~*~
A delicious smell wafted into her system when Bella woke up the next morning. Her aching stomach growled with pleasure and her eyes snapped open.
There were four toasted sandwiches lying on a plastic plate, with a mountain of salad on the side. There was a big bottle of water too.
Bella looked around, shocked. Obviously someone had come close to the bush to put it there. It was put in the shade, so no one would see it apart from her.
Without thinking, instincts drover her and the plate and bottle was empty within five minutes. Her stomach growled in pleasure, but then started to ache at the sudden food income.
Bella held a hand to her stomach, then to her dry lips. They were better now, not flaking or anything. Then Bella saw the doctor.
He was leaning against the stair railings near the front door of the hospital, watching her with a sad smile.
Bella gulped, and tried to go back into the bush, but a thorn pierced her. She winced.
"Oi! You!" Came an enraged yell from the other side of the road.
It was a scruffy looking guy. Bella gulped, and then remembered she had passed him and ignored his advances the night before.
He was grinning as he looked at her, licking his lips.
Bella gave a shiver and launched herself out of the bush, running out onto the road, ignoring the doctor.
The guy started running after her, but she pushed her limbs to do their best. She turned down alleyways and ran across roads. She had just lost him, when she started to cross the road back to the hospital.
There was a screech, and Bella saw the car try to brake, but it hit her, sending her sprawling onto the bonnet. Bella breathed in sharply at the sudden impact, and looked in the car slightly.
It was a group of five kids, well, they were her age, and they were beautiful. A beautiful blonde was in the driver's seat, and a strong looking guy in the passenger. In the back left seat was a bronze haired guy, then in the middle seat was a pixie like girl, and then in the right back seat was a guy with blonde hair.
They were all leaning forward, with shocked expressions. They were about to get out of the car, and so Bella scrambled off the bonnet. At the same time she noticed how expensive the car looked, the scruffy guy appeared at the edge of the road, grinning at her.
"Hey gorgeous, why you runnin' from me? I can give you a home, ya know, coz I know that you're a runaway, hmm?" The guy grinned.
Bella gulped, "Stay away you jerk" She threatened, lifting her hand.
"Ooh, gonna fight me? Wrong move." The guy grinned and a couple more guys stood out from the shadows. They made the 'call me' sign, grinning.
Her instincts once again saved Bella, and pushed her body to run. It did. She ran with all her might, and heard the guys following her, and so she turned down the alleyways and the roads.
She hid in the shadows, and then when they went past, she hurried the way she came. She lost them and came in front of the hospital.
Once again, darkness had fallen by the time she had evaded them. She ran across the road and froze. The doctor, and the group of teens her age who had nearly ran her over, along with a beautiful, kind looking woman, stood on the front steps. They watched her.
Bella grabbed the plastic plate and the bottle before standing about ten metres from where they stood. She dumped the plate and bottle there, and then tilted her head at the doctor.
"Th…Thank…You" She said, voice rasping from hardly ever being used.
The doctor nodded.
"Babe…" Came the eerie call from the alleyways.
Bella froze, and looked at the bush. She couldn't hide there again, where could she hide?
"Here" The doctor gestured quickly, pointing to behind the family.
Bella bit her lip. The calls from the group of guys got closer. She took a deep breath and rushed forward, hiding behind the family.
The group of guys appeared and she tensed, breathing heavily.
"Shh" The pixie like girl said and Bella stopped breathing.
The guys strutted across the road and started kicking at the bush where Bella had slept.
"What are you doing?" The doctor's high authority voice called sternly.
The guys looked up at him and grinned leeringly, "Just finishin' a little business."
"Get off this property" The doctor commanded, "Or I'll call the police"
The guys looked at him, then proceeded running around and looking at every bush, kicking it.
"That's it, I'm calling the police" The doctor said and pulled a mobile out of his pocket.
The guys howled and moved off into the dark. There was a slight shout, "Hey kiddie"
"No!" Bella breathed again.
The doctor looked at her, "Don't worry, I wasn't actually going to call-"
"No!" Bella repeated and pushed herself out from behind them and rushed across the road to the shadows.
The family shouted, but Bella needed to save the kid! She wondered why they didn't see him, getting attacked by the group of guys.
She stopped halfway across the road and the streetlight came on, showering the scene in light. Bella thought she heard the gasp of the doctor and his family, but she concentrated on the scene.
"Stop it" She commanded.
The guys didn't stop. They punched the boy, who was crying out.
With a growl, Bella flew at the guys, kicking and gouging at their eyes.
They swore and tried to attack her, but she avoided their blows. She looked at the boy, he was about thirteen, fourteen, with chestnut, curly hair and brown eyes.
"Run!" She told him, and punched one of the guys in the jaw.
The boy blinked, and then started backing away.
"No!" Bella shouted, noticing the guys appearing behind him, "Run to the hospital! The hospital!" She pointed desperately, trying to avoid the guys' bad aims.
The boy looked behind him and saw the guy, so he high tailed it to the hospital where the doctor scooped him up and carried him in the hospital.
Bella punched the guys and kicked but she knew she wasn't going to win. She was tired from all the events-
"Oi! Let her go!" Came a strong, booming voice.
Bella looked over, and caught a punch to the head, but she saw it was the strong one from the car. The blonde haired guy and the bronze haired guy accompanied him.
Calculating quickly, the guys sized up the doctor's family. They realised they couldn't win, so they gave a good try to punch Bella one more time, and then fled.
Bella groaned, and held her hand up to her head.
"Thanks" She said voice dry and raspy again.
"No problem, come on, we got to get you to the hospital-"The strong one grinned, but Bella shook her head, which made her feel dizzy.
"I'm fine. Just make sure that kid gets a good place to stay." Bella said, and then wandered across the road to her bush.
"Now, come on" The blonde haired one said, "You are hurt, you have no where to stay-"
"I'm fine. I can stay here, I've done it before." Bella interrupted as she dropped to her knees to crawl through the hole to the bush.
"They'll come back." The bronze haired one said.
Bella nodded, "I have no doubt."
A cop car appeared at the top of the road. Bella froze. The group looked at it, and then back to her. But Bella had already taken refuge.