Mood music- 'Elastic Heart' by Sia featuring The Weeknd

Warning- Possible abuse trigger

I awake, unsure of my surroundings, and look around. Then I remember where I am and my heart leaps into my mouth.

"No!" I attempt to yell, but nothing escapes my mouth except for a dry squeak. Even a rat could do better.

There seem to be no exits in view except for a door with peeling orange paint and a window with just enough space between the bars for me to squiggle out through. The place I've been ill-fated to call home.

I race to the window as fast I can on my injured calf and sprained ankle and attempt to hoist myself through, ignoring the pain that shoots up my limbs. I'm certain I have more broken bones.

I almost sigh in relief at being out when a hand grabs me by my neck and pulls me back through the bars, well, tries to. I struggle against the bars, kick the hand and bite it and try to pry it off me, none of them succeeding as it finally pulls me in, something digging in my arm.

I'm thrown down on the floor and I prepare for the very worst so far, exceeding my wildest dreams.

"How dare you? You brought the worst upon yourself, missy!" a high pitched shriek resounds shrilly in the small room.

I open my mouth to apologize and beg for my life but she cuts me off by stepping on my windpipe, her high heeled shoe cold and hard against my neck.

"You know I do this for your best, but you still make me treat you worse. Why do you do this? You better resort to the person you should be, and you will be treated like a human again. Until then, even dogs will be treated better than you!"

She adds pressure on my neck until my mouth is wide open, desperately trying to make up for the insufficient air supply to my lungs. Laughing like a maniac, she shifts her feet so she's standing right over me.

"Listen to me very closely. You are straight and that's it. Own up, and behave, or else, you're going to get worse than you can ever imagine. I'm not joking around, and I mean it," she snarls, gritting her teeth together.

"Please!" I cry out, the pain in my chest and abdomen turning unbearable.

"Just three words. Spit 'em out!"

"I'm sorry, but I'm not into boys."

"Wrong answer!" she yells, grinding her stiletto further into my solar plexus.

"Please stop!" I gasp, desperately in need of air supply to my lungs.

"Okay, but it's definitely worse once you get home after school, and I mean it!"

I run for the bathroom and race to get ready to be away from her as soon as I can. I love her so much, but this is just far too unbearable.

All day long at school, I desperately try to formulate some plan to get out of what's waiting for me. Teachers and other students shoot me puzzled looks but don't question anything.

All too soon, it's time to go home and I drag my feet on the painful walk home but I still reach far too soon. There's no way I can not go home, because she'll make it even worse then.

I'm greeted by a half ajar door. No, she's ready! I back off when I see her emerge from within with a cigarette in one hand and a lighter in the other.

"Now, now, come on in, dear," she says sweetly. Maybe our neighbors are watching at the moment, so she's being extra sweet. No one knows what she does except for the two of us.

I plead with my eyes to let it go but her eyes harden in response. In that instant, any infinitesimal hope I had disappears.

"Dear, come in. Aren't you hungry? I made your favorite snack!"

Lies. She can't cook worth nothing. Having no other option, I reluctantly walk in and she shuts the door behind us, locking all of the ten locks she's installed on it, one even with a single key that's around her neck. This is my high security prison, and I'm in for not being straight.

"That'll give you two extra burns, now. Come on, give me your arm," she holds out her hand for me to place mine in.

"I'm so sorry for anything I've ever done, please don't do this, Dou-"

She slaps me to get me to stop talking and pulls my arm, lights up the cigarette and digs the hot end in my skin.

She throws a wad of cloth in my mouth to mute my howl of agony as she works on more places until my entire left arm hurts too much to even comprehend.

She looks over my arm like a painter reviewing their work in satisfaction.

"That ought to do for now," she says and walks to the refrigerator for a drink. It's her routine.

I drop to the floor in agony, unable to resist the tears that flow out my eyes.

"I learnt that from a book. Fly, isn't it?" she says, her voice dripping in pride.

"Are you seriously doing all this just because I'm a lesbian?" I blurt out shakily.

