Have you ever been at the wrong place, at the wrong time, and become trapped in a situation you really shouldn’t have even been near in the first place? That’s what happened to me one summer night, while I was out exploring Boston, minding my own business. I had just finished dinner at a small restaurant a little off the main street and was speaking with the owner about things to do nearby, since I didn’t have a car, when a giant man, dressed all in black, rushed in and went right to the booth behind me, exclaiming something in another language, while he tried to catch his breath.
Everyone in the booth suddenly stood up, then one of them asked the owner if they had a back door to exit, which they did, and as the group moved past me, one of them noticed me, pointed me out to another giant man dressed in black, and suddenly, I was being guided after the group, out the back door, with only my purse to my name. As soon we stepped outside in the warm air, a black SUV pulled up, everyone began climbing in, then I was lifted in and forced to sit between two regular men, not dressed in black. One of them leaned over to buckle me, not saying anything, but clearly caring about my safety for some reason.
I was too shocked to say anything, plus they were speaking another language the entire car ride, but when we pulled into an underground garage and began exiting the vehicle, me being lifted out this time, I finally found my voice.
“Can someone please tell me who you are and why in the world you just left that restaurant in such a hurry, taking me as a prisoner along the way?” I asked, loudly, not looking at anyone directly, just speaking to the general group of them.
I was completely ignored, frustrating me even more, until one of the non-bodyguards came over and motioned for me to enter the elevator with them, gently placing his hand on my back to push me in front of him. I was going to refuse, stand still somehow, but then I noticed how much taller he was and how big his muscles were, so there would not have been any point. Once inside, I was squeezed between the one who had forced me to walk and another one who glanced down at me, frowned, then turned his gaze away and focused on the wall ahead.
We got to the 10th floor, then began leaving, me being pushed out with the group, until there was an office door being opened by one of the bodyguards, after which we all followed each other inside and he locked the door behind himself. I was so tired of being pushed around, I wanted to stop, but being surrounded by gigantic men who are very intimidating was not my best moment to be brave, so I just went with the flow, trying to see what was around, in case I ever got the chance to leave.
We finally stopped in one of the back rooms, with dark window coverings and a huge table with chairs on one side, several couches on the other, and multiple small armchairs scattered around. The one who had been pushing me motioned for me to sit on a couch, so I did, then assumed someone would come talk to me at some point, but I was wrong. I waited for half an hour, growing impatient and getting more and more annoyed about the whole situation, when I finally stood up and took a step towards the door.
The bodyguard at the door shifted his weight, three of the non-bodyguards stood up, and a bodyguard closer to me asked something in the other language, then motioned at me. I sighed, clearly not getting any answers any time soon, but also clearly not going to be returning to my regular life either. I sat back down, then watched them continue to gesture and speak in their native language, sometimes calmly, sometimes with anger, but always with sideways glances in my direction, as if I had caused the entire issue.
After another hour had passed, I looked behind the couch to realize there was nothing there, just carpet, so I slipped behind it, falling asleep curled in a ball, giving up on ever getting any of my questions answered.
When I woke up the next morning, I was in a large room, on a large bed, surrounded by large windows with dark curtains, not allowing any light in to give me a hint as to the time of day. I sat up, looking around, not recognizing anything I saw, then also realized I was completely alone. I stood up, then began walking along the perimeter of the room, searching for a doorway. I found one quickly and was delighted when it turned out to be a bathroom, so I used it and when I was done washing my hands, I noticed the windows in the bathroom weren’t blacked out, so I cautiously lifted one of the curtain edges and saw bright sunshine, flowers, and heard birds outside. I smiled, knowing there was still joy in the world somewhere, even if I didn’t have any yet. I walked back out to the main room, then continued wandering around the perimeter, finding another doorway, but it was locked from the other side, so I couldn’t open it. I finally found myself at the main entrance, clearly leading to a hallway or some other high-traffic area because it was a double door, also locked from the outside, and I heard lots of footsteps.
I thought about calling out but knew it would be in vain- there were cameras all over the room, so I was certain someone knew I was awake and exploring by now. Sure enough, about ten minutes later, a maid appeared, pushing a cart and smiling. She spoke to me in my language, then explained what her instructions had been, but couldn’t answer any of my questions because she truly didn’t know. I accepted her answers and followed her back into the bathroom. She started a bath, motioning for me to get in, but I argued that I had no other clothing. She pointed to the cart, showing me random clothing on it, so I shrugged and followed her directions.
