Detached [h.s au]

Chapter 53: Pain

Elizabeth's POV

"Come on, sweetheart, stop frowning. It does not suit you," Andrew says, looking down at me.

I don't bother to look up, I only stare ahead, my knees pulled to my chest, my arms firmly draped around them.

Andrew has enjoyed torturing me every day since I was brought here. My hatred for him is growing with each passing second, I just don't have the strength to explode. I realised why he had been so familiar when I first saw him. He'd been one of the people Daniel used to spend time with, I would see him with his friends on several occasions, and even I sometimes spent time with them. I think Andrew was the one giving drugs to him in the first place. I suspect that's how Daniel got involved with Gerald and that's why he's on their side now.

"Tsk, such a shame," he continues. "If you'd been a little nicer to me before, you wouldn't have been in this situation."

My stomach twists and I feel like throwing up. He's disgusting.

"No one likes you," a voice suddenly says. "Go away."

I finally look up, my eyes falling on a familiar petite girl, wearing the same white uniform as me, her arms crossed over her chest.

"Excuse me?" Andrew glares at her.

"You heard me."

"Do you realise who I am--"

"Yes, you're an asshole," she tells him calmly. "Go ahead, threaten me. I already know my punishment, I'll only laugh at your face."

"Well then, congratulations," he snaps. "You're next in line for testing."

"Looking forward to it," she replies.

"So am I," Andrew says, looking down at me again. "Later, sweetheart," he turns and bumps into the girl's shoulder on his way out.

She smiles down at me, but I look away. I would like to thank her, but I can't. I haven't spoken in a week. I finally understand that numb state Sam was talking about because I feel exactly the same right now.

My father is dead. He's dead and it's my fault. If I hadn't been reckless and left in the first place, none of this would have happened. Dad would be alive, I wouldn't be trapped in a laboratory, enduring painful injections every day. I wouldn't become this. And I would have Harry beside me. I miss Harry.

My first two days here, I couldn't stop crying, I refused to eat or drink because images of my father's body on the ground were making me sick. Since we're not useful weak and motionless, they haven't touched me until my fourth day here. That's when I started to eat a little. I realised I have to be strong for myself, but I'm nowhere near okay. If I don't get out of this hellhole soon, I'll never be okay again.

And Daniel? Daniel came to see me on my first day here.

"Beth," Daniel bursts into the small room, finding me curled on a bed, my face wet from tears.

I immediately jump from the bed, my fists clutching at my sides. "How dare you?! How dare you come here?!"

"Beth, please," his eyes fill with tears, his voice cracking. He tentatively steps closer to me, but I lift my hands, signaling for him to stay away.