RUN

Lady Ehl

(I disown Gakuen Alice.)

PROLOGUE

There was a time in my life where I actually pondered about some news I overheard from the television as my Dad was supposedly watching it. As silly as it sounded, some man tried to flee a poor teenager from the country by putting her inside a suitcase. Unfortunately for him, he was caught by airport security and a sniffer dog. Though it was only a matter of minutes, I had thought about it. How can someone fit inside a suitcase?

As a five year old girl, I lacked common sense. I was the kind of person who has inadequate natural ability to make practical judgments. Didn't think of the size of the person, the size of the luggage or how flexible the person being put inside is – the factors which can contribute to the possibility of someone fitting inside a suitcase.

I just happened to ask myself about it and went back to fiddling a girly toy, while the reporter gave some kind of general tips on how to survive an abduction or hostage situation.

Now, I wished I listened 'til the end of the news.

Maybe there could be a way to open the zipper from the inside of an unknown species of Samsonite Luggage. Or some technique to use bobby hair pins to unlatch a padlock, in some other cases – my case, a pair of handcuffs. Perhaps the reporter mentioned on how to ease your back pain from being arched too long, your elbows jabbing your legs, your feet so numb being deprived of proper blood circulation. And also, if possible, how to shut your fight, fright and flight system.

When I realized I was being locked inside a suitcase, I tell myself this is not happening. I spent minutes, if not hours, trying to remember how I ended up here. But as I dig my brain from recalling my memories, my head pounds like crazy as if my eyeballs wanted to pop out from its sockets. Nauseous, I also felt like gagging. Worse than getting hangover on Friday nights.

I did everything on what first timers like me probably does in situations like these – at least I developed common sense now that I'm seventeen. I panicked, I tried to break free until my wrists bled, screamed behind the duct tape plastered across my mouth. I cried, cried and cried. I wet myself from both sweat and urine. Then came the realization that I just wasted fluids on my body.

I lost track of time. All I know was it took my wounds to form thin scabs when my abductor finally decided to release me from the suffocating suitcase. If I was in the same condition from the first time I regained my consciousness, I might've kicked my abductor's face and ran to escape.

But I don't even have the chance to move a muscle. I was exhausted, starved. Surprisingly, I was happy. Thankful, even. That finally, I saw light. I breathed air that doesn't stink of urine and sweat – though this new musky scent's still far from being called fresh.

He lifted me up, took me out of the bag and carelessly threw me on a dirty mattress. He's got a bottle of water – the only thing clean in this unkempt, blotchy, abandoned room – and tossed it towards me, hitting my shoulder in the process. I whimpered, but reached for the crimped plastic bottle.

Water. Water. Water.

I cried, or if I had any moisture left. Longing for fluids for so long, but I don't have any energy left to even uncap the bottle. The man scoffed and stole my water away from me, with so little force unclosed the lid and pour water over my still scrunched body. I strived to catch decent drops by mouth, but most of it just bathed me. And I more than wanted to drink than to rinse my fetid, grimy skin.

He laughed a bit and said something about I might get cold, I don't quite understand else. So he stripped me naked, forced my bent bones to straighten up. My abductor analyzed me for a moment before he began assaulting me – sexually.

And that concluded my life for one hundred and fifteen days.

I survived.

But while surviving, I slowly lost my will to escape. Slowly, I forgot about myself. Slowly, Mikan Sakura, the cheerful princess of Class B ceased to exist.