"Fucking hell- uhm Frank I uh um fuck."Gerard quickly grabbed his sketchbook but I reached out and stopped him. I took it from him and stared at my face. He had done it so beautifully. There were shadows under my eyes, my scorpion tattoo was just visible on my neck, my hair looked really fucking awesome and it had been drawn with fucking something. Some sort of feeling that I couldn't work out.

"Gerard this is-"
"Terrible and creepy I know just- please give it back?"Gerard rubbed his face as Mr Stump busied himself at his desk.

"No. Whats the part you cant get right?"I asked as I couldn't stop staring at it. I was sitting at a desk in the art room, looking at where Gerard must have been drawing from. A pencil was in my hand and I could just make out the shape of Lily's face on my paper.

"Your eyes."He mumbled. I looked at him and smiled.
"Well we can sort that tonight. I'll come to the coffee house with you and when you aren't performing, you can get them to your perfection."I smiled as he slowly looked up at me.

"So you arent mad? Or weirded out?"He asked me hopefully.
"Of course not! Its fucking amazing Gerard."I said as I handed him back his drawing.

"I- thank you. Seriously."Gerard pulled his hood up again, sending shadows across his face, and swung his bag onto his shoulder.
"I guess I dont need to help you anymore Gerard."Mr Stump came back over to us.

"Uhm no. Thanks anyway."Gerard laughed. We all walked out of the classroom. Mr Stump separated from us and headed over to the teachers car park. Gerard made me jump by placing his hand at the bottom of my back.

"Sorry."Gerard chuckled. Instead he grabbed my hand and laced our fingers together. I smiled down at them. I know that like, everyone who gets their first boyfriend or girlfriend they go on about how perfect everything is and how their hands fit together perfectly. I hated that saying. Hands fitting together perfectly. But ours really fucking did. It felt so right having Gerards hand in mine and I fucking loved it.

We separated as we got in the car.
"Where are we going then?"I asked Gerard.
"Um, we'll go back to the house so you can get changed out of your uniform and then we need to go to Bobs house so I can grab my guitar."Gerard smiled as he started the car.

I felt a bubble of excitement run through me at the thought of seeing where Gerard stayed the night. And his guitar. We pulled out of the school carpark, Gerard tooting at idiots in the way, and returned back to the home. It felt like I hadn't been there in ages. Even though it was just this morning.

"Frank? Is that you?"Steven popped his head from the dining room to see Gerard and I coming through the front door.
"Yeah, I'm just getting changed and then Gerard and I are go-"
"Get in here. There is something I think you should see."Steven said solemnly.

Confused I followed him into the dining room to see a girl that looked broken sitting at the table. Her face was covered in cuts and bruises, her hair was so dirty I could only just tell it was blonde. Her t-shirt had spots of blood on it and holes all over it, her white skinny jeans were the same.

"F-Frank."She whispered as she stumbled up and into my arms. Fuck. Lily.
"Lily! What the fuck happen h-how what?"I held onto her skinny and frail body gently as she shook in my arms.

"Frank he- he-"She started sobbing, clenching the back of my blazer tightly in her fists.
"Lily take a deep breath. Slowly, breathe slowly okay?"I whispered as I walked her carefully over to the closest seat and sat her down.

"Oh fuck Frank. I- he- Claire!"She started sobbing again. Fuck. Claire.
"Where is she? Whats happened? Lily please. I cant help you unless you tell me."I said firmly, holding her up by the shoulders.

"We- he- um. W-when we got t-to the house, r-right-"She paused and took a deep shaky breath in. I had never ever seen her so upset, let alone so beaten up.

"Okay. That couple came back n-not yesterday but the day before and took me and Claire to their home. The whole way there they were nothing but nice and we got inside their house they showed us to our room, still being normal."She stopped talking and closed her eyes.

"What happened after that?"I asked quietly. Gerard and Steven were nowhere to be seen.
"Well... I took Claire down after we unpacked our things. Victoria had said dinner was ready. When we got down there... there was no dinner. He- he um. He whacked me on the back of m-my head a-and- Victoria was no where to be s-seen a-and Claire didnt know w-what to- to do so she j-just stood there, sc-screaming while he- he ra-raped-"She broke down in tears again and fell onto the table.

I didn't know what to do. Everything had gone numb. I could barely feel anything over the blind hot red anger. My eyes clouded over as I slowly stood.

"Lily where is the house?"I asked, deadly quiet with the anger bristling in my voice. No one does that to my best fucking friend and fucking gets away with it.

"Its- um. No Frank you cant go. He will kill you. He- he has a gun, I saw it in his back pocket you cant go Frank."She stood up and grabbed me by the shoulders, shaking me roughly and making my vision get worse.

"Lily! Claire is left there all alone with no fucking idea what to do. She is probably missing me and you and is going to be fucking scared! We need to get her the fuck out now pull yourself together!"I screamed at her.

"Frank, calm down. We'll find her. Sh'll be okay, she is a strong kid right?"Gerard put his hand on my shoulder.
"Shes fucking four years old!"I screamed, rounding on him. He flinched and took a step back.

