Play Me

by Ivy Knight

  "Why?"

  "Because her vomiting kept me up all night, and since she was drugged on your watch, I think you should be the one handling the aftermath," I cross my arms.

  "Whatever, give me the pills," he extends his hand out. Even though, I'm surprised as to how he consented so easily, I don't question him and hand him the pills.

  "Thanks, and let Kai know I'll be riding with him." I turn around and walk back to Alice. "Good news."

  "What?"

  "I'm getting a break."

  "What?"

  "Cole's gonna take care of you."

  "Oh my god, thank you," Alice sighs and my jaw drops open.

  "I was the one who stayed up all night because of you vomiting," I complain.

  "And I was the one you had to listen to your complaining."

  "Whatever, just make sure you puke on him."

  "You know it," Alice laughs. "I'm gonna buy these."

  "Okay, I'll be riding with Kai."

  "Good luck."

  "Thanks," we both smile. I linger around the store a bit longer, until I watch the bus departure. Seeing that Kai's car is still parked outside, I walk up to the counter, "Two packs of cigarettes, please."

  "ID," the clerk asks. I reach down my pocket. My heart skips a beat when my ID is no where to be found.

  "Isabella, you dropped your card," the depth of his voice sends shivers down my spine. Kai stands next to me and hands the guy my fake ID. The clerk looks at it and hands me the two packs in exchange for the amount due.

  Before I can take the two packs off the counter, Kai beats me to it. I glare at him, but he gives me a look saying 'Don't you dare'. My lips form a thin line as I walk past him aggressively brushing his shoulder.

  I walk outside and take a seat in his car. The smell of his cologne catches my attention. This smell is worse than my addiction to smoking. It's nearly becoming a habit and I need to stop before it does.

  "Where's Cole?"

  "With Alice," I reply to Alec who enters the back seat.

  "Mm," before we can talk further, Kai takes a seat on the driver's side.

  "Give me my cigarettes."

  "You smoke multiple packs a day?"

  "So? It's none of your business," I scold Alec. "Kai, I'm serious take away my food and water, but I need the packs you're keeping hidden in your jacket."

  "I'll give them when I want to. Until then, stay quiet."

  "Only because I know my hands are tied, not because I'm submitting to you in any way."

  I don't wait for a reply and pull on my seat belt looking out the window. A few seconds later, the movement of our car, indicates the departure.

  Not wanting to make the three hours seem longer than they are, I close my eyes and lean my head against the door falling into a deep sleep.

  ...♛...

  I turn around under the warmth of a blanket sitting in a weird position. Finding no comfort, I switch onto my other side, but something just doesn't feel right making me forcefully peel open my eyes in the direction of which direct sunlight hits.

  I wince and face the opposite direction. I blankly stare at the empty driver's seat. Recalling the events from yesterday, I remember falling asleep in Kai's car.

  I sit up only to have my back crack. It's not painful and makes my back feel a little less sore than before. My hand shields my eyes from the bright sun as I look out the window at the vacant parking lot.

  Bringggg!

  I jump in my seat as my heart loses its rhythm. I calm myself down and frantically search for my phone. I finally find it in the cup holder and pick it up, "Please tell me you're alive."

  "I am. I think, but where are you?" I ask Alice.

  "Where am I? I'm at camp where we're supposed to be. The real question is where are you?"

  "In Kai's car."

  "Please tell me you're fully clothed. Summer, I thought you said you saw all guys as bastards. I can't believe you spent the night in Kai's car doing the dirt with him."

  "Dude, calm the fuck down. No babies were in the process of being made last night. I was fully clothed, nothing but a few words were exchanged back at the gas station."

  "Okay, good. If you're in his car, that means you're in the parking lot. I'll be there in five." Before I can reply, she cuts it and I look at the black screen of my phone dumbly.

  I put my phone in my jean's pocket and brush my long hair back. Mentally, I praise myself on bleaching my hair before coming here so I don't have to worry about anyone spotting my black roots.