I hadn’t realized how anxious I had been until I was in that warm water, surrounded by bubbles. It felt like all my worries were floating away, so I ended up giggling, my hair long and dark, covering half my face, my body surrounded by bubbles, when a different man walked in, dressed in a business suit, but not dressed like a bodyguard. He was speaking to the maid in that other language, the one I had heard before, clearly giving her directions, but literally froze when he entered the bathroom, saw me, and unexpectedly made eye contact for a split second. I smiled, not knowing who he was, but his presence made me feel safe, even though I still had no clue why I had been taken in the first place. He ran his fingers through his smooth dark hair, clenched his jaw, and frowned, then turned on the spot and exited without another sound.
When I was done, the maid helped me get out and dry off, then dress in the clothing she had brought, all of which was too big for me, clearly given to her by the men, since not even one piece of clothing looked remotely the correct size. I carefully put on the clothes, then she helped me brush my long hair, braiding it down my back, to keep it out of my face for now. I followed her from the bathroom, then waited for her next instructions. She told me someone else would be arriving shortly to escort me downstairs to eat in the kitchen, then I would be meeting with the bosses, whoever they were.
She did not lock the door behind her when she left, but I honestly didn’t care about leaving at that point, so I went over to the bookcase, found one I liked, and began reading. I had no clue several hours had passed until I finished the book and stood up to stretch, realizing nobody had ever come to take me anywhere and I was now actually hungry and thirsty. I began walking across the room, aiming to reach the main doorway, but since the pants were much too long, I tripped, flinging myself into one of the side tables, smacking my face on the wood, blood splattering everywhere. I sat on the floor, my hands covering my face, unsure of what to do, when I was suddenly lifted up and brought back into the bathroom, then set on the counter by the sink. A washcloth was held up to my nose, while the person mumbled things to themselves, I assume about what they should do next to stop the bleeding. My eyes were so swollen I could not see, I could hear the voice and feel the touch, so when I realized my nose had stopped bleeding, the person began using a different cloth to wipe the blood from my arms, face, neck, etc. until they sighed and said, “Your shirt is ruined and must be removed. I will help you, so you don’t get injured further.”
I held my hands up when he told me to, he pulled the bloody shirt off, then I stood there, shivering, in just a black tank top, while he got another shirt (or so I hoped). I couldn’t see it at the time, but it was actually the same man from earlier, the one who had seen me in the tub, and he was now unbuttoning his black dress shirt to give to me. When he helped me put my arms in the sleeves, he delicately guided my arms in each sleeve, then gingerly buttoned up the shirt because I could not see.
I had no idea at the time, but he was holding his breath as he worked, to avoid smelling me, as he found my scent to be intoxicating and he didn’t want to become distracted when my life was in danger. After I was cleaned up, he took one of my hands in his and pulled me from the room, leading me to the couch and helping me sit, then he knelt in front of me, examining every inch of my face to make sure he hadn’t missed any blood. I sat perfectly still, listening to his deep, calm voice, feeling very safe at that moment, even though I could not even see him. He then sat next to me, and asked me, “Have you eaten anything yet today?” I shook my head, then he asked, “Has anyone come into this room besides the maid?” I shook my head again, this time getting an angry growl as his response, which I assumed was meant for me and I bit my bottom lip. He traced my lips with his finger, asking me why I was doing it, so I told him I thought he was angry with me for falling and causing such a mess.
He leaned his forehead on mine, then said, “There is nothing in this world that would make me growl at you with such an angry tone. I am angry, but not with you. I am sorry for how you have been ignored.”
I waited for him to continue, but when he didn’t, I just sat still, unable to see, hoping he would give me directions. Instead, he stood up and took my hand, guiding me from the room slowly. We walked for a while in what I assumed was the hallway, then we came to a set of stairs, where he paused. I had no idea he was struggling with his own internal dilemma, so I stood next to him patiently, waiting for the next step, and wasn’t expecting him to literally pick me up and begin carrying me down the stairs. He set me down when we reached the bottom, carefully checking to make sure I was ok, then continued leading me along.
