Falling Like The Stars || UNDER HEAVY EDITION ||

Eleven

The sun warmed my body in that enhanced cold that shimmy up my skin. I know it was spring and the fabulous time for hanging out, but nevertheless, the chilly smell was still draped around. People would usually love to freeze the hell out there, if they didn't have cystic fibrosis. The icy season suffocates my lungs. And even it didn't, I'd still never prefer to go to and "hang out" with my cousins.

I held my breath into a deep inhale and sighed. You just never get what you want, do you?

Here I sat with my five paternal cousins—Julie, "the flirt"; George, the "always curious guy"; Debbie, the beauty; Ben, the little one and Danny, the best player of our family.

It was a Sunday and unlike the name mentioned, the sun could barely be seen. The six desperate kids were literally thrown out of the house in the name of "quality time". Well, this could have worked if all the six siblings sat under a single blossom and talked. Talked.

Except me, nobody seemed to notice that Julie was flirting with the well-build friend of Danny's, or the creepy drawings George titled as "plan". In addition to that, Debbie was full on concentration with her makeup kit and Ben—

Wow, he disappeared. Again, no one analyzed that. If anyone had any fun, I'd bet it was Danny. He was immersed with his team in the soccer part of the recreational area.

I stomped my feet over the ground impatiently, suppressing all the desires of leaving this place. I tried to calm down but as it occurred, the more I tried, the most intolerant I got. I thought weekends were supposed to end in front of the television, where no humans could ever perceive the tubes sticking under your nose, hidden by the mask.

Not a playground on a freezing day, with millions of citizens participating in some activity.

As I was pondering upon this, Ben suddenly appeared out of nowhere and started pulling my sleeves. I wanted to growl at him, but his adorable face seemed to execute me instead. Although I've a weird family, I'd still say that sometimes, you just need to go with the flow.

I smiled at Ben, drowned by his cuteness. "Yes, Ben?"

"I wanna see the soccer match but they don't allow me. Will you come with me?"

Soccer match? Me? With the public staring at me?

"I—"

"Please?" Gosh, that's a terribly charming face.

I declared to say no, but instead I said, "Of course!"

Damn.

With a jump of excitement, he held my hand and seized me away. And in one way or another, I felt the glory of freedom from the "quality time".

***

We loitered around the park, observing a bird here and there. As it approached, Ben was pretty good to be hanging around. I'm still concentrating if that's because he was younger than me, or because he was jollier than me.

"Blake?"

"Yes, Ben?"

"I'm hungry. Can we have some burgers before the match starts?" He was using those puppy eyes with me.

Didn't seem a bad idea to be honest. Even my tummy was rumbling. "I don't see a reason why not."

We reached a stall, filled with people. I believe the queue was long enough to bore my appetite. Nevertheless, Ben was passionate about his burger.

"What would you like, Mademoiselle?" The person behind the counter asked, smiling through his wrinkled skin. Finally, it was our turn.

"Burgers!" Ben wailed with happiness.

"Two burgers coming right up," with that he stuffed two mouth-watering sausages between the fluffy buns, dipped in mustard. He handed the plates towards me. "That'll be twenty bucks."

I thanked him and sighed over the crowded area. He whispered in a low voice, "You can eat on a bench there."

I followed the way his finger pointed and remarked a clear spot under an enormous blossom. Ben dashed to capture it.

I walked behind him, glad that it was away from the populace. Promptly, I sighted some guys smirking at me. The flashing dark eyes pierced through my clothes and I suddenly felt being bare in a super observing public place. I noticed their fingers swirling around some keys, which I presumed would be of the slaughtering motorbikes behind them, in an absurd demeanour, almost appearing as if conveying an unthinkable vibe. Averting my gaze, I fastened my move. I couldn't have been more conscious of their outrageous notions pricking in my mind. Ben helped me sit down and enjoy the items.

Somehow, I couldn't feel less unnerving than the dudes who still eyed me. My heart skipped a beat, pondering upon the effects they might have on Ben, and I instantly got alert of the danger that might encounter. I slipped a hysterical smile at him, trying to prevent from having a brittle break down.

"Ben? Let's go to the soccer field. We can eat there." I uttered lowly. My gaze slithered towards the approaching biker guys, who were whistling now.

"No, I wanna eat here!" He shouted. His voice echoed in my ears itself. Adrenaline flushed through my veins.

"Ben, I'm serious. Let's go." I sensed the whistling altering into rough crackles. They couldn't have been more closer. I unsteadily stood up and readied to turn away.  A gust of air surrounded my earlobe as a murmuring voice articulated, "What's the hurry, angel?"

Perspiration dripped over my chin. The stench of cigarettes floated around my figure. I twisted around to confront a group of guys, confining me. Their eyes glistened with the equivalent lust they had in their preposterous intellect. I inched away from the grotesque bikers, when one of them, seemingly the leader, pinned me to a tree. I winced in distress. "Shh. No need to hurry."

Oh my God...

Anxious that they wouldn't leave me alone, I opted for the tough. Knitting my brows with panic, I compelled him. "Shut up, let me go."

He leaned closer and the flavour of the smoke reached my lower lip. The others were wickedly sneering. "Oh, I favor dominant girls."

He held my waist and attempted for a kiss. I slapped him hard, quickly realizing my reaction. "I said leave me alone or else I'd shout here."

He grunted, tightening his grip on my arm. I flinched in pain, trying to hold back my tears. "Look, lady, I just want to have some fun with you. Then my friends here," he glanced at the stimulated guys, "will show you the rest of the play."

Tears trickled down my eyes. My lungs were suffocating. The mask loosed. I was going to die. Someone help me.

He removed my hair from face and lowered his head forward my neck. His fingers oozed over my skin. Something rang in my head. I could hear no more. The vision filtered into a blur. The guy was detaching my façade.

And in that moment, someone yelled, "Get away from her."

I couldn't see him properly. His figure wavered across my blur sight. He was arguing with the dudes. And in a low voice, before I passed out, I mumbled—"Help me..."

Then a total blackout.