I felt like there was fucking steam coming out my ears, I was so fucking upset.
"Fuck..."Lily breathed. She let go of me and went out to the door,"Out of my way."I heard her say,

I rushed after her to see Gerard and Steven standing against the wall as she marched out and down the street. Shit.
"Gerard help."I said as I rushed out after her.

"Lily wait!"I yelled, she was already halfway down the fucking street.
"Lily! I'll give you a ride!"Gerard yelled behind me. She stopped walking and rushed back to us.

"Just tell me where to go and I will go."Gerard said as he quickly grabbed his keys and got back in the car. Lily and I got into the back seat. Gerard started the car and drove off.

"Left."Lily said quietly. No one was talking. I stared at Gerards reflection in the mirror. He looked extremely worried but in control. Unlike me or Lily. Lily looked like she could murder someone. I felt the same.

I looked down as Lily didn't say anything but took a hold of my hand, squeezing tightly and never letting go for the whole ride.
"Right."She said suddenly. Gerard turned onto a street filled with perfect little suburban houses.

"Number 439."Lily whispered, staring into the distance. Gerard slowed down and suddenly came to a stop outside a very grand looking house.
"Drive forward a bit."Lily whispered,"I dont want them to know we're here."

"But if we're getting Claire then we want the car close for a quick getawar dont we?"I asked her. Gerard turned around to face me.
"I'll stay in the car. You guys dont be long. If you arent out in five minutes I'm coming in okay?"Gerard told us both seriously.

"Lets go."Lily said and got out of the car without hesitation. I followed her out and walked behind her cautiously towards the front door.
"So are we gonna sneak in or-"
"Dean! Where the fuck is she?!"Lily screamed as she threw a rock through the front window. Jesus.

The window shattered loudly, echoing down the quiet street. I heard a yell inside the house and realised Lily was already climbing through the broken window. She was grimacing as her hands got cut on the glass but nothing seemed to be stopping her, she was like a fucking ninja.

I raced after her and did my best to avoid all the glass. It was very dark inside, even with the light filtering through the leaves of the tree directly in front of the window. I squinted as my eyes adjusted to the light.

There was a large couch behind what looked like a glass coffee table. A massive TV was in the corner next to the window. Lily was slowly creeping around the couch and was about to go into a room that looked like a kitchen.

"Lily."I whispered, looking up at the ceiling. There were lots of thumps coming from upstairs. She ignored me, waving a hand behind her to shush me, and walked into the kitchen. It was brighter in there so I followed her.

There was a pool of dried blood on the floor next to a dinner table. The kitchen bench had a red soggy cloth on it, leaking red water across the bench. It looked like it had been freshly abandoned.

Lily was staring down at the blood, the only mark on an otherwise pristine white tiled floor.
"Lily-"I was about to ask her where to go but she clamped her hand over my mouth as someone started shouting.

We were both tense as a fucking brick as we listened carefully. The shouting was coming from right upstairs, slowly fading. Lily spun around and ran back into the lounge. I followed her quickly, only just in time to see her racing up stairs I hadn't seen.

I sped up after her and stopped, almost banging into her. Gerard would be getting worried. We were taking too long. Lily was staring at something. I peeked around her, too short to see over, and saw the gun first. I long shotgun. My eyes traveled up it to reach his face. He had bloody scratches all over it, some old, some fresh.

His eyes were bloodshot and staring. At Lily. He looked... hungry. Fucking bastard. I hadn't even noticed Lily's iron grip on my arm until I tried to rush forward.

"Where is she?"Lily asked quietly. Her voice deadly quiet in the silence of the house. The thing that made it most creepy was the fact that the whole place was dark. No doors were open. Any windows were covered with curtains. And the actual house was fucking silent. The stairs hadn't creaked when we had gone up them, the wind wasn't creeping through the house, nothing.

"You can't see her right now. She's sleeping. She's exhausted from playing with me."He replied, equally quiet, an evil grin spreading across his face. I clenched my fists and glared at him.

"Dean. Where. The fuck. Is she?"Lily asked again.
"I told you she is sleeping. Victoria is looking after her."He glanced at the roof. I looked up and saw a door to an attic. That fucker had them in there.

"Give Claire to us, or we'll call the cops."I said slowly.
"Oh my. You think that scares me? I've been doing this for a very long time. I know how it all works. Don't you think I have an escape route?"He started laughing manically. What a fucking lunatic.

"Dean for fucks sake just give her to us!"Lily screamed, tears streaming down her face.
"I think its time for bed Lily. I'll make sure you cant get out this time. Or maybe even cant get up."He said as he lifted the gun and aimed at Lily's legs. Fucking hell.

"Lily!"Someone screamed above. It sounded like Victoria. Everyone looked up at the roof, distracted. I used the split second I had to lunge forward and start wrestling the gun from his grip.

"Frank!"Lily screamed behind me. I ignored her as Dean toppled backwards with me on top of him.
"Go Lily go!"I yelled as Dean and I rolled about on the floor, trying to gain the upper hand. He was fucking strong. Surprisingly strong. It wasnt long before he was sitting on top of me, crushing my already sore chest, and grabbing the gun that had been dropped in the scuffle.

