Au

Chapter 15

Warning:
First half of this chapter might upset sensitive readers. It's not gruesome or overly explicit but there are unspoken (well unwritten) implications that may make some readers uncomfortable💜 please read with caution 🙏🏾💜

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Her little legs swung playfully from the edge of the park bench. She was just across from the school and it had been hours since the last student was picked up. Most of her surroundings were dark and she didn't dare look in any other direction except straight ahead. She was terrified. Her foster father should have picked her up at the end of the school day but as always he'd forgotten. Most of the other kids in the home were old enough and close enough to home to walk their way back, leaving her at the mercy of a man who had the memory of a goldfish. Night had fallen and a chill had taken over the streets. A flimsy fog began to rise, giving the park a sinister aura and poor little seven-year-old Iris was terrified.

A figure stumbled out of the shadows towards her and she kept her eyes trained on the drunken silhouette, afraid to be caught off guard. It was a teenager with a messy mop of curly blonde hair, baggy clothes and a creepy smile. He slumped down next to her and she shifted a little, turning her head to face the school once more. He smelt of smoke. Not cigarette or fire but something else. Chemical and strong. He slurred his words when he spoke.

"Hey, there little girl. How you doin?"

She didn't bother looking at him, praying that if she ignored him long enough he'd stumble on his merry way.

"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?" He asked yet again and yet again she didn't legitimise his question with an answer.

"You just gonna let me talk to myself?" He persisted, inching closer towards her. With her discomfort growing and her fear intensifying, Iris finally broke.

"I'm not supposed to talk to strangers," she answered, naïvely hoping that the answer would satisfy the young man enough for him to leave her be. She had no such luck.

"Oh, but we don't have to be strangers. I'm Fred. What's your name?"
The stranger placed his large hand on her tiny thigh and Iris felt her heartbeat quicken. She froze, paralysed by her fear and simply sat there trying to remember how to breathe. His hand felt heavy and dirty on her skin and she felt a sudden itch originating from their point of contact. She wanted to scream, to get up and run, to wack the stranger over the head with her backpack but she was too afraid to move.

"You're really pretty you know?" He whispered into her ear before leaning in closer and smelling her hair.

"Please leave me alone." She managed to croak out with a small and shaky voice.

"Don't worry. I won't hurt you." He told her while sliding his hand further up her thigh. She began to hyperventilate. She had no idea what he was doing but it felt wrong. She needed it to stop. Where was her foster father? Why wasn't he there to save her? Tears started streaming down her trembling cheeks and she closed her eyes, wishing that her body would listen to her mind and start moving. That her legs would jump off the bench and run, that her vocal cords would loosen up a bit more and allow her to scream.

"Don't cry baby girl. This is gonna be fun. You'll see," he said before planting his grimy lips onto her cheek.

"Iris!" The voice echoed through the still night, startling her. Her eyes shot open and she could just about make out two headlights in the distance. He'd finally come. She was saved. Reawakened by the proximity of safety she opened her mouth and screamed.