High School Daze

Ch. 5

She tried to fight them off, but a cloth was forced over her nose and mouth. She felt the other hand practically slither up her shirt, stopping on her bare belly, just before everything went black from the chloroform.

After what seemed like forever, Shenzi came to. When her vision was cleared, she was confused at her unfamiliar surroundings; It looked like a dim living room with a lit-up fireplace, and closed curtains on all the windows. When she tried to stretch her arms, she realized the position that she was currently in. She was sitting on her feet, but her arms were stretched up so high, that she was almost at a 90 degree angle. Not to mention her hips were exposed for the world, or whoever was here, to see, along with the very bottom of her belly button. Her shoes and surprisingly her purse were to her right, unattended.

She then noticed something on her face when she tried to speak; A white cloth was tied tightly around her mouth! Her yells were muffled as she tried to pull her arms down to get out of there, return home, thank Z for the dates, and fix things with Chuckie. During her time "playing the field", she missed him dearly. Strong footsteps made her freeze, before a very familiar man walked in the room. "The bus driver?" Hey eyebrows raised up in shock, but staying silent, he removed his toupée and sunglasses, revealing his true identity. Her eyes widened in horror, before they squinted. "I knew it."

Chuckie's hands were on his cheeks as the preppy girl he was on a date with was texting nonstop. The annoying part? She was texting him, even though he was sitting right in front of her! And she spoke to him earlier, so he knew she wasn't a mute. "Are you actually going to talk to me anytime tonight?" He asked her as his phone went off who knows how many times. She shot a glare, making him raise an eyebrow, before she sent yet another text, making him roll his eyes. He felt for her parents should they see the phone bill. "I'm not picking that up." He hated to sound pushy, but this was ridiculous. Was it that hard to talk to him verbally?

He missed Shenzi; She was fun, sweet, not to mention she actually liked talking with him. She hardly ever took her phone out, if at all, and she always had something to say. He wondered if she was having fun "playing the field" like he was. The girls he dated the last few weeks were either dumb as rocks, narsisstic, or snobby as all heck. Or both. What was he thinking? Did he only go for appearance? When almost all the girls were turn-offs for him, it was to expected. He excluded friends to avoid any awkwardness, so Lil, Roxy, Susie, and Frankie were out. Even though they weren't exactly friends, Angelica was out too; From what he experienced in Living Skills class in middle school, he thought it was a good idea. Nicole was excluded because Fridge liked her, and he didn't want to be scummy.

At one point, he finally cracked, and went on a date with Samantha Shane. It surprisingly went well, until she insulted Shenzi. He snapped, and it went south from there. Long story short, he didn't want anything to do with her ever again after that. And he revealed his actual nickname to her, since she still thought it was Charlie.

He jumped when "I Love Rock N' Roll" suddenly played on his phone in his pants pocket. It was the ringtone he had set for Z; They had become friends after a long story involving Kimi. He took out his phone, and pressed answer. "Hello?" His eyes widened in horror. "She's what?!" He stepped out of the booth. "Wha- how did-?!"

"Can you call her parents? I don't have their number."

"Okay, I'll, I'll tell her parents! Bye!" He hung up, and turned to his date. "I have to go. My best friend, she-she's missing." He huffed and rolled his eyes when she didn't avert her eyes, before he dashed out, leaving her to pay the bill, and possibly finish his food. He expected a "that's horrible!" or at least a "I hope you find her," but she didn't seem worried at all. As he headed for a bench, his phone buzzed in his pants. "Now what?!" Out of curiosity, he took it out, and it was the girl he was with.

Well, where is she?

For a moment, Chuckie stared at the phone screen in disbelief. "What?!" He exclaimed to himself. Seriously? He says Shenzi's missing, and that bimbo asks where she is? In frustration, he then sent a text back to her, not caring what he wrote, before he continued running.

No one knows, genius!

Since his phone's battery was low, he had to turn it off so he didn't know if she replied back. He didn't care, though. He broke into a sprint as he headed for the Tuck house as fast as he could, dreading how they would react to the horrible news.

"Shenzi's missing?!" Felicia yelled in horror as Frankie was sobbing in her hands.

"How did this happen?!" Friar Tuck asked Chuckie, close to tears himself.

"Well, Z called me, and told me everything; While the party was going on, he-he realized that he forgot his phone on his motorcycle, so he asked Shenzi to get it while he used the bathroom. He hasn't seen her since."