I looked behind his head and saw Lily pulling down the door to the attic. I put my attention back on Dean. He was aiming the gun in my face. I closed my eyes, expecting to have my head blown to pieces, hear the loud explosion of the gunfire igniting.

Instead I heard something else.
"Get the fuck of my boyfriend you fucking pedophile!"Gerard screamed has he smashed his fist into the side of Dean's head, making him topple off of me.

"Gerard!"I yelled in shock. He smiled and held his hand out. I took it and he pulled me up and into his chest. He wrapped his arms around me and buried his head in my neck. I held him tightly for a second before letting go and climbing up the ladder into the attic.

"Frank help me."Lily said. I stood up and looked around. Claire was nowhere to be seen. Lily was kneeling down next to Victoria who was bleeding heavily from her stomach.

"Lily I have to find Claire."I said. I looked from her to the ladder. I had no idea where she would be. I had no idea what the layout of this house was like.

"Okay yup go."Lily turned back to Victoria and kept pressing something to her stomach. I nodded even though she wasn't looking at me.

I started climbing down the ladder backwards and fuck, someone had grabbed my foot. They pulled me down and off the ladder, my chin hitting a few rungs on the way.
"Fuck!"I spat out the blood and rolled over onto my back to make sure it was just the bastard Dean and not another crazy basketcase.

"Well well well. Isn't this going to be fun?"Dean grinned down at me. The side of his head was bleeding badly but otherwise he looked fine. Wait- where was Gerard? I looked around for him but couldn't see him anywhere.

"What the fuck did you do with my boyfriend?"I glared up at him, trying not to let the fear show on my face.
"He decided to go for a trip. Downstairs."He smiled at me.

"You know... You have caused me a lot of trouble. And I know just how to punbish you for it."He smiled and aimed the gun at me and wow, I would never get used to that fucking feeling,"Get up. Now."
"Why the fuck should I do anything for you?"I breathed. My cracked ribs felt even more cracked or possibly broken.

"Uhm because, in case you hadn't noticed, I'm the one with the gun here. My wife is up there, practically dead, your stupid friend Lily, can't get down if she is locked in there, and with three steps I can kill your bboyfriend. You better start listening you fucking faggot."He spat on me. Right in my fucking hair. Lovely.

I got up slowly, testing my joints carefully, and followed him down the hallway to a room. He pulled a keychain out that had about ten different keys on it, and unlocked the door with one of them.

"Get in."He opened the door wide for me to see Claire standing against the back wall.
"Claire."I breathed, ignoring the pain as I ran into the room.

"Fwankie!"She cried happily. She jumped over a bed with pink covers and stuffed toys and landed in my arms. I caught her and swung her around, squeezing her tightly.
"Ow Fwankie that hurts."She sniffed. I put her down and took her in.
"Sorry kiddo."I whispered as the door was shut behind me.

She had obviously been crying for a long time because her eyes were puffed up and bloodshot.
"Did he hurt you?"I whispered. She nodded and wiped away her tears. She had always hated crying in front of me.

"Where did he hurt you?"I asked her. She pointed to her chest. I slowly lifted her top up to reveal a long weeping cut across her stomach along with mottled bruises. I closed my eyes and tried to hold in the tears that someone had done that to one of the sweetest and kindest 4 year olds ever.

"Anywhere else?"I sniffed. She nodded and put her hands over her crotch. That mother fucker. I let out a sob and pulled her close to me.
"He won't hurt you anymore okay sweetie?"I whispered. She clung to me and cried quietly. I picked her up and looked around. There was one window but the tree was directly in front. I couldn't get help from someone on the street if they couldn't see me.

The door had been shut and locked again. Keeping us out of the hallway. But not out of the housre. I looked over at the window again.

"Come on Claire. I'm gonna get you out of here."I whispered and made my way over to the window. I put her down and start trying to open the window. It was jammed. No matter how hard I tried I couldn't get it open. In the end I got so frustrated that I grabbed a music box from a set of drawers and threw it at the window.

The shattering of the glass seemed to echo in the silence that followed. I froze, unsure if Dean had heard me. When nothing happened I pulled my sleeve down over my hand to start getting rid of the glass.

I leaned out the window and looked. It was starting to get too dark to see but I could make out a branch long enough and close enough and strong enough to hold Claire and I.

"Claire I'm gonna need you to hang off my neck okay? Don't choke me though."I smiled slightly as she hooked her arms around me.
"Where are we gonna go Fwankie?"She asked loudly in my ear.

"Shh we have to be quiet okay?"I whispered in the darkness that seemed to be falling faster and faster.
"Okay."She whispered.

I slowly crawled up onto the window ledge. I glanced down and gulped. It was quite a long way down. If we fell, we would probably be killed. I reached out and found the branch was much closer than I had thought. Fuck I was shaking so bad.

I slowly edged out, trying to keep my balance, as I put my foot onto the tree. I placed my other one and slowly bent down. As soon as my hands touched the branch I gripped it, literally holding on for my fucking life.

"Careful Fwankie."Claire whispered.
"Dont look down okay sweetie?"I said as I edged along the branch, closer to the tree trunk. Closer to safety.