#ffpimportant

Ten days. Maisie had been gone for ten days, and by the eighth day she had given up hope. Her lips were dry and cracked, and she could have sworn that she was near death. She’d begun fading in and out of consciousness periodically. Blood still caked her hair, and she was almost certain that in the process of trying to defend herself she had ended up with a broken arm, if the searing hot pain and dis-formed bone structure in her forearm were any indication.

Days had passed, however, and Maisie remained in the dark, tied to a chair. Days one and two had been decent. She could vaguely remember being fed something bland on the first day, and she’d been granted a generous sip of water. The second day she was offered only half the portion of food, and not nearly as much water as she needed to remain comfortable. The third day, her captor only offered her a single sip of water. That had been the day that Maisie had acted out–trying to headbutt the person in the black mask. It hadn’t ended well for her, to say the least.

From the fourth day on, Maisie had been left on her own. No food, no water. She had finally broken free from the ties, but was left in pitch-black darkness. And as scared as she was, Maisie couldn’t help but wonder if she deserved this. Once upon a time she had, after all, called a girl fat. She’d fatshamed that girl in front of the entire cheer team, and Poppy Andrews had praised her for it. But apparently the guilt hadn’t been enough–now she was surely paying for what she had done. Karma really was a bitch.

Somewhere around the fifth day, Maisie found herself holding onto the hope that someone would come looking for her. There was no doubt in her mind that her sister was losing her mind with worry–which made Maisie physically sick. The thought of losing her sister made her literally sick to her stomach–which led to the battered blonde vomiting the remaining contents of her stomach. She was running on empty now, but she was still holding onto the hope that someone was looking after her… even though it felt like nobody was.

She should have bled out by the sixth day. Every time she tried her hardest to move, it seemed to reopen the wounds on her body. Her side stung like hell, but she was almost certain that there was a gash on her leg from where she was nearly stabbed. There was also no doubt in her mind that the cuts and wounds should be infected by now, which could only mean the worst.

The seventh day was what Maisie thought would be her last day living. The world seemed to spin in the darkness around her, and she said her prayers goodbye. She prayed that Harlow would take care of herself when she was gone, and that she would always remember and cherish the memories they shared. She prayed that Mr. Moore would forgive her for ever letting go of his son. She prayed that Felix would learn to love again, and that Mara would find love for herself. She prayed that Lizzy would realize, sooner rather than later, just how important she was, no matter how quiet. She prayed that Jonah would find happiness in life, even if she couldn’t be the one to give it to him. 

It was with those prayers that she finally blacked out.

Day ten arrived, and Maisie managed to open her eyes just in time to see a crack of light. E–or whoever had taken her–had left the door open, presumably having thought she was dead. It was a miracle, and she wasn’t even sure she believed in them. But after accepting the fact that she had to say her silent goodbyes, this sure as hell seemed like a miracle. And so Maisie, will every remaining bit of energy she had left, staggered to her feet and shakily made her way to the exit.

She had just about pulled herself out of the building before her legs gave out beneath her. A strangled “help” left her lips just before her head collided with the concrete and the world went dark.

Date Admitted into Fairfield Preperatory Hospital Wing: February 14th, 2018 Time Admitted: 12:18 in the afternoon Room of Admission: Room 117 Visitors allowed: 3 at a time once patient is stable. Injuries sustained:

Broken left arm (requires plaster cast)

Open wound on right thigh (requires stitches)

Lacerations on face (requires stitches)

Severe dehydration & starvation (requires several IV’s)

Damaged lungs caused by internal trauma, likely from physical attack (required oxygen support through nostrils)

He had scoured almost every inch of the school, starting with every corner of the Gardens right down to the basement of the locker room. As far as he knew it was the only basement Fairfield Prep had... until he overheard a conversation between two kitchen staff in the mess hall. He stood at the buffet, not really caring about what he put on his plate, but his ears perked up instantly as he heard a key word.  “Did you know the old kitchen basement is supposedly haunted?”  “Well that’s no surprise. The place has been closed off for years, ever since they built in the new storage room.”

