12:00

innocence

innocence

It was exactly twelve o' clock when those two gunshots rang through the still night. The sound echoed in my head even as I was jostled in the car trunk, my body being roughly thrown against Aiden, who wouldn't keep crying.

She was sobbing now- big, heartrendingly, broken sobs escaped her. I didn't utter one peep. I couldn't. There was a crushing sadness on my chest, and I was suffocating. There was no more feeling of pure bliss. I was no longer floating on freedom, but I was chained to the ground, gasping for breath. It was humid and cramped in the trunk of the car. My skin suddenly felt too hot and itchy for my body; I stirred, groaning.

"We are going to die," Aiden wailed, her body twisting and turning. "They killed them! Cora, they killed them!"

I didn't open my mouth to say one word of consolation. I let Aiden scream and cry. Why would I tell her it would be alright when it wasn't? The reason I was in this mess was a silly white lie I told my dad. If I told her we were going to get out of this unscathed or survive to the morning, I would only feed more lies into her pretty little head.

Drew and Matt were dead. It was incomprehensible. Not even thirty minutes ago, I was wrapped in the safe embrace of Drew, his lips on mine. Matt was being a complete asshole, not able to keep his big mouth close, and screaming obscene words. Now there hearts were stopped. It would never best again.

It was so unfair.

What would four complete strangers want to do with high schoolers?

Fun.

I was going to vomit. Leroy's words echoed in my head, like haunting melody. They had been waiting for someone as stupid as us to take the bait, and they could have a little fun. Now, they had a Ferrari and two pretty girls.

My head began to spin. How was this going to end? My mind filled with scenarios, and soon the world slipped away.

*

"Wake up, Princess," a Spanish accent cooed in my ear.

Groggily, my eyes fluttered open. I groaned at the pounding in my brain- a headache.  I slowly sat up, my eyes carefully adjusting to lighting. I rubbed my eyes, and my vision began to clear, revealing a dirty, dingy, dimly light hotel room. There was a single light flickering from the popcorn ceiling. The walls were stained, and had started to mold. I gagged at the smell. 

The bed, I was currently sitting on, groaned and creaked beneath weight. I fisted the torn and yellow sheets as my gaze finally landed on the four kidnappers. Leroy stood in front me, a smug smile playing at his lips. The two Jonhs were seated on a couch, stuffed in the far corner, and Colby was drifting near the door, a gun twirling in his hands. 

The gun used to kill Matt and Drew. 

I gulped. 

That's when I noticed Aiden. She was whimpering like a kicked puppy, shoving herself against the headboard, attempting to distance herself as far as possible from the boys. They simply looked at her in amusement. 

I felt a tear drip down my face. 

"Don't cry, Princess," Leroy spoke, cocking his head and looking down on me as if I were a child, who had lost their mother in a grocery store. "We'll take great care of you."

"Please," I whispered, my voice cracking. 

The small John barked out a laugh. "She's scared, Leroy. She doesn't know that we're goin' to make her feel real good."

I hiccuped, my tears falling faster. I moved my body closer to Aiden, seeking the only form of safety. I gripped her clammy, shaking hand, holding it between my own two.