Nightmare

It was a Sunday night. We were coming back from our holidays in Greece. It was hot and dark.

In the car, my mum was sleeping. My dad was driving, I couldn't see how, the road was so dark and there were no lights.

There were only three of us.

Charlie, my brother, was on holiday at his friend's house in California somewhere.

Me? I wasn't really sleeping, I was on my iPhone texting my friends and my big sister, Sara.

Sara was on holiday with her friends (including her boyfriend, Jacob) in Spain.

So I had to follow my parents to their boring holiday in Greece, no teenagers, only old people.

The old people were nice, but it wasn't like being with my friends. I hope you do understand and I haven't hurt anybody's feelings.

Old people are nice and much more experienced and intelligent.

In the car, it was silent, my mum being asleep and my dad driving. To be honest, I was quite bored. We'd been like this for a few hours now and I was really really getting bored, annoyed and I wanted the loo. So I asked my dad to stop at a service station and sleep there. At first he didn't agree. I insisted and he said ok.

I should never had asked. I didn't know that one question would change my life forever. That one question : "Could you stop Dad? I really need the loo! And if you don't stop, I am going to throw up. Pleaaase!" I should've never ever insisted. I hate myself for it now. And it DID actually change my life forever.

I know it's not my fault but I can't take it out of my mind . It's just so dreadful and now I have totally changed.

That year I was 16 years old. I'd just moved house and my friends really missed me and I really missed them back. I was going to a new school where I knew nobody, nobody at all.

I really hated my mum for making us change houses for her career as a zookeeper. At that time I didn't think it was a job for women or even a normal job. Looking after animals in a dirty, dangerous place? Do you think that's a job? I didn't. I can't hate her anymore even if she was still with us. I mean she is my mum? I can't hate her all my life? CAN I? I dont think so . And I hated my brother and sister leaving me all alone with my two parents having fights all the time . But at the same time I think it was better because maybe that night, it could've happened to them aswell and at that time my brother was only 6 . At least I still have my brother and sister with me. Otherwise I dont know if I could've continued without them .

My dad parked not long away from the mall so I could go without him.

My dad was quite an overprotecter much more than my mum who is a female I remind you . Or maybe he just wanted a little snoose for 2 minutes? I really dont know.

I got out of the car and started walking towards the mall. I saw a few drunk people but they weren't that bad . In front of the mall there were two policemen dealing with two teenagers . I stepped into the mall. At my right, a restaurant, at my left a supermarket. I couldn't see the toilets. A few guys were standing next to me, talking . My dad always told me not to speak to strangers but just asking them where were the toilets wouldn't hurt me. So I decided to ask them.

I should've never asked them, never ever. I knew they were strange but I thought just asking them one question couldn't do me any harm. But I was stupid and should've listen to my dad .

This is a lesson for everyone : ALWAYS LISTEN TO YOUR PARENTS EVEN IF YOU THINK IT'S NOT DANGEROUS THEY ARE ALWAYS RIGHT, ALWAYS , ALWAYS .

I went up to one of the guys :

- Hi. Hum sorry to disturb you but I'm looking for the toilets, do you know where they are please? I said

- Well hello who have we here? A beautiful young girl all alone at night? he said teasing me

- I... I am not alone. I just want to know where are the toilets. I said hesitating

- The women's toilets are on your left just there. he pointed

- Thanks.

The others looked at me strangely enought for me to be really quite scared. I hurried to the toilets thinking about them.

They were really strange and suspicious.

I was still thinking about them when I received a text from my dad saying :

We're at the back of the mall you'll have to go round. And move your bum, they're closing!

I quickly washed my hands and ran throught the mall into the hot and dark night. I didn't know were I was so I just followed a path who brought me to the back of the mall, I presumed. But I couldn't see the car. I didn't know if I was in the wrong place or if I just couldn't see without my glasses. How stupid of me to have left them in the car!

I decided to call my dad .

He told me he would come and get me. He never did. And that was the last sentence I heard from dad.

I waited for 10 minutes but he still didn't appear. I tried calling him but he didn't answer. I tried calling my mum but she didn't answer either. I thought they just went looking for me in the mall because they couldn't find me.

I think I just said that to reassure myself. I was scared. What was a 16 year old girl doing all alone in a dark hot night, not knowing where she is? That was exactly me, being in situations quite scary at the wrong moment all the time.

But that was the one too much.

I started walking back. When I got there it was closed. The policemen had gone, aswell as the drunk people and the two teenagers. I still couldn't see my parents and I started being really scared. I tried and tried to call my dad and mum but they still didn't answer.

It was 4 oclock now. It had been an hour I'd been waiting for them. I was half asleep. I rang for the tenth time but still no desperate answer. I got up and started calling them by their names.

I should've never called their names that's when THEY found me.

I started walking around the mall when I arrived to the bins. It was dark and I couldn't see anything or anyone.

I heared a noise behind me. I turned round.

I felt a hand grabing my feet And a other my arms. I started screaming but another hand caught my mouth and made me shut up by hurting me.

I was bleading. I couldn't do anything : my arms and feet couldn't move.

I felt myself carried up and thrown into something, something hard.

I didn't know where I was and what was happening to me.

My mind wasn't working and my brain was stuck.

All I could see was darkness.

My parents, my friends and the noise bellow me were my last toughts.

I fell asleep .