Concentrating immensely I ease my baby, my hatchback onto the curb grimacing at the muddy puddles that I had no choice but to park in.

I had only gotten my P plates the week before and to say that the newfound independence took me by storm would be an understatement.

The day I attempted my driving test there just so happened to be a major thunderstorm with heavy rain and hail forecasted.

Taking up the challenge I still managed to pass even after an especially hefty hail piece cracked the instructors wind shield but thankfully it was ruled out due to nature causes and not my slightly over speed.

After months of saving I finally had a reason to buy my first car and I just so happened to find the perfect one the day after I got my license his name is TinTin and he is a black Ford Fiesta.

Now usually I'm quite claustrophobic and the thought of driving in a tiny car would almost give me hives but as soon as I sat down in the seat I knew that this was my car.

But of course knowing my luck I haven't been able to show him off yet to anyone due to the heavy unrelenting rain that has been barrelling down on the town for the past week, that of course didn't stop me from polishing the car or finding the perfect car scent to hang but I just didn't want to drive it and get it covered in mud so soon.

Today was the first day of clear skies and although still bloody cold I wasted no time to get in my car and drive it straight to my cousins.

In total I have four cousins, two live too far away to know and the other two live half an hour away which explains why I have such a close bond with them.

The youngest of the two is Flynn, he's ten and perhaps one of the most energetic children that I have had the misfortune of trying to keep up with.

Any mention of Star Wars or Minecraft will result in a minimum of a fifteen minute rant and trust me when I say that once Flynn starts he's near impossible to stop.
He shares his Fathers hair which is thick and light brown and even has the same chin cleft as his father which will only grow deeper with age.
Flynn shared his Mother's eyes and his Mother's bubbly/social personality. That kid could charm any crowd. Currently his hair is shoulder length to match Anakin Skywalkers and as much as his fathers hopes that it's just a phase I can see the man bun sticking around through his teen years, much to his Fathers horror.

Then you have his older sister Dana, Dana is twelve years old and as can be expected is engaged in the frustrating battle of childish whims verses teenage expectations.
Nearly identical to her brother, the only real difference is the abundance of freckles covering her pale skin and hair that hangs just above her waist.
She's a gorgeous girl and any chance I get I'm constantly telling her how naturally beautiful she is especially now before she starts delving in makeup and potentially losing herself in it.
However the first year of high school sucks and although she's only in her third month of high school Dana has already confessed to me that she is being bullied.

There is no feeling worse than helplessness and that's how I feel about the whole situation.
I graduated last year and while I know that my presence will most likely cause more drama the thought of leaving it all up to her to face makes my heart drop.

She doesn't deserve to bullied just because she prefers books over iPhone's and believes in fairies.
I'm the one who grew her imagination and now I'm finding myself fighting to maintain it.

Pulling the key out of the ignition I sigh and roll my shoulders wincing from the ache.
I currently work part time in a bookshop and as much as I love the freedom of being able to read while on the job I struggle with the heavy loads of books that I have to stack every shift.

The only thing keeping me there is the insane discount and occasionally free book that I'm granted every month, the crappy pay certainly isn't the thing keeping me rooted.

Finally opening my door I'm suddenly welcomed with all the senses of summer.
I can hear mowers going off in the distance, see the tree's beginning to grow dry, taste the faint texture of pollen floating around me and smell the hot stifling air which seems to shrink my lungs.

This is by far my favourite time of year, it's just so much more stimulating than any other season and with the season comes fresh hopes and goals for the new year.

My appreciation of the world is suddenly cut short when the fence directly in front of me swings open with a bang revealing a familiar face.

"Uncle Adam!" I yell out, startlingly the six foot bald man across from me and causing him to drop all the items in his hands.

Rushing forward I smile an apology and bend down to help pick up his spilt plants but before I can begin scooping the remains I'm suddenly enveloped in a massive bear hug which quite literally takes my breath away.

Uncle Adam has been apart of the Police Force for twelve years now and while he isn't in the shape that he started in he certainly hasn't let himself go.
Smiling down at me with his crinkled blue eyes and slight prickly remains of brown hair I'm suddenly reminded with how long it's been since I've seen him and the family.

"Katie, It's been so long! How were exams?!" He questions and I can't help but feel bad knowing that it's been months since I've had time to come out and see him and the kids.

