28Chained
Chapter I
Hello, my name is Kylie, and I am a teenage kidnappee. Yes, really. Normally that's not something I announce to the world, but it's a great way to break the ice, right? Yeah, I am a teenage girl who was kidnapped. Don't fuss with me about proper terminology, I really couldn't care less about it. I thought I had three brothers, a mother, and a father. At least, I did before this whole mess started. I thought I was a regular girl who didn't have much of anything to offer the world, aside from her stunning beauty and grace and charm and intelligence. Sarcasm anyone? But seriously, I had no idea what would happen to me, and who would be behind all of this stuff. I didn't know...well. There's time for that later. First, let's start at the beginning:
"Kylie! Get your lazy bum down here, or I will come up there and drag it down myself!" I groaned, hearing my oldest brother bang on the wall downstairs. I reached over and pulled my clock closer so I could see what time it was before slapping my arm over my face. I had over-slept. Again. That was what, the third time that month? Since when did school start that early?
I rolled out of bed and fumbled around my room, looking for my jeans and blazer. Yeah, I go to an all-girls Catholic school (because proper young ladies should not be corrupted by the male race this early in their innocent lives), but since it's one of those newer-age Catholic schools, we're able to get away with wearing jeans and the mandatory shirt and blazer if we're upperclassmen. Or women, in this case. So yes, I am seventeen, and a senior in St. Martha's School for the Punishment and Humiliation of Young Ladies. And as such, I am allowed to wear pants. Of course, if I was late one more time, Sister Catherine would make me wear those awful skirts for the rest of the year.
Anyway, I pulled on my favorite pair of jeans and my mandatory shirt and blazer and black flats before sliding down the banister to grab a bagel. My luck struck again, I ran into my second oldest brother, Jeremy, and fell off the banister, landing on my elbows.
"Watch it," Jeremy growled at me.
"Make me," I replied.
See, I have three brothers. Derek, the oldest and most sporty of the bunch, Jeremy, the scary one, and Braydon, the youngest and most affectionate one. Derek is the one who appears to be the biggest of the bunch, and he's always looked at as the ringleader. He's the most protective out of them all. Jeremy, however, has this thing I like to call "hidden muscle." He easily takes Derek in a fight, even though he prefers to skulk around in his room with his music. I don't know where he gets it from. Braydon is the one who loves teasing me and is usually the most physical out of them all. He's constantly around, always hugging me and wrestling with Derek.
Meanwhile, I usually sit back and laugh at the boys. Occasionally I join in, but I prefer to stay out of the brawls, because not only do my brothers tower over me, but they get pretty rough when they fight and they don't stop just because I'm a girl. I love my brothers.
Anyway, I ran into the kitchen and grabbed a bagel and started putting cream cheese on it. Braydon wandered in and scooped me up in a giant bear hug, lifting me off the ground. I shrieked and almost dropped my bagel.
"Braydon, stop it! I'm going to be late for school!" I yelled at him. He set me down and laughed.
"Sorry Kylie, I didn't realize what time it is," he said, grinning at me. I sniffed.
"Yes, well. That's alright, this time, but if I have to wear skirts for the rest of the year due to you wrinkling this stupid blazer or making me late, you are going to pay for it," I said, grabbing my bag and running out the door. I pulled the bag over my shoulder and started jogging to school, eating my bagel on the way. I heard Derek running to catch up to me, only slowing down when he reached me. Years of soccer and football training had made him fit, and he wasn't even out of breath.
"Hey now, what'd we say about you going out alone, now, huh?" he asked. I shoved the last of my bagel in my mouth before answering him.
"Yeah, yeah, I forgot, alright? Besides, it's too early for any of the creepers to be out, right? Don't worry about me," I said, rolling my eyes. Brothers can be nicely protective, and then they can be over-protective. My brothers? Definitely over-protective. Even Jeremy.