  I look down at the black blanket covering me. I bring it up to my nose and take in the familiar smell associated with Kai, making me believe the blanket is his. It's weird that I can recognize Kai just by a smell. What is it that most intrigues me about him? It's not just the fact that he's Nick's brother. No, there's more. But what?

  Convincing myself that my thoughts are useless, I rub my eyes and head out in the open air, closing the car door behind me. I can't believe he left me in his car for the whole night. What the fuck was he thinking? And my cigarettes, I need those tonight no matter what.

  I lean my back against the stainless car waiting for Alice to show. I look around at the forested area. I've never been camping before, but my brothers have taught me how to use compasses and other unusual resources I could use to my advantage if I ever get lost in the woods.

  Thinking of my old life is giving me a headache so I remind myself that I have two more days to be me and the worries of yesterday are not going to be the worries of my tomorrow.

  "Oh my god, you're okay," Alice engulfs me in a hug.

  "Why wouldn't I be?"

  "None of the guys would tell me where you were, so I just stopped and went to bed."

  "Forget it. I'm fine, so let's just go."

  "Okay, we're going to start a five-hour hike in an hour," Alice informs. The roll of her eyes states she isn't excited.

  "Let's go, don't wanna be late," I smile pushing Alice to walk faster.

  ...♛...

  "How much longer?" Alice groans exaggerating the agony in her voice.

  "It's only been fifteen minutes," I laugh.

  "And I can feel my makeup already coming off because of my sweat," she complains.

  "Maybe you shouldn't have applied on a second face today," I suggest.

  "Always gotta look good for myself," she proudly announces with her right hand held over her heart.

  Alice is the kind of girl that looks like a total girly girl when you first meet her, but if you get to know her better, she's willing to do anything for what she wants. The girly girl thing is just an act and a little makeup doesn't harm anyone.

  As we walk at the back of the line, following the herd of students in front of us, I look at the natural beauty surrounding us.

  The bright sun is seeping through some of the gaps between the tree pines shining down on the damp soil smelling like the fresh sea, but there is a smell stronger than that. A smell that I'm afraid will linger around me for a long time, the hair-raising smell of his cologne.

  I stop in my spot and turn around meeting eyes with the devil himself. He left his usual attire in exchange for a white v-neck with black shorts and blacking hiking boots.

  My eyes roam up to his and I'm left speechless. His eyes just suck me right in. They're so exposing yet so secretive, it kills me to know that he, himself is a secret that would take a lifetime to understand and I've already wasted eighteen years of my life not trying to figure him out.

  "What?" my words come out as a mere whisper. He looks at me with no change of expression.

  "I never said anything."

  "You've been lingering," I feel my heartbeat increasing.

  "How would you know?" I bite down on my tongue before saying that I smelled him. That'd just add to his bitch comments.

  "I have a sixth sense."

  "Mm," his ripe lips form a thin line as his eyes roam around the area. "I'm just keeping an eye on my money maker."

  I don't reply. I jus
t stand there staring at him and asking myself why me. Why did he come into my life? Why does he care so much about me?

  "Summer, stop wasting your time and let's go. We're gonna be left behind," I hear Alice's voice behind me.

  I peel my eyes away from Kai and turn around. "Yeah-," I clear my throat. "I'm coming."

  Walking a little faster, I slow down once I catch up to Alice. "What did he say?"

  "Nothing," I reply. We continue walking and my mind flashes back to five minutes ago.

  After thinking about it for almost fifteen minutes, I finally determine why this interaction has such an impact on me.

  When I was kidnapped, Nick never let me see the light of day for days on end. I would sit in the dark basement waiting to even see a speck of light, but for days, no one would even come down to check on me. I lost hope. I thought that I was going to die alone in the dark, not even allowed to see my own reflection.

  But as cruel as he was, he didn't let me die. He came down one day and brought me up to hell.

