Sea Of Stolen Girls

1- Autumn

I see two silhouettes, their shadows dancing at the front door. The bodies they must belong to are probably standing in the family room by the illuminating fireplace. Who are they? I step closer. The figures stand tall, with animated hand gestures, like they are auguring. Maybe it's just mom and dad fighting again? I perch at the top of the stairs, straining my ears to hear what my parents are talking about.

Noticing that sitting at the top of the stairs is too far away to eavesdrop , I slowly get up and creep down the stairs. On the second to last step I sit back down.

As I was about to hear what they wear saying, the front door opens and two men in black suits appear in the doorway, their eyes landing on me imminently. They point a gun to me and shoot.

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The gunshot from my dream wakes me up. I sit up in my bed. Only it's not my bed. It's plain, with fitted white sheets and a metal bed frame that stood about 6 inches off the marble floor. Concrete walls painted a crisp white surround me. A man in a black suit with a crisp white lab coat stands by my door. He's brought me a tray of food. How long have I been here? When do I leave? Better yet- where the hell even am I?

Why am I thinking about anything else when I'm in a foreign place? I stare at the man. I want to go back to my home. I clamp my hands over my eyes and wish for my mom and dad. The only problem is, I can't even think of them. I can't think of their name or even image their faces.

All of a sudden I can't breath. I can't think and I can't move. I want to go away from this room and back to my own. I... I can't picture my bedroom either. My house. Anything. I can't remember... Anything.

All of a sudden the room gets very, very small and now I can't breath even more. I lift my hands from my eyes and see the man at the side of the bed. The tray of food is on the foot of the bed and he looks uncomfortable, like he wants to help me.

It makes me cringe back. I shuffle away from him and slam against the hard white wall, as far as I can get. I try to choke out a plead of help, a cry or a scream or anything- Something, but nothing escapes my mouth. For a minute I think I've forgotten how to speak words too, but then the man talks.

"Autumn... Calm down. It's okay. You're safe. I won't hurt you, we won't hurt you. Just breath." Safe. Such a stupid word. Such an effective word. I focus on my breath like I'm told. Taking deep breath and feeling my chest rise and fall with each intake of air.

After a long time I can finally calm down and I pull my legs to my chest and bury my head in my knees. It takes everything in me not to break down again, but then I remember who I'm with. I look up and finally words come out this time.

"Where am I?" I ask the strange man. He says nothing at first, but after a long while of him trying to find the right words- racking his brain, he sits down next to the food, by my feet.

His thinking gives me a chance to examine his face. Dark brown eyes, long eyelashes, and dark hair. He looks handsome, maybe in another world he would be a catch. His muscular features tell me he goes to the gym often.

"Drink," He says, nodding his head in the direction of the orange juice. I shake my head, pulling my knees tighter to my chest as a lame excuse for a barrier. The man tilts his head to the side and sighs, "I'm not going to hurt you Autumn."

"Autumn?" There's that name again. Who is Autumn? That must be me. The name my no-faced parents gave me. The name I was born with that I can't even remember.

The man chuckles and points to my chest. I follow his finger to the white tank top I am wearing, and where Autumn is sewn into the shirt with black, block letters. "Eat, I'll come to get the tray in a little while." He begins to get up and walk to the door, and my face gets hot with a sudden anger I can't remember having.