The Price Of Being Alone
1381 Words
Two days.
That’s how long it takes for the world to remind me.
I was only safe because I belonged to them.
The money Agnes gave me is almost gone.
Not because I spent recklessly.
But because survival is expensive when you have nothing.
The hotel I found on the first night?
I couldn’t afford to stay.
So I moved.
Then moved again.
Each place smaller. Dirtier. Colder.
By the third night—
I stop pretending I’m “taking a break.”
I’m running out of options.
The city doesn’t care.
It doesn’t slow down for broken girls with nowhere to go.
Cars still rush past. People still laugh. Lights still glow like everything is fine.
Everything is not fine.
I pull my coat tighter around me as I walk down a street I don’t recognize.
Wrong turn.
Definitely a wrong turn.
The buildings here are older.
Paint peeling.
Windows cracked.
The air smells… off.
My instincts start screaming.
Turn back.
I do.
Immediately.
But it’s already too late.
Voices.
Loud.
Aggressive.
I freeze.
Then,
A crash.
My heart jumps into my throat.
“Get him!”
The shout cuts through the night like a gunshot.
I don’t think.
I move.
Fast.
My feet hit the pavement hard as I try to get out of the street, but shadows move ahead of me—
Men.
Three.
No—four.
And they’re not looking at me.
They’re chasing someone else.
But that doesn’t matter.
Because now—
I’m in their path.
“Hey!”
One of them spots me.
And just like that—
Everything changes.
“Who the hell is that?” another voice snaps.
“I don’t know—grab her!”
My blood runs cold.
No.
I turn and run.
My lungs burn almost instantly, my legs screaming as I push harder, faster—
But I can hear them behind me.
Closer.
Too close.
“Stop!”
I don’t.
Of course I don’t.
A hand brushes my arm—
I jerk away with a gasp, nearly losing my balance.
“Stupid girl—!”
I don’t even look back.
I run blindly, turning corners, slipping between alleys, my breath coming in sharp, broken bursts—
Please.
Please.
Please.
I don’t even know what I’m begging for anymore.
A car.
A person.
A miracle.
Anything.
Then—
Headlights.
A car pulls up too fast, tires screeching slightly as it stops just ahead of me.
I don’t think.
I don’t hesitate.
I yank the door open and throw myself inside.
“Drive!”
My voice cracks.
Desperate.
Panicked.
“Please, just drive!”
For a split second,
Nothing happens.
Then,
The engine roars.
The car speeds off.
The men’s voices fade behind us.
And just like that—
I’m safe.
Or at least—
That’s what I think.
My chest rises and falls rapidly as I press myself against the seat, my hands shaking uncontrollably.
“Thank you,” I breathe, not even looking at the driver yet. “Thank you, I—”
I stop.
Because something feels… wrong.
Too quiet.
Too controlled.
Slowly—
I turn my head.
The man in the driver’s seat isn’t looking at me.
His expression is calm.
Too calm.
Like nothing just happened.
Like I didn’t just throw myself into his car like my life depended on it.
“Seatbelt,” he says simply.
My stomach drops.
“What?”
“Put it on.”
His tone is polite.
Flat.
But there’s something underneath it.
Something I don’t like.
I hesitate.
Then—
Slowly—
I reach for it.
Click.
The sound feels louder than it should.
We drive in silence for a while.
Too long.
“Where are you taking me?” I ask finally.
No response.
My fingers curl into my coat.
“Excuse me”
“You shouldn’t walk alone at night,” he says, cutting me off.
My heart skips.
“That wasn’t really my plan,” I reply carefully.
Still no reaction.
“Those men,” he continues, almost casually. “They weren’t chasing you.”
“I know,” I whisper.
A pause.
“Now they are.”
My breath catches.
“What does that mean?”
He doesn’t answer.
Instead
The car turns.
Away from the main road.
Into somewhere darker.
My pulse starts to race again.
“This isn’t the way back to the city,” I say, trying to keep my voice steady.
“I know.”
The reply is immediate.
Certain.
Fear crawls up my spine.
“Then where are we going?”
Silence.
The streetlights grow fewer.
The buildings change.
Brighter colors.
Neon signs.
Women.
Standing outside.
Dressed in ways that leave very little to the imagination.
My stomach twists.
No.
No, no, no.
“This isn’t funny,” I say quickly. “You can just drop me off anywhere, I don’t”
“We’re here.”
The car stops.
I stare out the window.
The building in front of us is… beautiful.
In a strange way.
Elegant.
But wrong.
The kind of place that hides things behind soft lighting and expensive curtains.
My chest tightens.
“I don’t belong here,” I say, my voice barely above a whisper.
The man finally turns to look at me.
And for the first time,
I see his face clearly.
Sharp.
Clean.
Unreadable.
“I know,” he says.
My stomach drops further.
“Then why”
“The boss will decide that.”
Cold.
Final.
Before I can react,
My door opens.
I didn’t unlock it.
A woman stands there.
Tall. Beautiful. Smiling.
But her eyes,
Her eyes are not kind.
“Come on, sweetheart,” she says smoothly. “Let’s get you inside.”
Panic slams into me.
“No,” I say immediately, pulling back. “No, I think there’s been a mistake—”
“There hasn’t,” she replies, her smile tightening slightly.
My heart pounds violently.
“I don’t work here,” I add quickly. “I’m not—”
“Everyone says that the first night.”
Something inside me snaps.
“I’m serious!” I push back harder now, trying to move past her. “I need to leave—”
A hand grabs my wrist.
Firm.
Unyielding.
“Don’t make this difficult,” she murmurs.
Fear floods my veins.
“Let me go!”
But the driver is already out of the car.
And now
I’m not just dealing with one person.
My chest tightens as I’m guided—no, forced-toward the entrance.
The doors open.
And I step inside.
The air is warm.
Perfumed.
Heavy.
Music hums softly in the background.
Low.
Sensual.
Everything about this place feels deliberate.
Controlled.
Calculated.
My skin crawls.
“I don’t belong here,” I repeat, weaker this time.
“No one does,” the woman replies lightly. “At first.”
She leads me down a hallway.
Past doors.
Closed doors.
I don’t want to think about what’s behind them.
I don’t.
But my mind—
It goes there anyway.
We stop in front of one.
My pulse is deafening now.
The woman knocks once.
Then opens the door.
“Delivery,” she says.
My breath catches.
Delivery?
I try to pull back—
But her grip tightens.
“Wait—”
“Go on,” she nudges.
And I stumble forward.
Into the room.
The door closes behind me.
And just like that—
I’m alone.
Or—
Not alone.
There’s someone else here.
Sitting in the shadows.
I can’t see his face.
But I can feel him.
Watching me.
Slowly—
He leans forward.
The light catches just enough—
And my world—
Stops.
Because I know that face.
No.
That’s not possible.
It can’t be.
But it is.
My fingers tremble at my sides.
My voice comes out barely a whisper.
“…You?”
His gaze darkens slightly.
Recognition flickering.
Then—
A slow, dangerous smile forms on his lips.
“Interesting,” he murmurs.
A pause.
Then—
“They finally sent me something worth looking at.”
My heart slams violently against my ribs.
Because this man—
This man—
Is not a stranger.
And the way he’s looking at me now—
Says he knows exactly who I am.
- Writer