We finally reached the kitchen, where he told someone which food to make, leading me to a table, helping me sit in a chair, and giving me water, which I was thankful for. Soon after, I smelled delicious foods being near me, so he then helped me eat, cutting things into smaller bites I could not see and feeding me things he wanted me to taste. Once I was full, it was clear he was still eating, so I leaned on his arm, tired from the commotion earlier.
After he had finished eating as well, he stood up and told the person they could clean up, while he went to handle some tasks he needed to get done urgently- he told me to stay put, so he could come back and make sure I stayed safe. Well, that would have been a great idea if the person he left me with (the chef) hadn’t caught something on fire, forcing both of us to evacuate into a different hallway, me still unable to see, and the chef focused on his damaged kitchen. I began wandering slowly along, using the wall as my guide, until I reached a doorway. I opened the door, felt warm air, then decided to go inside whatever room it was, despite having no real vision. I used my socks to help find the pathway, discovering it was some sort of garden/greenhouse, then wandered all the way to the back of it, where there was a bench, hidden under a large tree with hanging branches. I fell asleep after just wanting to rest for a minute, then didn’t realize how much time had passed until it was much colder in the room and I woke up to hear owls.
Although it was night, I assumed I’d be able to see using the moonlight, since my eyes were slightly less puffy now, so I found a door that I thought led back inside but actually led to the outside garden. I was then wandering outside, in the dark and cold, my eyes still puffy from the morning, when it began to rain, soaking me almost instantly, as I was only wearing the outfit I’d been given earlier. I soon gave up walking and found a random tree to lie down under, hoping the branches would shield me enough to keep me from freezing to death, as I was now shivering. I don’t know how long I was there, or what time it was when he found me, but I can tell you with certainty that when he knelt down beside me, heard my chattering teeth, saw my blue lips, and felt my soaking wet clothes he absolutely knew I could not leave his sight ever again.
He carried me inside, my body shaking from the cold, him calling the maid to help him get me into the tub with warm water, the same clothes still on, to raise my body temperature enough to save me. He sat in the tub with me, wearing only a pair of his own shorts, no shirt, while I gradually began shaking less and less, then eventually stopped. Once he was satisfied with my warmth being back to normal, he had the maid help him lift me out of the tub. He left her with me for just long enough to remove the wet clothes and dry me off, then he returned in his own dry clothing, finding me wrapped in a towel, sitting on the floor, my long-wet hair dangling everywhere, resting my head on the side of the tub, looking completely helpless.
He carefully lifted my arms and helped me put on a tank top, then a tshirt and one of his hoodies, then closed his eyes as he helped me wear a pair of his boxers and sweatpants, wanting to respect my privacy for the time being. After I was dressed, he carried me to the bed and climbed inside, pulling me right next to his chest, feeling like every breath I took was somehow stealing a piece of his heart, my hands gripping his shirt so tightly my knuckles had turned white. I fell asleep sometime after, my hands falling limply, my shivering subsided, and my breathing slower than before. He let out a sigh of relief, then continued to hold me close as he tried to plan his next move.
I obviously could not be left alone, as disaster followed me like a shadow, but he needed to take care of things that I could never know about, so he needed a plan to somehow keep me safe, while also doing his actual job away from me. I woke up during the night crying, with a fever, which he was not prepared for, but quickly gave me medicine, then held me as I sobbed, breaking his heart all over again. When he woke up the next morning, I was lying in front of him, peacefully using his arm for a pillow, wearing only the shorts and tank top, sleeping soundly. He kissed my shoulder, then sighed, knowing he was going to have to be honest with me at some point about who he was and why I was even with him, but at that moment, he did not care- he just wanted to be near me. His hand was around my waist, under the tank top, holding me close, which he didn’t mind at all. When I finally woke up about an hour later, I turned on my back, my eyes now finally opened, but showing dark bruises under them. He saw my smile, then noticed my black eyes, blaming himself and leaned down to kiss my cheeks, confusing me, as I had not even figured out who he was yet.
He chuckled when he saw my expression, then whispered, “I am sorry for alarming you with kisses this morning, but I have been so worried about you I just couldn’t resist.” I blinked up at him, asking, “Who are you? Why am I here?” He leaned his forehead on mine, then replied, “Give me time sweetheart and I shall answer all of your questions, but for now, focus on getting better, since you have been injured and sick for the past 24 hours and I am extremely worried about you.”