"Just be careful, alright? Creepers patrol at all hours," Derek said, reminding me of his own personal motto.
"Whatever," I said, finally arriving at the school gates just in time for the bell. Derek hugged me and then I was off to class.
That afternoon, after volleyball practice, I didn't bother waiting for my brothers. There was a football game that night that I didn't want to miss, especially because Marica was going to be there, and we have this little tradition. Our mascot is the baboon, and our school colors are red and blue. We're paired up with St. Peter's School for Boring and Nagging Young Men. They have a pretty crap football team, and we supply the cheerleaders. The cheerleaders' uniforms are a red skirt and a blue top. One year during the homecoming game, I had an epiphany. You know how lady baboons flaunt their red bottoms when they're in the mood for love? Make the connection. So, being the nerd that I am, I told Marica about it, and we immediately thought up this new cheer. It goes:
Go! Baboons!
Go, go! Baboons!
Flaunt those red bottoms,
Our favorite little baboons!
Naturally, Neil and his nerd herd sat near us, and they all got the reference and burst out laughing. A few teachers caught on as well, and we were escorted from the game. Technically we're not allowed to go to any more football games, but I found this hole in the fence under the stands. So we get in that way and find a seat so we can watch the game. And every time we go, we shout the cheer or have someone shout the cheer for us. None of the teachers ever catch who it is, because we always duck into a large crowd of people immediately after doing it.
So yes, I wanted to go to the football game that night, and I knew the only way I would get to do it was if I dodged my bros and made it home before they did so I could grab clothes and hop the fence to Marica's house. Then when they called looking for me, I could just tell them that I was at Marica's and we had walked home together. So that's what I was planning on doing when I set out to go home. Unfortunately for me, there was just a teeny tiny complication in my plans.
As I walked down the nearly abandoned street, I heard footsteps behind me. I didn't pay it any attention, you know, people being allowed to walk down the street behind me and all. It was when I entered the alleyway I use as a shortcut to get between streets without having to cross the street that I started to become nervous. The footsteps behind me didn't slow when I did, and there was a mass of dark shadows ahead of me, huddling together like they were doing something illegal. Then, as I approached the mass, they broke apart and stood in a line in front of me, keeping me from passing by. I tried turning around, but I collided with a wall of muscle. When I looked up, a masked face leered down at me before grabbing my arms. Without even thinking, I wrenched my arms out of the man's grip and brought my knee up to cripple him. When he fell down, I jumped over his body and ran. I heard the men I left behind chasing me, and I ran towards the park, where there were always parents who had little kids who wanted to play. I felt sure that someone would see me there, and I would be safe.
But no, with my luck, there was no one there. So I kept running, pushing myself as fast as I could go without collapsing. Somewhere behind me, I heard someone calling for backup. The man said it wouldn't take much longer, and I wondered what they were planning on doing to make sure I didn't get away. I didn't have to wonder for long. One of the men jumped out from behind a bush and tackled me, pinning me to the ground. One of the other men, the one I had crippled earlier, sauntered up to us as I was thrashing around, trying to get free.
"Hello sunshine," he said, grinning. The man sitting on top of me looked up.
"Boss, I think we ought to sedate her now so we can get her transported," he said. My eyes were probably huge at this point, and I started thrashing around even more wildly than before. The man referred to as 'Boss' pulled a rag out of his pocket and put it over my face, forcing my head to lie still.
"Breathe deeply, sunshine," he instructed. I held my breath for as long as I could, but eventually I had to breathe. When I did, the smell hit me like a wall, and everything went dark.
I had every intention of continuing this story through last year, but I had new ideas left and right for other stories and I lost my muse for this one. However, I intend to rewrite this and see it through to the finish this time. It'll be drastically different from the original, because I have no idea where I was going with it, but most of the characters will be the same. I'd appreiciate it if the original reviewers (you know who you are) would review and tell me what you think of the new version. Please and thank you!
-Miss Boo