The sun was high in the sky, it's radiant rays hardly warming Paula's back as she walked alone on an abandoned highway. She made her way up the side of the road, an angry shiver shaking her body, making her light pink dress quiver. Her eyebrows were low and her arms were crossed across her chest. She kicked an old coke can lying on the road, trying to get out some of her anger.

"How dare they speak to me that way!?" She watched the can bounce and roll away, her anger not subsiding one bit. She thought that, after spending so much time with them, Ness, Jeff, and Poo were her friends, but apparently she was wrong. Friends don't tease each other because one is different from the others! She stomped the ground, kicking up dry dust. Their insults ran through her head, causing her mind to hurt. "I-I'm not sensitive!"

"And I'm most certainly NOT stupid or weak!" Paula yelled at the top of her lungs. Her big eyes filled with tears when she remembered their argument. "Just because I'm a girl doesn't mean I can't handle myself!" She thought. "And I'm done crying from now on!" She wiped away the tears in her eyes and sighed, staring at her damp wrist. "Of course they are still my friends. We've been through so much! They wouldn't just change their minds! But..."

"Ugh!" She said out loud. "I wish they didn't have to be such BOYS!"

Paula walked a little longer, the hot air blowing at her, causing sweat to roll down her face. A red car drove past her, blowing at her dress, but she ignored it, lost in her thoughts.

"Sure I wear pink all the time, but I happen to like that color, and wearing a dress doesn't stop me from battling! And I can't help it that I tend to be polite; I was raised that way!" Her thoughts became blurred in her mind, no longer making sense.

A few minutes later, her train of thoughts stopped when she came across a car. It was parked on the side of the road, black smoke coming out of the engine. She looked around for the car's owner, but didn't see anyone. If it had broken down, Paula would have gladly offered to help, but who would want a girl in a pink dress to help them, anyway? She shook her head and kept walking, turning away from the car, trying to keep herself from lowering her self-esteem more.

There was movement in the corner of her eye, and she turned her head, but something had grabbed her arms and forced them behind her back. She let out a scream and a large, oily hand covered her mouth, catching her cry for help. She thrashed wildly, but her efforts were useless. She quickly warmed her hands, using her PK Fire to try and escape.

Whoever grabbed her hands released slightly, grunting in pain, but did not let her go completely. She struggled more, and her foot somehow landed on the kidnapper's, but the person seemed unfazed. There was a rush on wind through her hair, and her face came in contact with a bright red car. The once bright sun vanished from her vision, along with everything else in the world, turning everything black. A sharp pain overwhelmed her completely. All she could hear was a high pitched buzzing noise, but that too eventually faded, until there was nothing at all for her to feel.

…

It only felt like a moment when Paula could hear the high-pitched noise again. It wasn't loud, but it was annoying enough to make her head throb. She tried to cover her ears to block out the noise, but her hands wouldn't move. A sudden bitter taste filled her mouth, and she slowly opened her eyes. At first, all Paula saw was darkness, but she turned her head slightly and she could see the back of a seat. She looked around, studying her surroundings. She was obviously lying on the ground in a car. The windows were pretty high, but she could still see the sky out of one.

Her hands twitched behind her and she discovered they were sloppily tied together. Her mouth was covered with a strip of silver duct tape. She slowly lifted her head, trying to see who was driving the car. She couldn't see much because the head rest was in the way, but she could see someone with short blonde hair, cut near the neck.

Paula looked away, afraid he would sense her eyes on him. She held her breath, trying to calm down and not start crying. "I have to escape..." She looked around. The car doors were locked and the windows were up, so trying to jump out of the window would be difficult. Not to mention the rope holding her hands together! Using her fingers, she felt around for the knot, trying to make as little movement as possible. She finally was able to find the loose tie and, tugging as hard as possible, she pulled it off her wrists. She tried tugging on the piece of duct tape, but it pulled at her lips harshly, so she stopped.

"Now for the hard part." Paula slowly pulled her legs to her chest, trying to avoid any sudden movements. The man in the front seat let go of the wheel for a moment and stretched his arms. Paula froze, her heart stopping. He sighed and slowly put his hands back on the wheel, his attention once again fully on the road. Paula hesitated. "What will get me in more trouble, not doing anything and let him take to... wherever he's taking me, or if he notices me and catches me escaping?" A shiver ran down her spine. "... What will he DO to me if he sees me leaving?" Paula tried to keep her breathing in check, but her gasps were uncontrollable. Luckily, her gag kept any noise quiet.

Paula took a long breath through her nose. "I-I have to keep going." She started moving her legs again, extra careful this time. After a few minutes of slow movements and constant shuddering, Paula had successfully gotten into an uncomfortable sitting position next to the car door behind the drivers seat. She studied the lock on the door. All she had to do is pull the latch... without making any noise.

Paula glanced back up at the man driving. He would definitely notice if some one unlocked his car. Paula closed her eyes trying to stop the tears, knowing that her efforts were once again for nothing.

Suddenly, the car turned sharply and the car jerked harshly to the right. Paula squeaked loudly when she hit the ground. The driver sharply turned around and stared directly at Paula's face. Without realizing what she was doing, she ripped the duct tape off of her mouth and screamed as loud she could. The driver flinched, his head snapping back and Paula grabbed the latch on the door.

"It's now or never!" She thought. She pulled the latch as hard as she could and opened the door.

The man screamed at her and grabbed her dress. Paula gasped in terror and grabbed her dress away from the man. It tore at the end and Paula lurched backwards, landing on the ground, the impact startling her. She snapped out of her daze and jumped up and ran as fast as possible. Behind her, she could hear the man stop his car and scream in anger.

"He's going to catch me! He's going to catch me!" Although she ran as fast as she could, Paula could still hear the man's footsteps getting ever closer. She screamed at the top of her lungs in terror.

"Somebody, help me!"