Stolen Innocence

1

Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. 20 minutes. Tick. Tock. Tick... instead of the tock Scarlette expected, a series of ear-splitting, loud sirens. Scarlette glanced at the clock. Five minutes. The teacher ran, as much as an overweight math teacher could run, to get to the door. Before he reached the handle, the door burst open and semi-attractive young men strolled in. In hand, they both had machine guns. The one furthest in pointed his gun at the class as if he was daring someone to try something. The other young man turned around and held his gun in a guarding manner. He stood tall, waiting. For what the man was waiting for Scarlette couldn't figure. Scarlette reached for her bag.

Her hand was inching closer to the zipper when the man noticed her and shouted, "No Moving. Someone might get hurt." The threat lingered in the air.

Silence followed. Someone coughed. The clock ticked. The world was silent. A series of screams rang out from down the hall. Gunshots followed. The man in the doorway stepped into the hall and looked left and then right. He then stepped back into the doorway. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. 30 seconds. 20 seconds. 10 seconds. 5. 4. 3. 2. The school bell rang. No yelling was heard. No stampede of kids leaving class. No hoots and hollers of the boys shoving each other through the halls. Silence. Silence. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. The school bell rang again. It rang through the empty halls. No dawdlers were left behind. For the first time ever no one lingered in the halls. No one ran to use the bathroom. No one sprinted down the halls to be less late to class. Just silence and the tick of the clock. The silence was deafening. The air was thick. It seemed to Scarlette that she could hear everyone's hearts beating. She realized the heart she was hearing was her own. Scarlette heard a thud and turned along with the class to the back. A girl had fainted. Scarlette didn't think. She didn't weigh the pros and cons. She shot out of her seat and to the girl. She gently tapped the girl's face until her eyelids fluttered open. Scarlette sighed, but her relief was cut short when she was yanked backward by her hair.

"I'm pretty sure that I said no moving. Did I not?" The man facing the class growled angrily into Scarlette's ear.

Everyone sat, fear stilling them as if they were all made of stone. No one dared breathe. Scarlette looked down, her fear of looking the man in the eyes overtaking her sense of pride. He stood and everyone seemed to take a collective breath. The man yelled words that jumbled in Scarlette's brain to the man by the door. Something was thrown. Scarlette followed the shadow it cast as it sailed through the air into the angry man's waiting hands. He bent down again and Scarlette watched as he wound a rope around her wrists. He tied off the rope and grabbed her wrists. He dragged her to her feet and sat her in her assigned seat. Silence once more took over the class. Once more the only sound was the clock. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Out of nowhere the man by the door was gruffly shoved aside and an angry looking man waltzed into the room. Scarlette was taken aback by his sharp green eyes and his short, dark hair. The strange man looked back into her eyes. She felt as if ice had just spread through her body. A shiver shook her. Seeing that the man smirked. Scarlette couldn't deny the strange way her body reacted to him. She wanted him to come closer, but at the same time, she desperately needed to flee. To escape.

The new man turned to Mr. Angry dude and spoke loud and clear, "Grab a few kids, bring the troublemaker." Scarlette's heart sank. "We have a negotiation."