  The intervention I had with Kai made that memory reappear in my mind. I was appreciating the outdoors when in, walks Kai, ripping it all away. His presence, alone reminding me that in three days, I might have to go through everything Nick did to me again, but this time, worse. And for the first time in a long time, I'm actually terrified of the thought.

  "Summer!" I hear Alice yell in the distance. I turn around and get a glimpse of her worried expression just before gravity is ripped from beneath my feet.

  A scream releases from my lips.

  Chapter 9

  The scenery passes by in a blurry as I roughly roll down the steep hill. Multiple grunts leave my lips until I land on my back and I feel my body come to a full stop.

  I open my eyes and watch as the sky spins around. Thirty seconds later, everything stops spinning and I turn around on my hands and knees. I stand up triggering the different sore spots around my body.

  I wipe the dirt off from my legs and arms then pull out the leaves from my hair. As I stand up tall, a sharp sting runs through my side and I lift my shirt exposing the bleeding wound. I hiss when I try to clean the blood, but stop. I look up at the steep hill which seems almost fifty feet high.

  "Summer!" I spot Alice at the top.

  "Alice! I'm down here!"

  "Kai's going to help!" she yells.

  "What!" I yell back. In response, comes a scream followed by multiple grunts, much like mine five minutes ago. When I spot four bodies rolling down the hill, I turn around and run a good distance away.

  I turn back around just in time to watch the four bodies land painfully on the ground.

  "Are you fucking stupid?" I scream walking up to Kai's body lying on the ground. He opens his eyes and ignores me as he gets up. He brushes himself off and starts scanning the area, "I was talking to you."

  He doesn't respond and I find Alice. I walk up to her angry at her decision making skills.

  "Why would you ask these idiots for help?" I gesture to the three guys covered in dirt just like us.

  "I thought they were smarter than this. They do run a fucking gang! Oh, and next time you decide to push me off a fucking cliff, keep in mind that I'll make sure that you'll never be able to create offspring," Alice warns Cole with dangerously cold eyes. Cole smirks in response as a little twinkle shows in his eyes when he notices his reaction bothers Alice.

  "Sucks for you, Shortcake," he bites his bottom lip teasing her.

  I roll my eyes as they continue their arguing and walk over to Kai who has his cellphone in hand.

  "There's going to be no connection here."

  "I know."

  "Then?" I question.

  "I'm looking at the compass."

  "No use, we should walk around and we could maybe find a merging route back on the trail," I suggest.

  "If you were actually paying attention as to where you were walking, you would have noticed that we didn't pass any other route. Thus, there is no merging point on the trail," Kai explains casually. His eyes never lifting off his phone.

  I turn around and pull Alice away from her argument.

  "I was winning!" she complains.

  "Shut up and listen to me. We need to get them off our trail. I can find us a way out of here and if we're lucky, they'll get lost and get eaten by bears," I whisper.

  She looks back at the three boys still assessing the surrounding area, "Let me grab my bag and then we'll book it."

  I nod in response, "Hey guys!"

  They all spin around and face us.

  "Look, I think I found something," I point to the ground. They all run to me and I give Alice the go signal.

  "Right here," I kneel down and point at a weird print in the soil. "It looks like a foot print."

  I look up to see their reaction, but frown when I see Cole right next to Alice. Before I can warn Alice, she reaches out for her bag and Cole pulls out a pair of handcuffs securing it around her wrist. The other one, he attaches to his own.

  "No one's leaving," I look back up at Kai.

  "Are the cuffs really necessary? I mean, we could work this out in more of a humane way," Kai looks down at me.

  "No," he deadpans. I stand up and cross my arms. I wasn't going to leave Alice alone with the three of them and I have no other option, so I sigh heavily.

  "Whatever. Let's just walk around and see where we get to," all three of the boys look at each other and have a silent conversation.

  "Okay," all three of them say in unison.

  "Okay then... let's go."

  "Wait, one sec," Cole says. I look back at him as he reaches down his pocket and pulls out Alice's med. "It's time for your med. I don't want you puking while I'm literally attached to you."

