April showers bring may flowers

Written in response to: Start or end your story with the line ‘This is my worst nightmare.’... view prompt

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Mystery Romance LGBTQ+

This is my worst nightmare. I don’t remember signing up for this. I was just trying to buy a sandwich from the corner store because I’ve run out of money for “real food” and now I’m caught up in what seems to be a poor attempt at a crime. When I walked out of the store with my sandwich and my soda I was then stuffed in a bag and thrown over someone's shoulder. I’m sure it looked exactly like it does in the movies. There were no witnesses except for the cashier and all the other people who got suckered into working the night shift. But I’m not a hundred percent sure that any of them were paying attention. Anyway, back to me. After I was put in the back of this van, they let me eat my sandwich. I’m not sure what their motives are yet but they didn’t tie my hands. They tied my legs though. At least they’ve got a general idea as to what they’re doing. Now, I wouldn’t be even a bit scared if they weren’t going to send a letter to my father and hold me for ransom. It’s not my father I’m worried about, it’s the kidnappers. They probably think he cares about me. He’ll take one look at that note and then throw it straight into a paper shredder. I’d hate to burst their bubble right now though. They seem to be thinking they are doing a good job. “So what’s the objective?” I say once I’ve finished my sandwich.

“What do you mean?” Says the tallest one. He has a slim face and a nice moustache. I think I’ll call him Kyle. 

“I mean what’s the plan, are you going to kill me if my father doesn't pay the ransom?” 

The round one in the passengers seat shivers at the very possibility of murder. “Why would we do that?” Says the one with glasses who’s trying to keep his eyes on the road. “Well, you’ve got to have a backup plan right?” I ask. You can tell this is the first time they're considering it. The van is silent and as we stop at red light you can tell they’ve all got a different idea as to what to do with me because as soon as the light turns green, they begin to argue. It’s all a bunch of words mushed together and I don’t have the mental capacity to even attempt to listen. Instead I let my mind drift to the place it really wants to be right now. I begin to see the image of her in the back of my head. A beautiful box color blonde barista. She has such a kind smile and her eyes are an amazing shade of green. They’re so fascinating, I could get lost in the green forest of her eyes. She knows my name now and every time I walk into the coffee shop she greets me with a smile. “Hey May!” She’ll say, and she'll giggle to herself at the wordplay even if she happens to be talking to someone already. It’s only now that I remember that my phone is in my back pocket and my hands have been left untied. I realize that it’s almost midnight but I wonder if she’s still awake. We’re supposed to go on a date tomorrow if these goons will let me go by then. I wouldn’t want the new coat I just bought to go to waste and I certainly don’t want to leave her waiting for me to pick her up. I scroll through my 15 contacts (10 of which are work related) and find her name. April. Such a lovely name isn’t it. Before I text her I decide to check on the 3 guys in the van. It makes me feel as if I’m babysitting them. When I look up they’re all staring at me with big eyes and sweating faces. Their mouths are all wide open like no one ever taught them how to keep them closed. “What are you doing?” Kyle says. He’s trying to look at my phone. I pull it closer to my chest “Did anyone ever teach you to mind your own business!” I half shout. He backs away. “Don’t worry I’m not calling the police.” They all seem relieved to hear this and begin to let their tense shoulders relax. “Where are you taking me?” I ask. They’re quiet for a minute. That’s all they ever are. Although, I wouldn't expect them to be master conversationalists either. Finally the one driving says “You have arrived at your destination.” and everyone starts to do something. They’re all in sync like they rehearsed this a million times before the thought of kidnapping me had even crossed their mind. The round one in the passenger's seat and the driver with the glasses both take their seat belts off at the exact same time. When they get out and walk along opposite sides of the van I can no longer see them. Out of everything they’ve done so far the fact that they’re so in sync and coordinated is the scariest thing of them all. I look at Kyle and he’s wearing the best poker face I’ve seen in my life. He has long, wavy, brown hair and of course a very likeable moustache (In my opinion at least). He’s the most unique one; the others are both pale and have buzz cuts. The only difference is that one is round and the one with glasses looks like a stick bug. They both each open a door to the back of the van. Kyle has already untied my legs and is now escorting me out of the van. While the round one stands guard and the twig boy unlocks the door with a set of keys. He has a Pokémon keychain but I can’t tell which one it is. They have the address number covered by a piece of paper, or maybe it’s multiple pieces of paper because I can’t make out any of the numbers. The inside of the house is super nice. Not like “Christian grandma” nice but like “art student” nice. It’s more of a studio apartment minus the apartment part. It’s just a small house. Painted on one of the walls in big, bold, blue, letters are the words “blank house, blank mind.” which would explain all the paint on the walls and the mismatched furniture of probably every color ever. I couldn’t see much of the house before they led me down to the basement. “Just like the movies.” I thought. The basement was not at all like the rest of the house. It looked more like the inside of a cabin in the woods. They blindfolded me as soon as I made it down the stairs and led me to a chair. It felt like one of those chairs in the fancy restaurants my father used to drag me to. I heard high heels and then someone sat down across from me. Someone took my blindfold off and once my eyes readjusted to the light I saw that it was April. She didn’t look beautiful anymore. No. She looked elegant. She was wearing a suit. Nothing like my coat at home that had elbow patches and looked like something a middle aged English professor would wear. I suddenly felt underdressed in my hoodie and my sweatpants. It was a full suit. Not a jumpsuit or just a blazer, an actual suit but she wasn't wearing a shirt under and two of the buttons on the top were undone I sat there shocked and as one of the boys poured us champagne. I suddenly realize that right now I am falling so deep into love with her. Deeper than I'll ever go for any other being on this earth. She was no longer the kind barista with a welcoming. She was a spectacular goddess with a devious smirk and a fire in the forest of her green eyes. And it doesn't even make me upset to admit, but this is my worst nightmare.

September 30, 2021 00:36

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