Author's Note: I'm proud of this one. Enjoy! :)


Just as it had done for all of her time in captivity, the night prior's sleep had come abruptly, yet softly, her thoughts slowly drawing to a halt as her drowsy eyes fell to a close. Her head, heavy with worry and subconscious fear, would droop downward, her dark hair framing her starved, deprived figure in an almost beautiful way. Despite her current conditions, her dreams and slumbers remained joyful, a peaceful melody in the midst of a tragic symphony. Unlike her conscious mind, her sleeping thoughts never once thought of the future, but only of the past. The future, as she had concluded silently on a number of occasions recently, wasn't necessarily bright or promising. The past, however, was full of smiles, laughs, sincerity and love, friends and family...things that she lacked and, to be quite honest, things that she truly missed. Her captor did show compassion, but only rarely. It was those times that she hated to think of, because the man showing compassion and sympathy towards her only caused her mind to become frantic with thoughts of what her future may potentially hold. It frightened her, the thought of staying with the man for the rest of her fateful days. It was that fear, that tense, paralyzing fear, that she refused to voice. Regardless, the fear never intruded in her innocent dreams, as sleep guarded her mind heavily during those hours of naive, selfish desires. For hours, the leaden slumber blanketed the woman's mind, preventing any of reality's cruel ways from haunting her thoughts. Just as a young child would doze off after a busy day at school, the petite girl would drift off into her own personal dream land, all tangible evidence of being held hostage by a murderer nonexistent in her fantasy-like escape. Only when finally awakening would the true horror of everything become visible, and that was just what occurred in the dreary morning of her sixth day in captivity.

She knew it felt strange, off in every way that she could imagine, when she first awoke. Her feet were untied, as were her hands. She wasn't sitting up, but instead lied out on a bed, the blankets and sheets pulled up over frail body and tucked in nicely on the bed's edges. Her eyes became wide, a fearful stare scanning the dark bedroom slowly. The first thought that shot through her mind was simply "Run!", though upon attempting to fulfill that suggestion, she found it nearly impossible. Her legs, her arms, every bone in her body, felt sore, resistant of even her own movements. A helpless whine escaped her lips at that realization. For a brief moment, defeat washed over her. For days, she had refused to give up, to give in to her impending failure. But then? In that instance, she felt powerless, weak, defenseless. She forced her body to turn to the side, a louder, more painful whine escaping her at the sudden change in position. Her moist tongue slid thoughtfully over her dried lips, wetting them and trying to quell the hunger that rumbled deep within her stomach. A thought flew fleetingly though her mind then, almost as an afterthought, a careless, off-the-wall idea. If the man who held her captive was kind enough to untie and move her, would he be so kind as to feed her, too? She pondered it for a couple of moments, musing sleepily over the subject until she saw the bedroom door creak open, the wood squeaking quietly as her nameless captor entered the room. Hazel again drifted effortlessly up to blue, silence speaking the words neither wanted to say as he moved over to the bed, sitting on the opposite side of his victim, eyes never once separating from her own. "Did you sleep well?" he asked, and it took the girl a few moments to truly process the four simple words. Hazel finally left blue, instead floating down to the mattress before ultimately closing, a tired sigh replacing the gaze. "I want to leave." she whispered, her voice softer than she even knew that it could be. Her eyes remained shut, her mind and her soul knowing for a fact that she was not prepared for the rejection. Not again. She didn't want to face him, witness his disagreement, not anymore. She didn't want to live like that, like this, fearful of a ruthless criminal who had a strange fascination and adoration for her.

"AJ, AJ...you don't want that." She heard his voice, just as she felt the mattress shift when he stood to his feet. Seconds later, the door's eerie creak echoed against her ears, the wooden floor's planks squeaking with each step as she listened carefully to the man's departure. Only minutes later, when she was sure that she was alone once again, did she open her eyes. Her stare stayed glued to the bedroom door for what felt like hours, waiting in pure anticipation for the man to re-enter, to tie her up once more, to torture and to finally end all of her pain. But something inside of her continued to attempt to convince her that those wants and lusts would never come to a head. She wouldn't be tied up again. She wouldn't be tortured again. She wouldn't be killed, no matter how much she wished for it. He had already told her otherwise, had he not? A frown ghosted across her face at that conclusion, a feeling of defeat again washing over her entire body as she lied helpless in the luxurious bed. The rest of the day was spent just as any other, with reality taking a back seat to her dreams and her mindless wandering and wading through the countless desires that danced freely through her mind. Night fell, and sleep wasn't too far behind. She moved occasionally in her sleep, the random, pain-filled moan escaping her weary lips. The freedom from the rope's binds gave her the space and the chance to fidget and move as her subconscious wanted, the ability probably causing more pain than she intended, though that would have to wait until the morning. Tonight, sleep was in control. Not the wind blowing against the glass windows, not the owls chirping in the distance, and not even her captor walking in and leaving a plate of breakfast only minutes before she awoke, could pull the girl away from her enchanted wonderland.


Author's Note: See? She gets food now! Because he's sweet like that, mhm. Anyway, feedback is always welcome! :)