  Alice rolls her eyes, "I honestly wouldn't mind."

  "Just take the damn meds before I shove them down your throat."

  "Rough, I like it."

  "And I thought I made the useless sex jokes around here," Coles says. Alice bites her lip and laughs taking the pill from him. She immediately swallows it down with water. Once she puts the water bottle back in our bag and pulls the bag onto her shoulder, we start walking.

  "In front of me, White," Kai orders. I roll my eyes and ignore him as I stroll even slower than before, "White, I'm not going to repeat myself."

  "Then don't, because we all know that'll be useless." I continue strolling, keeping my concentration on the beauty around me. A few steps in, I stop when I sense Kai's body firmly standing in front of me blocking my way.

  "Don't make it hard for us."

  "The only thing I'll make hard is your dick, but this is neither the place or time so I suggest you get out of my way," I warn staring deep into his grey eyes. When I get no response, I step to the side and walk past him. A few seconds later, I stop in my steps realizing what he just did.

  He got on my nerves making me forget what he asked me to do and tricked me into doing what he initially asked me to do.

  "What a little, cunning piece of shit."

  I turn around and spot Kai with his winning smirk on display; his eyes a little lighter while his shoulders broader.

  "You do only what I allow and you will always do what I tell you to do," his words sting.

  I don't follow orders, but he knew how to get around me. He knows how to manipulate me. I've never crossed paths with someone like that before. I'm clueless in this situation. How can he know me so well without actually knowing me?

  "No, Summer." Alice stops me before I can walk up to Kai. I look at her with gritted teeth. My blood is boiling and I need somethin –anything to get rid of it. Alice then says, "Run."

  Before I even register her command, my feet start moving. Sprinting through the woods, I leave every thought behind and absorb the cold wind passing by me. My feet heavily hit the ground rustling the crisp leaves as I pass by.

  My heart rate increases with every step I take. Every time my lungs expand, a stinging sensation runs through my right side, but that doesn't
stop me. I keep running. I run until I feel my anger peel away layer by layer vanishing into thin air.

  "Summer!"

  "Ugh- fuck!" I groan as Kai's weight is put on my back and we go crashing down. Our bodies roll around in the dirt before coming to a still stop with him on top of me. I breathe heavily as I scan the fresh cut on his cheek dripping with blood.

  "What the hell was that?!" his voice deep with anger.

  "Get off me," I try to push at his chest but he grabs my wrists and holds them to the ground.

  "The key," Kai speaks. His eyes glued to my chest, I lift my head and look down at the key hanging outside of my shirt. In a matter of seconds, Kai rips the chain off my neck and climbs off of me.

  I immediately stand up, "That's mine!"

  "It's the key for the chest," he talks to himself.

  "You need more than just that key." I dust myself off. The run helped me get rid of my anger briefly, but him pulling off my key, just pissed me off again.

  "I'll get that soon enough too."

  Just when I'm about to reply to Kai, my attention is redirected towards the breathless people running to us.

  "Why the fuck are you carrying Alice like that?" I question as Cole drops Alice off of his back while panting for his breath.

  "She wouldn't run, I wasn't in the mood to break her wrist and I didn't wanna miss the bitch fight between you and Kai so piggybacking her was the best I could come up with on the spot," Cole defends his actions while taking a seat on the ground.

  "If you were actually smart, you would've just taken off the cuffs big guy," Alice pats Cole's shoulder. Cole looks up from the corner of his eyes and sadly shakes his head.

  "The fuck was that even about?" Alec questions curiously.

  "In simple words, instead of bashing Kai's head in, I ran to get my anger out," Alec slowly nods understanding.

  "I would've just smashed his head in, but I think you were being smart and knew you couldn't even get in a small punch if you tried."

  "Is that a challenge?" I question feeling a body standing right behind me.

  "Depends, do you accept it?" I display a snarky smile and turn around landing a punch square on Kai's left eye. In response, Kai glares at me nailing me square in the stomach. The air from my lungs is forced out and I fall on my knees.