry was. He was the biggest bully in school. No, actually, if Reez was a bully, then Harry was a mobster. I'm pretty sure he's part of a gang somewhere, forming an alliance of bullies. We seldom see him in school because we were all convinced that he was serving the mafia. I did everything in my power to not be noticed by him, to not do anything that might be wrong when he's in the campus because who knows where the arrow is gonna land in that wheel of fortunate names in his head to see who he bullies next. And I hadn't, I was lucky enough. Until now.

"Wait, what? Beating up?" I uttered those words three minutes late after processing it in my head that long.

"Y-yeah. I must say, you really pack a punch. I'm impressed you got out of that without a broken bone. Hell, you barely even got a scratch." He said with delight, as if it was the amusing thing he ever witnessed.

I looked down at my body, moving my arms and my legs to see if I still had them in tact. And I did. I also checked for bruises and fortunately, I had none. — or rather unfortunately, I don't really know because seeing myself without those purple patches only made me look like a blank canvas waiting for my artist, and that artist was Harry.

"Agh." I winced a little when I moved my shoulder. Reez moved closer to check on me as I had my hand soothing where it hurt slowly. The pain also traveled to my neck.

"Ooh. That looks really red, don't you think?" He said. I rolled my eyes at how stupid he could be.

"I don't know, Reez. I can't twist my head enough to see what I had there." I uttered annoyed at him.

He snickered. Stupid kid had the nerve to laugh. "Sorry. But you were really cool, man. I mean, I know you could hit, I experienced that first hand, but I didn't know you could hit that hard." He beamed. Now he looked like he's gonna worship me any time soon.

"Are you kidding me? How could I even be alive after that? And how would I be alive knowing that I only have a few hours to live before Harry tracks me down with his gang and kill me." I rambled. I was frustrated. I didn't really know what was going on. "Wait. Can you tell me what exactly happened?"

"W-well. I can't. I didn't actually see it. But the video is everywhere, I'm pretty sure I even heard it in the news-"

"WHAT VIDEO?" I interrupted. He smiled. Seriously, now was not the time to be smiling at me like that, it was as if he knew I was gonna die soon and he anticipated it, too. He reached into his pocket and picked up his phone.

He showed me the video starting with me just lying lifelessly on the ground. It was like that for a few minutes before Harry came into the frame. I was shocked by the next thing that happened, he was trying to pick me up but all of a sudden I pounced on him, tackling him to the ground, throwing punches like there's no tomorrow. There were gasps everywhere. Harry was using his two hands to block my punches, shielding his handsome face.

That shocked me. He's at least half bigger than me and I was sure he could easily turn us over and make me his personal punching bag, but he didn't. Perhaps he was too drunk to do anything to me. But somehow, I doubted that.

The video ended abruptly as the teal-haired girl came into view.

"You see? That was awesome." He continued babbling like that. I'm sure he was mimicking what I did last night because he was throwing punches in the air. He was talking but my ears muffled out his voice and I can only hear the ringing of my inevitable death coming soon.

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