"I'm calling the police!" Felicia stood up and ran to the house phone, as Frankie cried in her father's shoulder.

"I-I wish I never offered to take her to that stupid restaurant," Tears flooded Chuckie's eyes as his hand rubbed his forehead under his bangs, "Then we never would've started this break, and she never would've gone to that party. She would still b-be here."

"Hello, officer? I, I want to report a missing teenager," They heard Felicia's breaking voice, "Shenzibeth Tuck; She's my daughter. She's around 5 foot 3, wears black cat-eye glasses, has long black hair, and covers the right side of her face with her bangs. What? Why doe- WHO CARES?!" They jumped at her sudden scream of frustration, "Just find her!" She hung up. "They're going to start a search, but not until 24 hours after she disappeared."

"What?!" Chuckie exclaimed in disbelief, with tears falling, "That's in like, 12 hours! Why can't they start searching now?!"

"It's a custom for reports of missing teenagers," Felicia explained, while wiping her eyes, "Because a lot of times, they just go off on their own to do who knows what. While we wait, let's make some posters to put up around the town."

Chuckie, being digitally artistic, made a poster that would be eye-catching, but effective with a simple photo of Shenzi from her 16th birthday, since it was the most recent picture of her taken. "Hey, Felicia?"

"Y-yes?"

"What made you mad while calling the cops?"

"Well, the officer I was talking to asked me why Shenzi covers the right side of her face."

Chuckie smacked his hand on his forehead at that. "Who cares?!"

"That's what I said to him," Felicia sniffled, "I really hope these work." Everyone else agreed with her as the printer/scanner printed out the posters Chuckie made. After they were all done, the four drove all over town, sticking posters on every light post that they could find. Chuckie was able to get Kimi, Chaz, and Kira to help after telling them what happened. They were devastated, and determined to find her. Kimi was crying, but managed to regain her composure enough in order to help out. Their friends helped too; Other than the Tucks and the Finsters, Fridge seemed to be the most effected by the terrible news, since Shenzi was like a baby sister to him, but he stayed strong. Even Angelica was upset. By the time they were done, they had posters all around town, and they had two left, so the Tucks and Finsters decided to keep them to show around. They printed more for their friends and families to show around as well. Z felt incredibly guilty, thinking it was because of him that she disappeared, but he was assured that it wasn't his fault. Although he made it up to them by helping as much as he possibly could.

After he told them what happened from his point of view, they all made a conclusion. Shenzi didn't just disappear on her own; She was kidnapped.

That night, Chuckie laid wide awake in his bed, a poster clutched to his chest as tears continued falling. Why was it that fate took everything he loved away from him? First his biological mother, then Armadillo Dave, and now his girlfriend? He didn't know how he'd survive school without her. If they were, he wondered how Kimi and their parents could sleep. He felt like such an idiot, thinking that he had to spend a pound of bills to keep her in his life. She said that his presence was enough for her, and he didn't listen. He was such a dip head! When, not if, when, she's found, he'd be lucky if she took his sorry butt back. If she did, then he would never screw up again; He couldn't lose her again. There were other horrifying moments they had been in, such as when they were on that scaffold, and according to an old friend of theirs, she was briefly caught by a burglar over 10 years ago in New York City, and she was almost hit by a subway train just before, but this topped them all. Because this time, she may not ever come back.

No! Nonono! He shook his head to shoo the thoughts away. She will come back! He just knew it! He'll make sure of it! He eventually cried himself to sleep without noticing, with the poster still on his chest.

At another household residence, Friar Tuck was sitting on the couch in the living room, still feeling very despondent. The search had begun a few hours ago, but the police didn't find anything yet. He just couldn't believe that his youngest daughter was missing. Again! And this time, it was just her. There was no one to protect her from who knows what, as far as they knew. He shouldn't have let her go to that party. If he and Felicia insisted that she stayed out of it, then she would still be here.

He looked at the stairs when he heard footsteps, and saw Frankie looking equally depressed. "You couldn't sleep either?" She sniffled and wiped her eyes. He merely shook his head in response. "Me neither." She sat next to him, and rested her tear-stained cheeks in her hands. "I-I hope she's okay. Who would kidnap Shenzi? She's done no wrong."

"I wish I knew," Friar Tuck sighed shakily.

Frankie stayed quiet in despair, before a thought suddenly came. It hit her like bricks as her eyes widened. "You don't think...?"

"What?"

