Cold
2266 Words
Cold
I can’t sleep.
Not because I’m afraid.
Although I am.
Not because I’m lying on concrete.
Although that doesn’t help.
I’m freezing.
The black silk nightgown clings to my skin like it’s mocking me. Whoever picked it out clearly valued appearance over practicality.
A shiver rolls through me so hard my teeth snap together.
I curl tighter into myself, wrapping my arms around my knees.
It doesn’t help.
The cold settles deeper into my bones.
Somewhere behind me, Theo groans.
“Would you quit doing that?”
I crack one eye open.
“Doing what?”
“Sounding like a maraca.”
“I don’t sound like a maraca.”
“You absolutely do.”
Another shiver answers for me.
I scowl into the darkness.
“You try sleeping in a glorified napkin.”
“A what?”
I tug at the thin strap on my nightgown.
“This thing.”
“It’s silk.”
“It’s useless.”
“I’ll give you that.”
Silence settles over the room again.
I squeeze my eyes shut.
Maybe if I stop moving…
Maybe…
Another violent shiver cuts through me.
Theo sighs.
“Lucky for you, you’re keeping me awake too.”
“You’re welcome.”
“I wasn’t thanking you.”
“I figured.”
He shifts somewhere behind me.
“Come over here.”
I frown.
“…Excuse me?”
“You heard me.”
“I don’t think I did.”
“For body heat.”
I stare into the darkness.
“No.”
“No?”
“I don’t know you.”
“You don’t have to.”
“I’m not cuddling some random guy in a basement.”
“I’m not asking you to cuddle.”
“It really sounds like you are.”
“I’m asking you to stop trying to freeze to death.”
“I’ll take my chances.”
“Suit yourself.”
I do.
For all of six minutes.
Maybe seven.
Time doesn’t exist in this place.
Only cold.
Another shiver tears through me, harder this time.
I bite down to stop my teeth from chattering.
It doesn’t work.
I hate that he’s right.
I hate that this is my only option.
Most of all…
I hate that he knows it.
With a dramatic sigh, I push myself to my feet and shuffle across the floor.
When I stop beside him, he looks up at me.
Even in the dim light, I can tell exactly what expression he’s wearing.
“Don’t.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“You were thinking it.”
“I might’ve been.”
“You have a very smug face.”
“I’ve been told.”
I fold my arms.
“The least you could do is buy me a drink first.”
A quiet laugh escapes him.
“I’ll see what I can do.”
“I’m thinking margarita.”
“I’ll ask our kidnappers if they have a cocktail menu.”
“I’d settle for boxed wine.”
“Now you’re negotiating.”
Despite myself…
The corner of my mouth twitches.
He notices.
Doesn’t say anything.
Just scoots back against the wall, making room.
“Come on.”
I hesitate.
Every instinct I have tells me this is a terrible idea.
He’s a stranger.
For all I know, he could be dangerous.
But…
So is hypothermia.
Slowly, I lower myself in front of him.
“Turn around,” he says.
I glance back.
“That sounded significantly creepier than you meant it to.”
He huffs a laugh.
“So I’ve been told.”
I turn until my back is against his chest.
His arm settles loosely around my waist.
Not tight.
Not possessive.
Just enough to keep us close.
Warmth spreads through my back almost immediately.
I hadn’t realized how cold I’d gotten until that moment.
Every muscle in my body slowly begins to unclench.
Neither of us speaks.
The silence isn’t awkward.
Just…
Quiet.
After a while, Theo breaks it.
“So…”
“So?”
“I don’t actually know your name.”
I blink.
“I just realized that.”
“Me too.”
“We’ve been trapped together for…” He pauses. “I have no idea how long.”
“Feels like a week.”
“It does.”
“So?”
“So…”
He nudges my shoulder lightly.
“What’s your name?”
I stare into the darkness.
“Willa.”
“Willa.”
He says it like he’s testing it.
“I like that.”
“It’s short for Wilhelmina.”
He repeats it slowly.
“Wilhelmina.”
I brace myself for a joke.
Instead…
“That’s beautiful.”
I let out a quiet laugh.
“You’re the first person who’s ever said that.”
“They’re wrong.”
I don’t know why those words land so hard.
Maybe because nobody has ever said them before.
Maybe because he doesn’t sound like he’s trying to flatter me.
He just…
Means it.
After a long silence, I whisper,
“Theo?”
“Yeah?”
“Do you think we’ll ever get out of here?”
He doesn’t answer right away.
When he finally does, his voice is quiet.
“I think someone is looking for us.”
“You really believe that?”
“I have to.”
I swallow.
“My friends…”
“My coworkers…”
“They have to know something’s wrong.”
“They do,” he says softly.
“And they’re not going to stop looking.”
I close my eyes.
For the first time since waking up in this nightmare…
I let myself believe him.
Just a little.
And somewhere between the steady rhythm of his breathing…
…and the warmth I never thought I’d be grateful for…
Sleep finally finds me.
Here’s a revised version of the chapter that reflects the changes we’ve discussed. I kept Willa’s motivation rooted in who she is, and Theodore simply introduces himself as “Theo” without making it a big moment.
Chapter Eight - Names
The first thing I notice when I wake up…
…is that I’m warm.
For one blissful second, I forget where I am.
Then the concrete beneath me reminds me.
I open my eyes.
Gray walls.
Steel door.
No windows.
No way out.
Right.
The kidnapping.
Theo’s arm is still resting loosely around my waist. Sometime during the night I’d relaxed enough to stop thinking about how strange it was. Now, waking up like this, I should probably move.