“Where’s the kitchen basement?” Felix interrupted bluntly. To which both men gave him a confused look.  “There’s a door next to the storage room, it’s locked though- hey! Where you going kid?”  Felix hadn’t stopped to listen to anymore, instead he dropped his plate and headed straight for the kitchen. He ignored shouts of disgruntled staff members as he pushed past them. Once in the kitchen, he stopped to look around, his eyes falling on the two doors side by side. One was newer and had people coming in and out of it, but the other was old and didn’t have a single person near it.  “Somebody help me open that door!” he yelled as he moved towards it as quickly as he could, a now obvious limp slowing him slightly. His legs ached but he didn’t care. If this was it.. if she was there, if she was alive, he could get her help.. she could be safe.  Felix could hear the kitchen staff mumbling, some saying to get his father, others trying to tell him they didn’t have the key and he needed to calm down but he wasn’t going to. If no one had the key he was going to find another way in. Looking around again he saw an emergency axe hanging next to a fire extinguisher and without a second thought he had broken the glass concealing it and started swinging at the wooden door. While his legs were weak, his arms had never been stronger, especially after being in a wheelchair and using crutches. It took about six hits for the wood to splinter down the middle, and using his shoulder to barge it Felix broke through, only to catch himself just before he fell down a large flight of stairs.  “Oh shit-” he breathed. Flicking the switch on the wall next to him, he moved again as a row of old yellow lights lit a path down the stairs.  “Maisie?!” he shouted as he ran down the stairs, one hand running along the dusty, stone wall as he did.  When he finally got to the bottom he looked around the large, damp room only to see a door partially open.. and laying just inside the doorway was..  “MAISIE.”  Felix’s heart lurched at the side of her broken and bleeding and looking almost dead. She was pale, way too thin, and the cuts and bruises that littered her body both hurt and angered him. For a moment he wasn’t sure she was still alive, and rushing forward he dropped to his knees beside her. “Maisie? Maisie, come on wake up, beautiful.” he mumbled tearfully as he carefully pulled her into his lap. His fingers moved to her throat, gently searching for a pulse, and when he found it, faint as it was, he sighed with relief and scooped her up in his arms. “It’s okay, you’re going to be okay,” he said over and over again as he stood up and made his way up the stairs. Her breathing was faint and crackly and that also worried him. Gasps from the kitchen staff could be heard as they saw the now dirty redhead carrying the limp blonde but Felix didn’t look at any of them.  “Out of my way!” he shouted, holding onto her tighter as he pushed through the crowd and made his way straight to the Infirmary, ignoring everyone and anyone who cried out in surprise or happiness that Maisie had been found... ------------ It didn’t take long after Felix had taken Maisie to the Infirmary, for Harlow to show up in a flurry of tears. He could see she was worried but also relieved to have heard her sister was alive. The instant she saw Felix she gave him an overwhelmingly tight hug. “Thank you, thank you, thank you.” she practically sobbed before moving to take her place beside Maisie’s bed. Maisie was still unconscious but it didn’t stop Harlow gently hugging her and placing a kiss on her forehead before she took hold of her hand.  “I’m so glad you’re safe, Mais..” she whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks. Felix stuck around for another half an hour until he heard Jonah coming down the hall. He had heard him before he saw him, but as much as he wanted to see Maisie awake, he knew that he didn’t want to be in the room with her and Jonah.  “Let me know when she wakes up, yeah?” he asked Harlow, who looked over at him quickly.  “You’re leaving?” she asked, blinking a few times.  “Yeah I,” he started, looking back down the hall as Jonah approached fast.  “Just do me another favour.. don’t let her know it was me who brought her here. She doesn’t need that kind of confusion.”  A second later Jonah was in the room, and with a nod to both him and Harlow Felix left..  Walking down the hall, his eyes burned with tears but he had to suck it up. Maisie was safe, she would be okay.. and now he had to make sure whoever did this wouldn’t hurt anyone he cared about again..