Zera

13K 319 122
                                    


Past

I gazed at the small mound of sand I had created, pride swelling within me. I admired it and felt eager to make more. I crouched down, beginning to form additional mounds with my tiny hands, unconcerned by the sand sticking to my bare skin.

After all, I was at the beach. Dad had finally allowed me to come here, and I intended to spend the entire day doing as I pleased.

"Zera!" I turned quickly at the sound of Mum's voice. She was making her way toward me, her smile growing wider as she approached. "We need to leave, honey. It's getting late."

She scooped me up, brushing off any sand she could find on me. My eyes focused on the ocean before me. I loved it; it was soothing, and I didn't want to leave.

"Why?" I whispered in my small voice. "Dad said we would spend all day here."

"I know, honey, but we have to leave now," Mum said, already turning around while holding my wrist and pulling me along.

My eyes drifted back to the mounds I was making. I turned and looked up at her. "Mum, can I get a mint ice cream?"

"You got strawberry, and that's enough. Let's get going," Dad's voice boomed from where he stood, watching us.

A small pout formed on my face. "But Dad, I want..."

"That's enough. Stop acting like a child!" Dad's voice was sharp and curt, drawing glances from a few nearby people.

"She is a child, Daniel," Mum said, her voice weary from Dad's usual temper.

"She's 7, for God's sake," he replied dismissively, already walking away.

Tears welled up in my eyes as I watched him stride ahead of us. He had gotten me a strawberry ice cream, but I had only eaten half and given the rest to a girl I had played with earlier when she asked for some.

"Dad doesn't like me," I murmured, but Mum wasn't listening. She had let go of my hand and went to pick up Junior from under a tent where she had left him. "No one likes me," I repeated, stomping my foot into the sand beneath me with frustration.

Present

"I've never seen a guy adore you as much as Gerard does."

"But do you feel the same way about him?"

"Junior? Junior!" "You're so fucking dumb, Zera"

Multiple voices and whispers jumbled together, filling my head before my eyes shot open. A faint ringing echoed in my ears, and a dull ache throbbed at my temples as memories of what happened rushed back to me.

I had been kidnapped. I was taken by Austin. Gerard must be searching for me. I must be...

I pushed the thoughts aside, forcing myself to lift my head slowly. Pain radiated through my skull, sharp and unrelenting, making me wonder what awkward position Austin had crammed me into in his car's trunk.

My eyes darted around. The room was dimly lit and surprisingly spacious. I jerked my head to the left, then to the right, and finally looked down at the floor.

I was bound tightly, my legs shackled to the chair I was sitting on, my hands tied roughly behind me, and a foul-smelling cloth gagging my mouth.

Where the hell am I? I...

Fear gripped me as I struggled to make sense of the situation. Never in my life had I imagined I would be kidnapped-let alone by a classmate, a stalker, and someone who was clearly a soon-to-be diagnosed psychopath.

Sub Rosa Ties ( A High School Dark Romance)Where stories live. Discover now