Domestic by Daylight

A Possible Escape...

He ran aimlessly through the wrecked car lot - knowing that he would never reach the exit in time. The few others he had been with had left him behind. They viewed him as weak and nothing more than a burden. He had been doing his best to help them out, but, somehow, he seemingly always led their assailant to them. The others managed to get enough power back on to open the escape gate. Although no one knew what was outside of this area, it was better than being inside of it. Three of them managed to run out into the unknown - the weakest link getting left behind.

So there he was, running through the junkyard, hearing his assailant close behind. Out of the corner of his eye, a red, rusted locker stood just a few metres away. Sharply, he veered to the right, nearly tripping over old car parts as he made the dangerous turn. A loud clang echoed throughout the area. If his assailant didn't know where he was before, he definitely knew now.

He sat quivering and quietly crying in the locker. The thudding of a rapid heartbeat began to grow louder - although he wasn't sure if that was his assailant's or his own. He took off his glasses and did his best to wipe off the fog and water from his tears. The heartbeat gradually grew louder but he no longer felt like running. He dropped his glasses onto his stomach and continued crying - accepting his fate.

The locker opened in an uncharacteristically calm way. The crying, weak one didn't look up at his large assailant. Instead, he kept his face in his palms and continued his soft sobbing. His silent assailant picked him up with one arm and tossed him over his shoulder. The small man's glasses fell to the ground and he began screaming. He began screaming and flailing wildly - yelling and crying. He was yelling and crying in such a way that it seemed as if he was hoping that someone will hear him and come to his rescue.

"Put me down!" He cried, still flailing around. Still hoping that there was a chance to escape. "Y-You monster! Let me go!" He screamed the "o" sound into the darkness with no response - not even from the large man carrying him or the nature around him.

Eventually, not long after his scream, the young, weak man realized and accepted his fate. He stopped struggling but couldn't stop crying. Sobbing loudly, he did his best to rub his eyes while in motion... but then motion stopped. When he felt himself no longer swaying, he also felt the larger man stop walking. He did his best to look up at his holder but couldn't get a good luck at his face. That was, however, until he was carefully and gently set down.

This was his moment.

The weak man felt a surge of courage and adrenaline rush through him. Just as he was about to run away again, the tough, calloused hand of his assailant grabbed his shoulder - stopping him completely. He slowly and nervously turned his head around to get a better look at the man, the beast, that had been chasing him all night.

His body was covered in multiple scars - some looking dirty or even infected. His complexion, now illuminated under one of the generator lights, looked to be a healthy pink (although quite dirty). The more he looked at the silent giant's body, the more scars and bruises he noticed. Following the scars from his muscular calves all the way to his toned neck, the small man eventually locked eyes with the intimidating giant. The very giant he thought was going to kill him hours ago. The very giant that had maybe just helped him moments ago.

As they locked eyes, the much smaller man wondered why he could see the muscular giant's eyes so clearly. The lightness on the small man's face was something he hadn't forgotten about. (His glasses were always something he desperately relied on.) Stunned and confused, he began to understand why he could see so clearly.

He let out a small yelp and stumbled backwards - trying to create some distance between them. Clumsily, he tripped over a cement square on the ground, landing hard on its metal top. The small man groaned as the giant held out a large hand. The small man gave out a fearful gasp and winced. Expecting a final blow to end it all, he slowly opened his eyes to see his hand still outstretched in a helping manner.

Feeling an odd and out-of-place sense of comfort, he shakily took the gentle giant's hand and slowly stood up. As he began to stand on his own again, the muscular giant began to kneel down. With a dirty and calloused hand, he opened the rusty and metal hatch slowly. The hinges creaked loudly and the rusted door got stuck near the top. The opening was just enough for the much smaller man to enter.

Is this my way out? Why is he helping me?

"Wh-What is this?" He asked nervously and confused. "Is this my way out of here?"

The once horrifying assailant gave a calm nod and pointed at the small, shakey man and then towards the opened hatch.

"Thank you..." he gasped, laughing a bit out of relief. "Th-Thank you so much!"

Shakily and hurriedly, the small man crawled into the opened hatch and slid right in. Believing he had found a way out, he ran towards the very distant light at the end of the long, long tunnel.