Locked Away (RPDR AU)

3

❌️ Self-harm tendencies, slight sexual content, talk of abuse and ✨️murder✨️
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Amanda struggled to fall asleep only to wake up again just a little over an hour later. She was so used to waking up in her own bed. Where she was warm and comfortable and surrounded by everything she loved. But now she was greeted by the cold metal of the bed she was on, and the soft glow of the lamp from Dawn's side of the room.

It was there she found what had woken her up. Dawn sat up in bed, hitting her head against the wall repeatedly. Amanda flinched at the sight, but the other girl seemed completely unbothered by it. Even though it was clearly a brick wall. Amanda tried to force herself to speak and ask if she was alright, until there was banging on the door to their cell.

"Knock it off, Dawn." A stern voice said from outside. "Or we'll handle it ourselves."

Dawn froze up, turning to face the door. In the soft light, Amanda could see the gleam of tears in her eyes. "No handcuffs." She whispered in a scared voice, laying back down and hiding under her blanket. "No handcuffs. Not again..."

Amanda tilted her head as she watched her until hearing the officer outside walk away. She bit her lip before taking a small breath. "A-Are you okay...?"

Dawn hushed her, peaking out at her from under the blankets. "Quiet voice." She whispered.

Amanda quickly switched her tone, her heart pounding hard in her chest. "S-Sorry..." She whispered. "Are you okay?"

Dawn stared at her, looking as if she was studying her. She backed up against the wall, still under her blanket. "No. Why are you asking?"

Amanda felt uneasy, but kept talking. "Because you were like...hitting your head on the wall and stuff."

Dawn was quiet before she sat up again, tilting her head in curiosity. "...Nobody really asks me if I'm okay." She said quietly. "I hurt because I hurt. It's only fair."

Amanda didn't really understand what she meant. She watched as her cell mate tried to fluff up her pillow. "...What does that mean?"

Dawn looked at her again before she decided she was done talking about that for the night. She curled up in a ball, her arms twisted together as if looking for something to hold. "Maybe you won't be a bad cell mate." She mumbled before closing her eyes.

Amanda watched as she drifted off to sleep, still having so many questions. Like if the officers knew Dawn was hurting herself, why wasn't she somewhere safer? Why was the girl seen as such a threat by everyone when she seemed to be so innocent?

She watched her a lot today when her tour of the prison grounds was over. Dawn spent most of her day in the recreation room. She sat at one of the tables and colored and drew pictures as Officer Jane, or Plane as she called her, watched over her closely. She didn't seem to be that awful. When she'd finish something, she'd show it to Plane, who praised it and encouraged her to keep going. And at the end of the day when they were brought back to her cell, Amanda had watched Plane leave with a stack of drawings and coloring pages Dawn had given her. The girl couldn't be that bad.

Amanda laid back down, hoping it'd be easier to get back to sleep this time. But she doubted it. She still couldn't believe she was here. She couldn't believe she had been so stupid.

She knew she should've never taken the offer. She wasn't even sure if she was actually going to go through with it. But Amanda had desperately needed the money, her job was in no way ever going to be enough to get what she so desperately needed. She didn't want to hurt anyone.

And she didn't. The whole operation had been discovered before she could. Amanda had been caught on video accepting the weapon and had been tracked down not long after. The trial was exhausting, and Amanda was sure her defense team didn't believe in her very much. Now she was here. In an scary, unfamiliar place.