"They were as good as I expected I suppose, I probably shouldn't have been as focused on the finish line and instead actually focused enough to study." I joke and smile as my Uncle lets out a generous laugh.

He's a single Dad after his wife passed seven years ago and I have never respected a man's strength as much as his.
He has single-handedly become a chief at his station and raised two amazing kids with manners of Saint's.

Very few people can achieve that even with a partner.
As I continued praising my Uncle in my head a sudden scream erupts from inside the house and I jolt out of shock however, Uncle Adam simply sighs and shakes his head.

"This morning's been tough, the kids just don't know how to give each other a break." I barely let a second go by before answering his tired face.

"I can take them out of your hands for a while if you'd like! I have my car out front and I'm more than happy to take them to the park for a few hours."
I offer and almost laugh as his expression fills with hope at the prospect of peace and quiet.

Not needing to hear his consistent thanking I give him one last hug before entering the front door and scream at the top of my lungs to pierce through their screaming.

"Who's ready for a road trip?!"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"So.. Flynn, got any girlfriends I should know about?" I question with a grin at the young boy in my back seat, instantly Flynn begins making gagging noises and shakes his head frantically.

"No! Why would I want a girlfriend? None of them know what an Ewok is!" I widen my eyes in mock horror as I finally pull up into the car park by the playground and swing around in my seat.

"They don't know what an Ewok is? They are not worth your time Fly, don't settle for second best." I claim in half seriousness, well I was serious about the whole settling thing, that kid is far too young to be limiting his options.

I take this time to glance over at Dana and I can't help but feel a little disappointed with her less than enthusiastic attitude.

For the whole ten minute ride Dana remained glued on her phone. I didn't receive a single peep after a brief 'hello' and a quick hug.
I fight the temptation to glance at her screen, she is growing up, if she's ever in trouble I want her to feel safe sharing her secrets with me.

I unbuckle and step out of the car, triggering the other two to do the same.

Flynn makes a beeline for the spider net course while Dana slowly makes her way over to the swing set.
I decide to follow Dana, knowing that Flynn could keep himself occupied for hours.

"What about you Dana? Have you got your eyes on anybody?" I say softly and make sure that Flynn is out of ear shot, I don't want to provide those two with more ammo to tease each other with.

For the first time today Dana actually turns her phone off and looks up at me sharply, I remain calm and sit down on the swing next to her and begin to push myself backwards.
I've planted the seed, now all I have to do is wait for her to crack.

"His name is Charlie." Dana finally whispers after another five swinging motions and I luckily was focusing entirely on her otherwise I would have missed it.

I let a small smile grace my pink lips and pick up the pace of my swinging, if I appear to be too invested in the topic then Dana could get spooked, it's safer to play it cool.

"Charlie huh? What's so special about Charlie?" I huff out as I realise quickly that I'm not made for this kind of exercise and finally allow my body to fall into a slower, steadier motion.

Through the corner of my eye I notice Flynn still playing, now by the monkey bars and quickly glance back at Dana glad to finally see some life brought back into her eyes.

"He's gorgeous! We share P.E together and he's easily the fastest kid in the class! He is tan all year round and when he smiles I get really dizzy and have to look away."

I can't help but let a laugh burst through my lips just as another car pulls into the parking lot and I take a moment to appreciate how simple the criteria for liking a boy used to be.

Nowadays girls are so focused on a guy with prospects of wealth and success that nobody notices the small things first.
Like the way a guy chuckles or the colours in his eyes.

When do boys stop being so dreamy and suddenly get plunged into reality with the rest of us?

"And my friend Airi keeps trying to get me to ask him out but I know he'll say no." At this Dana looks back down at her phone again and I grind my swinging to a halt, from this angle I have a perfect view of her phone.

As much as I try to look away I can't help but glance at a photo of Dana being mercilessly photo-shopped by her harshest critic.
Herself.

"Dana, you're a stunning girl. You have so much natural beauty and charm that you unknowingly have half your class already crushing on you. You're kind and always look out for others.
Why wouldn't Charlie like you when there is so much to love?" I place my hand on her shoulder and without needing to say anything Dana jumps up and dives into my arms.

I can feel her tears soaking my thin shirt but I couldn't care less, the world is cruel and Dana deserves all the comfort she can get.
We remain in this position for a few more minutes and I allow my eyes to glance over our surroundings.

