Chapter Text
Those past few months had been a nightmare for you. Surely, that was something many people would say after being kidnapped, for many different reasons. Even if your kidnapper, who introduced himself as Shalnark, was all smiles.
You hadn’t been abused, at least not physically. Still, the underlying threat was present in every single one of his smiles, and the distress you felt whenever he would lock you up in a room made you want to struggle for the freedom you deserved.
The first days, you had kicked and screamed whenever he tried to hold you close, and once you had even managed to scrape his face with your nails. He didn’t even wince, and overall, didn’t seem to be too bothered about your outbursts. He just smiled innocently, and with a sickening sweet voice, threatened to kill every single one of your family members before your very eyes.
Of course, it would’ve been easy to give in to his desires. To let him cuddle with you and hug you, trapping your body between his arms while he breathed down your neck and whispered about how much he loved you. It could’ve been nice, falling into a trap of lies, forgetting who you once were and believing his words. Still, you could not forget, would not forget, what you had once stood for. Your values, your morals, the ideas you had that conformed your personality.
When you finally freed yourself from his grasp, you could not help the bubbly laughter that welled up your chest. The air was cold and bit your sweaty skin, but you did not mind. The rush of adrenaline was enough to make you forget physical pain, ignoring your screaming muscles and the cuts and bruises that littered your arms and legs from the run through the forest. This was the beginning of a new life, you were sure of it.
Now, while cleaning one of the tables of the coffee shop you were currently working in, you pondered over the last five weeks of independence you had experienced. It had been a bit difficult, as you had had no money at first, but you were not against the idea of sleeping inside the café, or even in motels that were easy to break into and where in the middle of nowhere.
You had to admit, nighttime was the worst part of the day. It wasn’t only the growing paranoia you had experienced the first weeks after escaping, where you thought that Shalnark was still observing you: it was the feeling of loneliness that threatened to consume you. You could never admit it, but after the first fear filled weeks, you started missing your kidnapper.
Whenever you woke up in the middle of the night, enveloped by sweaty sheets and trembling from a recurring nightmare, you immediately searched for Shalnark, blindly feeling for his hands, hoping for him to hug you tight and whisper the same words that had once made you panic (those sickening I love yous’). You understood those nights, much to your horror, that you longed for his presence. You wanted him to coddle you, to make you feel safe. Your body grew hot under your realisation, and you touched yourself as you would imagine him to, curious and daring (Caring, loving) while your soft moans filled the room you were staying at.
You shook your head wildly, hoping to clear your mind. You could not think about those things. It was too late to go back now, and even if you had the possibility of returning to Shalnark, you would not do so. You were proud and he would not be granted the satisfaction of seeing you beg for forgiveness. What were you even thinking about? Had you forgotten already who you were dealing with? Although you missed him, you could not forget his hurtful ways, his threatening eyes, his poisoned words. And still, while he said those things, he caressed your back or toyed with your hair, a look of pure devotion -
No.
He deserved no forgiveness. You wouldn’t grant him mercy, that was for sure. You had to settle your messy feelings once and for all, forget about him completely.
“Hey, are you feeling alright?” A soft voice enquired, startling you. You dropped one of the cups you were carrying, and it shattered noisily, the fragments scattering all through the floor.
You quickly apologised while stuttering. You had never felt so embarrassed. He laughed: a sweet, melodic sound, that caused you to flush even further. Looking into his eyes, you smiled. You had seen him before, but you didn’t know his name. Thankfully, his tag read “Francis”, and you introduced yourself, joking all the while, smiling genuinely.
The both of you began an easygoing conversation, and his sense of humor made you laugh loudly once or twice. It was a matter of time before you were blushing happily. The prospect of having a friend thrilled you. Maybe, now that Shalnark was gone, you could imagine a life where you could depend on others without fearing for their lives.
Your smile broadened. Francis was nice and caring. He didn’t seem to have any bad intentions, as no alarms were going off inside your head. Your instincts were pleasantly calm, something that you hadn’t felt in months (quite literally).
When he knew about your current situation (the lack of money, the trespassing) he didn’t hesitate to offer you a place to sleep in. He invited you into his house, gave you anything you needed, asked if you were comfortable. He held such innocence you could feel your heart throb lovingly. He had the purest soul you had ever seen, and you felt yourself grow flustered once again.
After dinner, he allowed you to sleep in his bed, while he took the sofa. You had argued with him for hours on end, but he didn’t seem fazed and instead moved out of his room to grant you space. You felt strangely moved. Changing into one of his loose shirts and covering yourself with the soft blankets, you felt sleep overcome you within seconds. The last feeling that you registered was that of comfortable contempt.
Something was wrong.
You knew that much as you opened you eyes. Everything seemed colder, and the room was poorly lit. The sun hadn’t risen yet. You looked at the clock next to you, and understood it was barely four in the morning. You sat up quickly, cold sweat running down your temples. You felt uncomfortable, and as you moved to get off the bed, that same sensation of danger gripped your heart tightly.
The sudden urge to run away chocked you, and then you saw him.
Francis stood beside the door, perfectly still, watching your every movement. His stance was one of a predator, his eyes were not. They seemed to be distracted, far away, absent.
What was happening?
What was wrong?
You called out to him, and your voice cracked slightly. You suddently understood you were terrified, and this realisation hit you like a ton of bricks.
“I think you should go” he muttered, his tone betraying nothing, his gaze unfocused. Silence followed. You laughed nervously.
“Of course, I’ll leave now” every single nerve in your body was screeching at you to move and get away from this unexpected threat.
You stumbled across the room in a hurry, and then, as the moon glimmered through the skies and the figure of Francis became more visible, you saw something that froze your whole body in an instant: a shining object, stuck to his neck.
It resembled a demonic creature, red, vibrant plastic that contrasted oddly with Francis personality.
Of course, you knew who was the owner of such needle. You also knew that Francis was no longer alive, and thus he wasn’t the one talking. He was being controlled by the manipulator you feared the most.
“I have been watching you for weeks” a chuckle “did you think I wouldn’t find you?” You were nearing an anxiety attack, you could feel it as your hysterical laughter began to claw its way up your throat. “I think it’s time for you to come back. You have experienced freedom, but we both know you miss me. I’ve seen the recordings of my cameras every single night. I miss you, too.”
You drew in a breath, and the terror subsided, somehow. You were strangely tranquil, but a small voice inside your head reasoned you were just going into shock.
“Come back to me, and there will not be consequences. At least, nothing that will harm you too badly. I do love you. Don’t make me go into that room...” something inside you shifted. You felt ready to puke, and still you felt relieved. Your heart hammered in your chest hopefully. That made the nausea increase.
Oh. The last sentences weren’t spoken by Francis. No, they were spoken with childish glee, and the noise came from outside the room you were in. Walking slowly towards the door, you began seeing his silhouette, which was progressively being lightened by the moonlight.
Shalnarks’ smile was still present, of course. His arms were wide open, inviting. One of his hands gripped his mobile like apparatus tightly, as if threatening to break it. His knuckles were white, but his eyes, once he spotted you, became warm.
You ran into his embrace, and he wrapped his body around yours as if it was destined to fit so perfectly around your whimpering self.
You had truly missed him. He clinged to you, as if he had, too. You loved him, you knew. No denying that from now on.
How beautifully caged you were, around his arms.