Stockholm Syndrome

Precursor

"Niall?" Lisa's voice rang out through the library. I was sitting on the floor, hugging my knees to my chest, tears slowly trailing down my cheeks, when I heard her call my name.

I chose to ignore her. I didn't want to her to see me like this, vulnerable. I always smiled, even when I was breaking apart and crumbling on the inside. Lately though... I hadn't been able to hide my pain behind a smile and the words 'I'm fine'. How could I be fine after seeing an innocent man killed for my sake? Dr. Hanks' death was something that I couldn't just forget about, nor could I pretend that I hadn't played a part in it. How was I supposed to tell the police about him? Just say, "Hey, this really nice doctor got killed because I didn't want to stay with people I hate" or something? Worse, what if they found his body and thought that I'd killed him? My fingerprints were surely on his body... and his dried blood stained my clothes.

"Niall, where are you sweetie?" She tried again, poking her head into the room this time.

I quickly whipped the tears off my face, jumping up faster than I thought possible, and smiled weakly.

She gave a tight smile in return as she made her way over to me. "I hope that I wasn't interrupting or anything..."

"Uh, no," I coughed as I ran a hand through my hair. A nervous habit of mine ever since I could remember, but I winced when my fingers got stuck in tangles.

"It's okay you know," she said in a soft voice as she placed a warm hand on my shoulder.

"What's that supposed to mean?" I frowned as my eyes searched her soft brown ones.

"It means that you don't have to hold it in. You said that you were reporting a crime, right?"

I nodded, breaking eye contact, my gaze drifting toward the floor tiles as Max's face materialized in my head.

"Well..." Lisa continued as she continued to rub my arm, "You probably saw some terrible things, so it's okay to feel upset."

She had no idea how deep her words resonated within me. To say that I'd seen a terrible things... that was a nice way of putting it. I felt a knot forming in the pit of my stomach as I nodded in acknowledgment.

She smiled sadly as she slower removed her hand. "It's okay, you don't have to go into any of the details, but are the police going to be able to help you?"

"Ah, I think so..." I muttered softly as I slipped Lisa's phone out of my pocket and held it out to her.

"Well I'm glad, Steven wanted to come and talk to you, but I told him that he'd have to wait until I knew if you were still on the phone," Lisa chuckled as she took the small electronic device and placed it in her purse.

"He wants to talk to me?" I asked incredulously, my eyebrows raising in confusion. He wasn't exactly a friendly guy, and he'd been so rude earlier....

"I think he wants to apologize, if that's alright with you," Lisa added with a sly smile.

"Oh, um... yeah, that's fine," I shrugged. I didn't expect an apology, but I'd give the guy a chance, because I wasn't a douche like him.

Lisa nodded, a small smile painted on her face as she turned and left in the direction that she'd come in.

A few moments later Lisa returned with Steven in tow.

"Uh, hey Niall," he started with a nervous smile.

I didn't smile, I just wasn't in the mood, but I nodded my head to acknowledge him.

"I didn't realize who you were, and I shouldn't have assumed that you were lying," Steven muttered. "Sorry."

"Did you Google it?" I asked, my arms crossed against my chest as I watched Steven with a careful gaze.

"Yeah, I did," he mumbled sheepishly.

"I probably don't much like those pictures at the moment, but it's sad that's the only reason you believe me."

At my comment, Steven just stood there and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly. "Look I..."

"You're sorry, right?"

"Of course I am! If I would have known I'd never have acted that way towards you!"

"And there's my point. You're only sorry that you were such a jerk to me because I'm a celebrity," I sighed in disappointment.

"No-"

"You know I'm right..." I chuckled humorlessly. "So don't even argue."

Steven was silent, but I could see the gears turning in his head and determination flash across his face, telling me that he wanted to challenge me. I honestly was expecting him to argue back, so it didn't surprise me when he opened his mouth to speak.

"So... I guess the only question left is, where have you been for the past few months Niall?" He asked me, a curious expression visible in his eyes.

"Yes, that's the question we all want to know the answer to isn't it?" A police officer chuckled as he and two other men dressed in uniforms walked into the room.

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OMG I DID AN EARLY UPDATE FOR YOU GUYS =3 I was worried that I wouldn't get on written until Sunday...  but I managed to squeeze it in.

I'm sorry it's so short... but I figured it was better than nothing. Good news is that I got A's on two of exams, so thanks for being patient with me! I don't know about my other grades, but hey, getting A's in college is a TON of work.

QUESTION OF THE DAY: What's your favorite song of MITAM?

All the love ~ ♡

IndieChick95