Life's Little Teardrops

15. Bubble Gum Bitch

The door opens and a girl with ratty pink hair steps in wearing a Metallica crop-top and blue skinny jeans. She has a scary yet comforting smile on her face.

I feel like I know her. Not her type of person or her bone structure, but the feeling she brought to the room and the vibe she gave. She has confidence, you can tell by the way she walks. I sit up leaning in a strange way against the wall. I always imagined handcuffs to be sore but the ones chaining my feet to the floor seem to be loose. They also look strange, instead of a small chain connecting them it is about 2ft long.
The girl leans against the door picking at her black, chipped nails. I look at her and don't even try to put in a happy face. "Who are you? And what am I doing here?" I ask in a bitchy but respecting tone.

She looked at me with an equally bitch-ified glare. "You've been kidnapped along with some of your friends to be held for ransdom." She says nonchalantly.
For some reason I don't find her threatening or even a little intimidating. I stand up, eye-to-eye with her and look her straight in the eye. "Okay."
She seems unfazed at my calmness as she takes out a pack of Black Post-its and a white crayon. "Where have you been staying and who would you say is the boss?" I blink trying to process what she's saying.
She twirls a strand of Bubble Gum pink hair. "Why should I tell you?"
I said with a shrug-like movement.
Why would she think I'd snitch so easily? I wouldn't risk my friends lives.
"Because yo-" She is barely mid-sentence when I realize. They're here too, I'm not sure if Stella is here but why would they leave the leader and take afew civilians.

"The boss is Stella Collins. You have her here along with my other friends." I say interrupting her. She looks unfazed at first but within moments she seems to be disappointed. "Oh." I look at her with a gentle tone. She pulls a key out of her pocket and leans over the center if the floor where the handcuffs are secured.

She seems reasonable and I can see her being from our town but I've never met her.

After unchaining me she leads me down a dark hallway to a metal door.
Behind it is a large room with a strange cage in the middle made of fencing. I walk closer to it, as I do I realize that the building is taller than I thought. At least 3 stories. I can tell because where I expected the fence to meet the ceiling it simply stopped and a large hole began and didn't end until it went to a cement slab roof.

The girl leans on it and sticks out her hand. "Georgia-Rose." She said with raised eyebrows and a happy smirk. At first I think she might be doing some weird aloud singing thing from 'Best Song Ever' by 1D until I realize that's her name. I shake it "Eliza. Where are my friends and why'd you let me go?" I ask feeling a little curious as well as over thought.

She rolls her eyes and walks to a dimly lit side of the room. I walk behind her as she flips on a light, revealing a glass window like a ticket booth. With all of the strange architecture I'm beginning to wonder what even went on here. She knocks on the glass and a short blond girl hands her a key which has the letter F painted on it.

I take a deep breath, for the first time in days. There has not been a minute this whole week that I've actually relaxed. At this point I'm tempted to just go home, to the school where my life was so simple. I could tell Georgia-Rose it was a mistake and go home. Hot wire a car and drive away. But that's not a proud thing to do.

She walks around the cage to a hallway where I follow her. The walls are a dirty white color and are smeared with dirt or stains, it's hard to tell. I can see trash and debris surrounding my feet and kick at a green flashy can. She stops at a door with a small window next to it which is painted over green so it is opaque.

She looks at me with a smile, she seems to be at least 14 and has blue braces. I wonder how she'll get them taken off. I smile back and she unlocks the door with a faint click.

We walk inside and I'm suddenly surprised.