"You don't think it was... Pa-Pangborn, do you? I mean, who else would capture an innocent teenager like that? Especially if it was Shenzi."

"Th-that is possible. But no matter who it is, they're in huge trouble when I find them."

"Same here," Frankie punched her opposite palm, "No one messes with us Tucks, and gets away with it unscathed."

"I couldn't agree more," He laid a hand on her shoulder, "Well, we're not going to help by staying awake all night. Let's try to get some sleep."

"Okay," She nodded and stood up. "'Night." She trudged upstairs, still feeling the pressures of her baby sister stuck at God knows where.

"'Night," He followed her upstairs, and headed to his and Felicia's room, where his wife looked distressed as she slept. Not to mention she had fresh tear stains on her cheeks. Once he was comfortable, he drifted off to sleep, where a very interesting dream was starting in his subconcious. It wasn't the good kind of interesting.

l-l

After what seemed like hours, Friar Tuck woke up, and it was still dark out. He looked to his left, and to his confusion, Felicia wasn't there. Not to mention the bed was completely different as well, but it looked strangely familiar. Where had he seen it before? A little babble made him whip his head around to look the other way. What he saw made his eyes widen. "She-Shenzi?" His youngest daughter was at the doorway, completely unharmed. But her glasses, extensions, and Gothic clothes weren't there. Why? Because she was 2 years old again! Her extensions were replaced with the purple bow headband she always wore back in the day, and she was wearing her favorite black Saturn t-shirt and little, black sneakers that were seemingly always untied. He assumed he was back before the life-changing trip to Paris, since Felicia, and Frankie he assumed, were nowhere to be found. Plus she wasn't clutching her Kitty to her chest, like she always did. "Is that you, sweetheart?" She giggled and ran downstairs. "Wha-where are you going?" He stood on the floor and ran after her.

He saw her head into the living room, but strangely, she wasn't in there at all when he ran in there. She wasn't even in any hiding places. Where did she go? Just as he went to look in the kitchen, a blood-curdling scream alarmed him greatly; He looked behind his back, and to his horror, little Shenzi was held roughly to a tall, muscular figure who was almost completely unseen. And all of a sudden, she was in a two-piece outfit that reminded him of those seen on Toddlers & Tiaras (Felicia watched because she was curious; They both ended up hating it), and her left eye was covered like when she was 10 and beyond. Not to mention a hand was over her mouth. Anger took over, seeing his little (literally, little) girl held hostage. "Let her go! I don't care who you are, you're going to regret taking her from me!"

"You don't care who I am?" He came out of the shadows, revealing just who he was.

Friar Tuck's eyes widened in horror, before they squinted in fury. "I knew it."

Mr. Pangborn laughed mockingly. "You still think I'll regret my actions, preacher? Why would I regret snatching such a beautiful girl off the streets without a trace? Besides," He smiled creepily at the toddler, "Your youngest daughter is the sexiest girl I've ever seen in my whole life."

The badger's blood boiled from hearing that pervert talk about his baby girl in such an inappropriate manner. "You stop that!" He snarled, "She's a little girl, not a playtoy for monsters like you!"

"I beg to differ," The former wrestler grinned evilly, "She is my playtoy, Tucky. In fact..." Friar Tuck's heart stopped when he pulled out a pistol and aimed it at Shenzi's head. "I may just have her stuffed." The toddler let out a muffled, yet heart-wrenching cry of terror.

"No!" He protested, now fearing for her life, "Don't hurt her!"

But before anything else happened, Shenzi bit Pangborn's hand with her tiny, but sharp teeth. "Ow!" He yelled out, "You little brat!" He then had the pistol pointed directly against her head.

"NO!" Friar Tuck screamed, but it was in vain; The trigger was pulled. Just as he heard the dreaded sound of a gunshot... He woke up.

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"No!" He shot up, and he was suddenly back in his bedroom.

Felicia sat up, now barely awake. "What's wrong?" She asked him.

It was then when he knew that it was all a horrible nightmare. "I-I just had a bad dream. I'd rather not talk about it."

"It was that bad?"

"Yeah," He nodded, "But... I, I'm fine." Truthfully, he actually wasn't; He knew that nightmare would haunt him for the rest of his life. He just didn't want to worry his wife.

"Well, a-alright, but... I'll be here if you want to just... talk." With that Felicia slowly went to sleep, looking incredibly depressed as always. Friar Tuck went to sleep as well, and luckily, no more nightmares plagued his mind. Too bad it wasn't the case for anyone else...