Instead, I just lie there.
His breathing is slow and steady behind me.
“You awake?”
His voice is rough with sleep.
“Maybe.”
A quiet laugh escapes him.
“I’ll take that as a yes.”
“I was hoping if I stayed still long enough I’d wake up in my own bed.”
“If you figure out how to do that, let me know.”
“I’ll be sure to.”
Neither of us moves.
It’s oddly… peaceful.
Like the room forgot we were prisoners.
Eventually I sigh and sit up, stretching until every muscle in my back protests.
Theo sits up beside me, rubbing a hand through his already messy hair.
I grin.
“What?”
“You have bedhead.”
“We slept on concrete.”
“And somehow your hair still managed to lose.”
He runs his fingers through it.
“Better?”
“No.”
“I’ll survive.”
“Barely.”
For the first time since I woke up in this nightmare…
I laugh.
A real one.
It surprises both of us.
The silence that follows isn’t awkward anymore.
It’s comfortable.
I pull my knees toward my chest.
“So…”
“So?”
“If we’re going to die down here…”
He raises an eyebrow.
“Optimistic.”
“I’m being realistic.”
“I disagree.”
I glance over at him.
“But… just in case.”
His expression softens.
“What?”
“We should probably know who we’re trapped with.”
He nods once.
“Fair enough.”
“Ladies first?”
“I was hoping you’d forget that rule.”
“No such luck.”
I sigh dramatically.
“My birthday is August tenth.”
“When’s the next one?”
“I’ll be twenty-seven.”
“You don’t look twenty-seven.”
“That sounded like a compliment.”
“It might’ve been.”
“I’ll take it.”
He smiles.
“What about your family?”
The smile slips from my face.
“I grew up in foster care.”
He doesn’t interrupt.
“I bounced around from home to home.”
I shrug.
“Some were okay.”
“Some… definitely weren’t.”
“I stopped unpacking after a while because I never stayed anywhere long enough.”
He looks down at the floor.
“I’m sorry.”
I shrug again.
“It wasn’t exactly the childhood I would’ve picked.”
“What happened after high school?”
I let out a small laugh.
“I technically graduated.”
“Technically?”
“I spent most of my senior year sleeping in my 2008 Honda Civic.”
His head turns toward me so quickly I’m surprised he didn’t hurt his neck.
“You what?”
“I parked in different places every night.”
“Willa…”
“I survived.”
“You were seventeen.”
“I know.”
His jaw tightens.
His hands clench together for a second before he notices and relaxes them.
I pretend not to see.
“I worked every job I could find.”
“Saved enough money for school.”
“And eventually got accepted into Richmond University Medical Center.”
He smiles.
“So you’re a doctor.”
“Not yet.”
“I still have a long way to go.”
“What kind?”
“General surgery.”
“Why surgery?”
I don’t even have to think about it.
“Because I’ve always wanted to save people.”
He studies me.
“That’s it?”
I nod.
“I know it sounds simple.”
“It doesn’t.”
“I can’t fix everything.”
“I know that.”
“I can’t save everyone.”
“I know that too.”
“But if I can save one person…”
I look down at my hands.
“If I can give someone one more birthday…”
“One more Christmas.”
“One more chance to go home to the people who love them…”
I smile softly.
“Then every sleepless night and every exam is worth it.”
He watches me for a long moment.
“You really believe that.”
“I do.”
A small smile spreads across his face.
“The world’s lucky you’re becoming a surgeon.”
Heat creeps into my cheeks.
“I’ve never thought of it that way.”
He shrugs.
“I have.”
I clear my throat.
“My turn.”
He chuckles.
“I was wondering when that was coming.”
“So…”
I point at him.
“Theo.”
“Hm?”
“Is that your full name?”
He smiles.
“No.”
“It’s Theodore.”
“I like Theodore.”
“You’re in the minority.”
“I have excellent taste.”
“I’ll have to take your word for it.”
“So what do you do, Theodore?”
“My family owns an investment company.”
“Finance?”
“Finance.”
“And you like it?”
“I do.”
“My dad retired recently.”
“So I took over.”
“That sounds like a lot of pressure.”
“It has its days.”
“You have siblings?”
He groans dramatically.
“A younger sister.”
I grin.
“How much younger?”
“Five years.”
“Oh.”
“She’s the biggest brat you’ve ever met.”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
“It usually is.”
I laugh.
“I already like her.”
“Don’t encourage her.”
“What about anyone else?”
“My older brother.”
“What does he do?”
“He decided the family business wasn’t for him.”
“So he left.”
“And that was okay?”
Theo nods.
“It wasn’t the life he wanted.”
I tilt my head.
“And your parents?”
“They’re retired now.”
“They’ve earned it.”
I smile.
“You sound proud of them.”
“I am.”
A quiet settles between us again.
Then I ask the question that’s been sitting in the back of my mind.
“Why do you think they took you?”
His smile fades.
“I’ve wondered that.”
“And?”
“My family’s done well.”
He pauses.
“There are people with a lot of power.”
“And people with a lot of money.”
“Sometimes those groups overlap.”
“You think they want ransom?”
“It’s possible.”
“You don’t sound convinced.”
“I’m not.”
I study him for a second.
Something tells me there’s more to the story.
But something also tells me he isn’t ready to tell it.
So I let it go.
Yesterday, he was just the stranger chained across the room.
Today…
He was Theo.
And somehow, in a room built to make us feel completely alone…
That made all the difference.
- Writer
