Welcome to my new fic, everyone! This is an AU inspired loosely by the book Safe Haven by Nicholas Sparks. This is rated M for a reason- it contains strong language, sexual content, violence and varying forms of abuse.
A huge thank you goes out to my beta, wollaston, without whom I don't think I could have published this.
Enjoy!
Prologue.
May 19th, 2013
I'm so stupid.
The girl with dark braided hair pulled out a thick wad of bills and threw them at the teller. "One way ticket to Capitol City, please."
It was supposed to be nice.
The elderly woman with curly white hair smiled warmly at her as she passed her the thick paper. "That's a long journey you've got ahead of you. Almost ten hours."
It all went wrong.
The dark haired girl shoved her ticket into her pocket and nodded at the woman. She flipped the hood of her sweatshirt up over her face and readjusted the leather bag on her shoulder.
A voice rang out over the loudspeaker and announced that Bus 1934 would be departing to Capitol City momentarily. The girl sprinted through the throngs of travelers back outside, where it had begun to pour. Through the thick strips of rain she could see the lines of buses, and she ran toward the one with the number corresponding to her ticket.
"Hold the door!" she shouted as she saw the last passenger step on. "Please!"
The driver looked at her strangely as she catapulted herself up into the vehicle. "Ticket, please?"
She flashed him the damp paper and he waved her past. The girl hurried down the aisle and shoved herself into a window seat in the second to last row.
Please go, please go, please go, please.
The hiss and rumble of the engine shot a wave of relief through her body, but she wasn't out of the woods yet. The bus moved a few feet forward, barely picking up speed before it hissed to a stop.
"Excuse me!" A deep, manly voice called. "Do you mind if I look aboard?"
"Not at all, Officer," the driver replied.
No, no, no, no, please God, no.
Heavy footsteps resounded in the girl's mind as they slowly came closer. Her feet were shaking and a thin sheen of sweat broke out across her forehead. Quickly, she shoved her leather bag under her sweatshirt and arranged it so it mimicked the belly of a pregnant woman. She rested her hand on the ribs and tucked her braid into her hood. The footsteps got closer, and she turned her head towards the window with closed eyes and prayed.
The footsteps stopped. She could hear heavy, familiar breathing and her heart came to a stop all together.
It all went wrong.
"Well!" The footsteps retreated. "Everything seems to be in order. Safe travels, everyone."
"Thank you, Officer. Have a good night."
The footsteps were gone altogether and the bus began moving again. The young woman let out a long, shaking breath.
"Thank you, Lord," she breathed. She had never been overly religious, but as some smart man unbeknownst to her once said, 'There were no atheists in a foxhole.'
She only wished she was in a war. That meant that each side stood an equal chance of winning. She would lose. She always lost.
He made sure of that.
Chapter One will be posted tomorrow night! Thank you all for reading. :)
I'm 'ohalaskayoung' on tumblr if you ever want to chat.
xoxo