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Chuckie's eyes blinked open, and he put on his glasses. To his confusion, it was still dark outside, and it seemed like hours passed by. He yawned as he stretched his arms outward, before letting them flop down. "Chuckie?" A very familiar voice made him quickly turn to his left.

His eyes widened so much, he thought they would fall out from what, or who, was sitting before him. "It... it can't be," He muttered, "She-Shenzi?" The girl of his dreams was knelt down on the floor, looking happy as can be. Strangely though, she was wearing square-ish glasses instead of her cat-eye frames, and braces lined her teeth. Basically, she looked like how she did in middle school. She was even wearing the same outfit from when they first reunited after 9 years. He gripped the edge of the bed, and leaned down towards her. "Is-is that you? But... y-you're... you're missing!"

"I'm right here, silly," She giggled like nothing happened, "Come on, let's watch TV!" She stood up and ran out of the room.

"Wait!" Chuckie jumped on the floor, and ran after her, "Wait up! I can't...!" He stopped dead in his tracks when he saw her held hostage by a tall, muscular figure hiding in the shadows. Plus she was suddenly in her gym clothes from her first day at Jim Jr. High; The figure had one hand over her mouth, and the other up her shirt, from which she showed major discomfort. "You let her go!" Chuckie snarled as menacingly as he could, "Show yourself, you pervert! You're going to regret taking my girlfriend from me!"

"Me? Show regret?" The redhead's heart stopped at the familiar voice, before the figure stepped out of the shadows. "Slambang Pangborn doesn't regret anything, Finster."

"I knew it," He growled, "I knew it was you! Release her!"

"I don't think so," Pangborn smiled evilly, "I'll just keep her for myself. She's the sexiest little girl I've ever laid eyes on, since 4 years ago when she first started at the school I used to work at." He glared at Chuckie at "used to."

"You won't get away with this!" The teen's hands clenched into tight fists, "She deserves to live a happy life, with her friends and family! She's a person, not a playtoy for your disgusting desires!"

"Oh, but she is," The former wrestler's creepy smile grew, "She's mine until I get tired of her." His hand dragged down her stomach, making her squirm and her eyes squeeze shut, "And when that time comes." Chuckie's heart stopped as the pistol drawn out gleamed in the moonlight, as it was pointed at his girlfriend's head. "Then no one can have her."

"No!" Chuckie yelled fearfully, "Don't hurt her! You let her go!"

"She's mine, you little half-wit!" Pangborn glared at him.

"No!" Shenzi yelled, but her voice was muffled, before she bravely kicked her captor, in a place where a man doesn't want to be kicked, as hard as she could.

Chuckie tried not to smile as Pangborn yelled from the pain. "That tears it, you little witch!" He held her closer tightly, and had the pistol pointed directly against her head.

Just as the sound of a gunshot thundered throughout the room, we woke up.

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"NO-O-O-O!" Chuckie screamed as he shot up. He didn't care that Kimi and his parents had possibly woken up from his scream. When he looked around after putting on his glasses, he saw that he was back in his room, while it was still dark out. As he panted in fear, he hastily turned his bedside lamp on, and looked at the missing poster he kept for showing around. Tears welled up as he gazed at the photo of his one and only with his knees up and the poster on his lap. "Where are you, Shen?" He gently rubbed his fingers on her right cheek. "Where are you?" His forehead rested where hers was as tears fell. "Don't you worry; We'll find you." He kissed her smiling lips. "I promise. Whoever took you is going to pay for this. I..." His eyes squeezed shut as he choked up. "I love you."

He grabbed a tissue from the box by his lamp, and sobbed harder than he ever did in his whole life. Maybe more than in Paris 14 years ago, when he and his childhood friends were kept in that garage, after he expressed what he wanted in a mother. The "old friend" mentioned earlier told them what happened that day, so it was fresh in their memories. Something like that was pretty hard to forget.

This was definitely going to be hard to forget. He didn't think he ever will. He vowed right then and there that when she's found, parties will be out of their date list. Or at least, he'll be with her at all times. His forehead laid where hers was again, as his tears landed on the poster, but he didn't notice, or care. After a while, he cried himself to sleep, with the poster clutched tightly to his chest.

(A/N: Pretty intense, right? O,O You know the disclaimer. The next chapter will contain events that I've had planned for a long time now.)