Safety blanket

Prologue

July 16th, 2016 - Disney cruise - DAY 2

     The loud echo of gunshots firing, bounce off the thin walls and travel to greet my already sensitive ears.

The ringing of the guns, and the hiss of flames embed themselves within the structure of my brain, playing on a constant loop. I wince at the sound and push myself further up against the side of the rails; I wish they would just swallow me alive.

Another frail scream pierces the night followed by the sound of another lifeless body hitting the ground. My blood runs cold as a single thought sent shivers down my spine and had me gasping for air.

That was close.

Squeezing my eyes shut, I plead for the fear to go away.
I sharply inhale the smog that fills the night sky and my lungs. The burning it creates in the pit of my throat has me sputtering and hacking up puffs of polluted air.

Almost immediately my heart goes into a frenzy and I find it impossibly hard to breathe.
Panic sets in and I find myself crumbling to my knees in an anxious heap. My hands shake violently and my vision sways as unshed tears spring to my eyes.
I land on all fours and try to stabilize the erratic pounding in my chest.

An animalistic growl is heard from my right and instantly I am on full alert.
My swollen and blurred eyes travel from left to right in a frantic movement, in hopes of locating any potential danger, and grow in size when the outline of a shadow grasps my attention.

I desperately tried to suppress the incoming wave of fear from consuming me and rapidly blinked my eyes, urging myself not to cry.

I needed to be strong; For him.

And with him in mind I placed both of my palms firmly on the floor and tried to even out my breathing; all the while, keeping my eyes glued to the figure lurking in the shadows.
The thought of someone watching me sends chills down my spine, however, this presence puts my mind to ease. Seeing as how I am still alive and my limbs are still attached; I know this person is not one of them. Although something tells me he isn't exactly human either but, despite the nagging voice in my head, I can't bring myself to be afraid.

When I feel my heart begin to slow I squeeze my eyes closed and hold my breath. Silently, I count to ten.

My vision blurs and a dam of tears dance behind my lashes silently pleading with me to let them out; But I didn't. In order to survive I needed to suck it up and woman up. No more crying, no more tears. I was going to get through this. And if I couldn't, if I somehow don't make it.

If I couldn't escape then neither could they.