Safe

-13- Prey

Holt Jacobs

It's snowing, my breath instantly crystallizing as I exhale. A chill runs through me, my body still damp beneath my clothes. I grip my bag tighter, buckling down for the walk to the bus stop.

"Hey Holt!" Someone yells my name.

It puts me on edge immediately but I scan my surroundings for the owner anyway. My step slows as I see Ian approaching, his dark hair has a dusting of white on it, a smile on his face as he approaches.

"How's it going buddy?" He asks.

But just as he speaks I hear footsteps behind me and I whirl around to see who it is. I don't recognize him, but I recognize this. This feels very much like predators stalking prey, it's obvious which one I am.

"I was telling my buddy all about you." Ian continues on. "We just need a little assurance for the next game, scouts are coming, ya know. Can't have my new team looking bad on a count of you."

I can't get my feet to move even though they've closed in on me.

"Can you help us out Holt?"

I hate the sound of my name coming from his mouth. It sounds too much like him and the basement flashes through my mind.

"What do you say pal?" A hand grips my shoulder and I wrench myself away, my breath caught in my throat. "Not so bad now that Mo's not here to save ya huh?"

I shake my head, trying to ground myself, to keep myself in the present even though right now is definitely not going to end in my favor. But anything is better than him and the basement.

"I-I'm s-sorr."

But I don't get to finish as hands shove me back. I slam into a body, they're arms snaking around me until no amount of thrashing sets me free.

"Please don't!" The words burst out of me desperate and pleading but just as I finish begging pain lights up in my rib cage.

He hates it when I beg.

Any air that had somehow remained in my lungs rushes out just as another fists lands in my ribs and I hear a pop come from somewhere within my body. The pain that floods my system is enough to make my knees buckle. Whoever's behind me lets me drop but not before another punch is thrown. I land on my hands and knees, the cold ground burning my bare hands. I gasp for air, instantly regretting it and drop the rest of the way to the ground.

He doesn't show me any mercy though. I curl into a ball, guarding my face with my arms as a boot collides with my stomach. My lungs are on fire, screaming for air but I can't manage to get any. My heart slams in my chest, panic raising my adrenaline as my body accepts blow after blow.

There's nothing I can do. He won't stop. Not until he's had his fun.

I'm not exactly sure how much time passes but at some point the kicking stops, I stayed curled up not trusting that I'm safe. And my lack of safety is solidified as a hand fists in my hair, yanking my head from the protection of my arms. My vision is blurry, the movement makes me nauseous. A shadowed figure stands in my view, but my head is too muffled to make out the voices, teetering precariously between the now and the then. The next thing I know, my head smacks against the pavement, a sickening crunch echoes through me as the hand releases from my hair and my head starts to pound. I make out laughter through the ringing in my ears, a blurry figure growing distant.

I stay down, not wanting to give him a reason to come back. He won, like he always does. My body trembles and every shake it makes causes stabbing pain to spread through it. But as I lay there, I slowly become aware of my immediate surroundings. It feels too cold to be the basement as wind whips past and I watch a snowflake land on the concrete just past my nose. A blurry little spec of white, perfectly unique and untouched. At least for the moment.