The other vehicle in the car park wasn't a car after all, it was a black van with extremely dark windows.
I feel my irrational fear from childhood of vans begin to clog my throat and I search the grounds for Flynn again.

"I'm not pretty, I'll never be as pretty as you." I vaguely hear Dana mumble but I'm too focused on finding her younger brother.

The playground was empty and I couldn't see Flynn anywhere near my car.
Assuming the worst I let go of Dana and spin around slowly.

"Flynn? Flynn where are you?"
I yell out, fear beginning to press down on my vocal chords and take away my volume.

Dana realises the urgency of the situation and begins calling out his name as well.
I glance back at the van, undoubtedly with wide eyes and try to peer into the window.

I can feel their gazes racking over me and I can't help the flush of guilt, I should have been paying attention.

Just as I'm about to start jogging the perimeter I hear a faint voice call out from the bushes.

Stepping out and fiddling with his belt I feel all the tension release from my body as I run over to his small form.
I swing him up in my arms, earning a yelp from him and quickly spin Flynn around.

"You can't just disappear like that Fly! You don't just walk off into the wilderness without telling anyone!"
I try to contain my shouting but my relief is too strong and I press a firm kiss on his head before placing him back down.

"Dad pee's in the bush all the time!" Flynn argues and I shake my head in aspiration and quickly hug him once more.

"Katie, can we go now?"
Dana murmurs suddenly and I feel her body appear out of nowhere and press against my back.

Assuming that Dana is backing away due to a bug of some kind I spin around with a grin and hold Flynn's hand. Ready to shoo the bug away and play some family games.

However, my grin quickly falls as I stand opposite of two men, twice my size and both wearing the same black outfits. Right down to their matching smirks.

My eyes quickly dart to the car park. My car remains in plain sight and the feeling of my keys suddenly grow heavy in my pocket.

But before I begin tugging the kids to our getaway vehicle I notice the black van from earlier has its back doors wide open, not a great sign.

I can feel Dana begin to shake against my front and I place my free hand on her shoulder, squeezing tightly.

"Can I help you two by any chance?"
I manage to question without sounding nearly as on edge as I feel.

I take a moment to memorise key features about their appearances knowing full well that I could just be paranoid and that I'm freaking out over nothing.

The man on the right has a slightly larger build and has long brown hair tied back in a bun, easily six foot and judging by his grin and his sunken eyes taking in each of our appearances I can tell that he isn't here to play on the playground.

The man on the left has kept his hair short, buzzed and neat with a slight beard beginning to grow.
This man has a scar running down the side of his neck and I try not to think of all the situations that he could have gotten it.

After a few minutes of them simply assessing us I lean down slightly to whisper to my cousins, keeping a careful eye on the two men as I do so.

"Guys, when I say 'go' I need you to run back the way we came, turn around and don't stop until you either get back home or come across a neighbours house that you know." As I begin whispering the commands Flynn lets out a sob and I squeeze his hand tightly, to quell my own need to cry out.

A sudden movement causes my eyes to glare at the now approaching forms and I straighten once more, ready to protect my family at all costs.

The men begin slowly walking towards us, like a predator would and I equally as slowly push Dana behind me, not breaking my eyes from theirs even for a moment.

Just as I sense the two begin to tense I spin around and shove Flynn and Dana.

"Go!" I scream and begin running behind them as we bolt in the direction of their house.

I knew from the moment I saw the men that we wouldn't be able to outrun them, it wasn't even their toned bodies that told me, it was the look in their eyes.
This isn't the first time they've hunted and we stand no chance.

However, I knew what I had to do, I could do one thing that could at least slow them down and hopefully provide a chance of survival and that one chance involves me stopping and facing the brutes myself.

When I was a child my parents took me to various self defence classes such as taekwondo, karate and judo and while I only lasted a few weeks at each before embracing pacifism I still managed to remember some basic moves.

I however won't kid myself into thinking that I can take these two on like Donkey Kong and try to remain running with Dana and Flynn for as long as possible.

It isn't until Dana glances over her shoulder and lets out a shriek that I finally take a deep breath and catch her eyes just before they dart back to the road.

"Don't you dare stop!" I yell and while panic flashes through her eyes she nods in understanding, picking up pace to match her brothers.

They're going to be fine, I'm going to be fine and with that mantra repeating in my head I go against all my instincts and spin around to face the brutes.