Zoey p. o. v
I stood in the middle of the house. I couldn’t bring myself to walk further. I stay alone every day after mom leaves for work without any worries.
But today’s silence in the house doesn’t sit well with me, in fact, it is in my guts. I don’t know what it is, but I’m feeling so uneasy and unsettled deep in my gut.
Maybe I’m just being paranoid for no apparent reason. Oh wait! There is a reason, Marco. He had to goddamn show up and ruin my entire day.
At least, he’s having a great time with that stupid bimbo.
Fool, I cursed myself. I shook all thoughts of Marco from my head and proceeded to the kitchen to put the items in their rightful position.
What I didn’t expect was the feeling of a gun being held against my head. I felt the gun on me before I felt the presence behind me.
Oh boy! What have gotten into, I panicked within.
“Don’t fucking move.” He growled in my ears, effectively paralyzing me. I held my breath, as I feared he might get annoyed and pull the trigger.
“What do you want? There’s money in the house and anything you want please.” I rushed out in fright.
As tough as I might sound, I’m anything but it. I think my insides are shutting down from the fear in my system.
“Start moving.” He nudged me in the direction of the kitchen exit. I remained rooted in place mostly from fear mixed with hesitation.
“I don’t fucking have all day.” He growled impatiently with a harsh push on my back. I stumbled forward but didn’t say anything, instead I slowly continued out of the kitchen.
He was behind me almost immediately, else I would have made a run for it. Plus, there is a gun in his possession which I don’t trust. We entered the living room and I was quick to look at the mirror on the opposite wall to see who was behind.
And I was extremely surprised by who I saw. It was the guy from the store. The one I had that strange encounter with, but what does he want with me?
By now, I’d suddenly realized he wasn’t here for money, hence he would have done that when he approached me at the store. And how came he had a gun? He seemed too innocent and naive, looking to have a gun and illegally pointing at someone to hold them captive.
“Why are you doing this?” I couldn’t help but ask. I wasn’t as frightened as I was earlier, but still shaken to the core.
“You don’t fucking ask questions when death is at your doorstep.” His voice was distant as he kept glancing behind him.
“Drive.” He ordered. I started the car to speed off to God knows where. He was still pointing the gun at me, so I had to do as he said.
He kept giving directions on where to go. I normally do not like speed but with him pressuring me. I was going ten miles per second, with my heart in my throat. I think I might have died if not for his gun, then I would get killed from fright with my speed.
“Fuck! Who is he?” He panicked as he stared at behind us from the mirror. I did, too, and instantly a smile broke on my lips.
“Marco Alfonso.” I stated smugglely. I wasn’t sure if it definitely was Marco inside the car, but I’m certain it must be one of his men.
I peeked in the mirror and again just in time to see Marco sticking his head out of the car and firing a bullet at us.
Yeah, that’s definitely him. Only he would have had the guts to take his head out of his car in a chase and shoot while still driving.
“Fuck!” He cursed, tightening his hold on the gun against my head. I wince from the pressure. My heart leaped out of his place.
Oh my God, I exclaimed inwardly.
“Turn left,” he whispered. I did. Immediately missed another shot from Marco, and also missed him. The path we broke down is totally dry and deserted, there is no form of life around. The roads are filled with dried leaves and dirt, and there are woods on either side.
We drove further down a bit, until he told me to stop. He forced me out of the car into the woods, and dragged me deeper inside the woods.
While all this is happening, I can only hope Marco will come soon.
“Kneel down.” He said once we came to a stop in the middle of the woods and the middle of nowhere.
Tears brimmed in my eyes, suddenly realising how serious this was. I could be dead any minute if he just pulled the trigger. I knelt down as instructed, looking straight at him.
“Why? Why are you doing this?”I asked, goggling at him. It wouldn’t take a genius to know he doesn’t have the mind to do this.
“Why? After ruining my family, you had the guts to ask why?” His brown dims to a darker shade, the vein in his neck pulsing from the amount of anger he was feeling.
Ruined his family? Me? How?
“How? I have even met you once. Until today then, how did I manage to destroy your family.” I swallowed the lump in my throat, my arms were trembling. He was trembling from anger gushing through him, while I was trembling from my fear.
My eyes were locked on the trigger and how dangerously close his finger was to it.
“Does this name Jayden Sawyer ring a bell?” He scorned as if he hated saying it.
Jayden Sawyer? Isn’t that the boy in college that was suddenly transferred to another school in the middle of a semester? I’m sure that’s him, but what does he have to do with this?
“Yes, but what does it have to do with this?”
“Everything!” he yelled. I was stunned by his outburst, I thought I had seen him angry, but what I’m seeing now is an extremely angry boy who drips with sadness.
Extreme sadness.
“He has got to do with everything because he is my brother, who has happened to be in a coma for three years now and it is because of you.” He yelled at the top of his lungs.
This time, I was breathless and gasping for words. I gaping at him in shock. Maybe I am paralyzed with shock. Because of me? How did that happen? And how come I wasn’t aware? In fact, nobody was. Maybe his friends were aware but I didn’t know.
Coma for three years? All this while, I thought he was well and living life to the fullest. He was in a coma? Jesus!
“He didn’t even get the chance to graduate from college and achieve all the things he planned for. We had dreams together, he was my biggest strength and you took him from me. From us.”
“I didn’t know, I’m sorry.”I was crying now. I can’t say I understand what he must be going through, the grievances and all, having to watch your loved one dying every day. But I do understand the feeling of losing someone special, someone who stood as your strength.
The pain is unbearable and incomparable, it feels like the world is closing in on you and your heart tightens to the point it just stops working. The air has been knocked out of you, and you feel like it is the end of the world.
The difference is that he’s feeling all these emotions every day and fearing he would lose his brother.
“You are sorry? What can that change?” He laughed dryly. “If he didn’t had that silly crush on you, this wouldn’t have happened.” He was more sober, as he stared down at me.
What?
“What do you mean by that?” I was genuinely confused right now. Why would he having a crush on me put him in a coma?
“Because he had a crush on you and he told me he was going to ask you out, but before he could. Someone threatened him not or else they would kill him. He refused to tell me who the person was. He was also forced to get transferred to another school across the country. He got into an accident on his way to the new school.” His revelation left me speechless.
Someone threatened him? And got him transferred? And then got into an accident all because of me? Even though I wasn’t directly involved in the accident, I caused a huge impact on the situation.
“Enough of this chit chat, I can’t stand your presence anymore.” He turned off the safety of the gun, and immediately a shot was heard.
Shit, so this is how I died?
It wasn’t supposed to end like this, but death was a destiny none of us could escape.
And I guess it was my turn, or was it?