As it Was | H.S

Y/N : BACKSTORY.

Things weren't always as it was. And it never would be again. Y/N had a happy childhood. Who wouldn't? It just so happened that her happy childhood was abruptly cut off at the age of eight. 

It had been a beautiful day. Rivulets of sunlight shone down upon the three of them – Y/N, her mother, and her father. Their laughter rang in her ears, as if it had just been yesterday when she had heard them last.

They had prepared the night before for their outing. Y/N's mother had meticulously made her speciality dish: ham and cheese sandwiches, for the three of them, and even made extra just in case someone would become hungry. 

She had even pulled a dusty picnic basket out of their storage closet, laughing at Y/N when she sneezed because of all the dust.

And her father had gone through his own closet to find a good board game they could play together when they got there. Y/N, upon finding out that her dad was trying to pick a good game, immediately insisted that she wanted to help pick one out. 

They eventually settled on Candyland – a game that all three of them enjoyed – especially when they were playing with one another.

Y/N couldn't sleep that night. She felt restless. Too excited to sleep, she got out of bed, and made her way towards her parent's bedroom. 

She could still see the light shining under their bedroom door, and with a wide smile, she peeked her head in. Smiling at her parent's faces, she crawled into bed between them, ignoring the joking complaints from both of them. Snuggling between her two parents, she felt incomparably safe.

They left the house at about 1 in the afternoon. It was later than expected, but they didn't really plan their time accordingly. 

Y/N's mother, at the last minute, ended up packing popsicles, though no one was complaining. And Y/N's father ended up choosing a different game: chutes and ladders. And nobody complained about that either. 

Y/N had been the most eager, getting out of bed the quickest, and even rowsing her parents from their sleep. 

She was too excited to stay in bed, and it appeared that her excitement and happiness was contaigous.

Though it was just an outing, Y/N's parents were busy with their jobs, and it was rare for them to take out Y/N for such a long time. 

She had to treasure these moments.

Y/N hummed endlessly on the car ride there, and her parents laughed at her off - tune singing, which she paid no mind to. 

They were going to Crescent Park, a park that the three of them had never been to, but they heard good enough reviews to choose that one on their outing. 

They soon arrived, and Y/N's eyes widened as she viewed acres of the greenest grass, and a large lake that reflected just about everything in the sky.

Her excitement grew, as they neared the park, with Y/N practically bouncing in place. They quickly got out of their car, and her dad found a good place to sit in. 

Her mother laid down a blanket large enough for the three of them, colored white and stained with markings that were from Y/N and her colored markers.

The three of them enjoyed themselves. Under the peaceful sun, and admist the chatter of animals and people, Y/N had never felt happier. 

She ate two sandwiches, and even though they were small, she was quite proud of herself for doing so. 

She won two games against her parents, and though the eight year old was unaware that her parents had purposely let her win, it likely wouldn't have changed the pride that showed so boldly on the little girl's face.

Her parents could do nothing but laugh. Y/N didn't stay still, even while at the park with her parents. She ran around, jumping, crawling, climbing. Anything that came to her mind, Y/N would do without a second thought. 

Her fun soon ended when the earlier clear sky began to darken.

April 6th was supposed to be a bright and sunny day. None of them had expected it to start raining, and the three of them ran back to their car in panic, though could do nothing but laugh as they got into the car. 

Each of them were drenched, and it wasn't exactly a pleasant feeling, but there was something blissful about it that simply prompted each of them to laugh.

On their drive home, Y/N peered out of the window, at the rainy sky, the clouds, and anything else she could land her eyes on. 

Her brows furrowed in confusion when she watched headlights run towards them, confused when they didn't stop. 

Y/N turned towards her father, who was driving, opening her mouth to question it. Before she could say another word, something hard slammed into her body, and then all she could see was black.

When Y/N's eyes fluttered back open, her chest felt tight. 

Her whole body felt numb at first, and she felt like throwing up, but something prevented her from doing so. Sweat poured down her back, and as if her body knew she was awake, it started to scream at her. 

Though it was still dark, she could make out something ontop of her, that didn't allow her to move. Struggling against her seatbelt, she could do nothing but stay still, and hope that someone would soon come to save her.

Hope flooded into her body when she saw two pairs of feet come into view. Unable to say a thing, she could only hope that they would find her. But her hope soon diminished as she heard a hard voice.

"Are they dead?" Asked a deep voice, obviously male, and threatening. Y/N's throat closed up on her, and her attempts to say anything were quickly stomped out. 

She began to tremble – and not because of the cold and rain. A shiver ran down her back, containing nothing but pure fear.

The second pair of feet scurried towards where Y/N's mother was.

"The woman is still alive, boss." He responds, his voice scratchy. Much higher pitched, and a little annoying to hear. 

Y/N felt hope surge through her again, knowing that her mother was still alive. Maybe they could get out of this together. Maybe her dad was still alive, maybe they just didn't kno–

Two bangs rang through the air.

Y/N's eyes widened again. Her mother seemed to slump down in her seat, and the voiceless Y/N could barely contain a shriek. 

Her head immediately whipped towards the other man who was right next to her window, her eyes catching onto the branding on his ankle, a serpent wrapping around itself. 

There was a part of her that wanted to reach out and grab him, and do something – anything.

But suddenly her body seemed too tired to keep her awake, and it resisted her efforts to do something. And so her world became dark again, with the last thing she saw being that serpent, and those men walking away. 

Away from her, and away from her dead parents.