She tuts, "You aren't, you're just deluded."

"Why can't you let me be? It won't affect you what I do!"

"You have the nerve to call me out? You've got your head screwed on wrong, and you dare to question me. What a mess! And you can't even talk properly," she laughs, sounding very much like one of those evil antagonists in a movie.

"Just because I'm a lesbian doesn't mean I should be treated any worse than I deserve!" I yell, energy I never knew I had backing me up.

"Well, there's the thing, dearie, you deserve to be treated much much worse than I do now. Maybe it's time I started treating you like you deserve. So you can't talk, you don't get any food except a bowl in the morning, and one at night. You won't go to school. Your room will be revoked, and you'll sleep on the porch."

"No one should be treated that way, not even you!" I tell her between sobs that seem to choke me.

"And any breakage of rules will result in severe punishment."

She pushes me out the door and onto the wet porch and shuts the door behind her. The clicking sounds that follow inform me that she's locked the door.

I look out at the torrential downpour and realize I can't see anything beyond an arm's length. If I go out there, there's very much a chance that I will get swept away.

Maybe even that's better than this inhumanity. I move to go out when something tugs me back. It's a chain, tied to my boots and my jacket. My dog leash.

Sighing, I take off my boots and jacket so I'm now free to leave. Every inch of my body groans but I ignore it as the cold raindrops bite into my skin and my bare feet are already being bitten into by rocks. Still I barrel forward, determined to get away from the house of horrors.

After a while, it's pretty clear that I can't walk any further so I just let go and let the water drag me in its direction. I try to skirt around obstacles as I go along with the current and soon come across a wide branch that I latch onto for support.

I try to step down to change my course when I realize my feet can't even touch the ground. I hang on to the branch for dear life. I can't swim. I never learnt to, so I'm pretty much as good as gone.

The rain has begun to die down. I recognize a lighthouse to my right as the realization sinks in. Shoot, I'm in the ocean! I burst out crying, the only thing I can think of is that I should hold on to the branch and never let go.

Maybe this is for the best. Die of drowning in the ocean. Definitely better than dying of starvation or abuse, that's for sure.

At the moment, the only thing I can think of is how much I wish Doubt was who she used to be. Now there's nothing I can do but rue every single decision I've ever made in my life.

I don't remember how long I stay this way but it's definitely a long while until I watch the sky gradually lighten bit by bit, the color change fascinating me. The sunrise is breathtaking. Best I've ever seen.

When it's light enough, I look around and realize with swinging disappointment that there's no land in sight at all.

"Water, water everywhere,
And all the boards did shrink.
Water, water everywhere,
And not a drop to drink," I blurt out, despondency threatening to drown me, which is ironic since I'll drown anyway.

I just hug the branch for my life. Nothing I can do, nothing at all. Until I hear a whirring sound that sounds unmistakably like rotor blades!

I yell all I can and wave around my free hand until the helicopter swoops down above me and I'm pulled in.

"Miss, how'd you get there?" a throaty voice asks me.

"I got pulled out here by the current," I speak, my voice hoarse.

"And where are you from? Lorne?" another adenoidal voice asks me, and I nod my head in response.

"Just your luck that we were going there, miss," the first person spoke.

They introduce themselves to me as travel bloggers who were planning on staying in Lorne for a week, tops, and getting to know the place. They were two females, one the owner of the second voice, and the second the pilot, and a guy.

By the time we reach Lorne, I'm shivering so hard that they have to find a blanket to wrap around me, and they do. They take me to the hospital despite me insisting that I'm fine, and only need rest.

An hour later, I'm sitting in warm clothes and a hot mug in my hands, luxuries I've missed out on for so long. Across me sit the three people who saved my life, a doctor, two social workers and Doubt.

Looks of pure horror persist on six faces, while the other reflects pure frustration and anger. I look into Doubt's eyes and see the person responsible for the monster she's become.

"Doubt, I'm so sorry I made you do this. I never intended to, and I realize I made your life hell and-"

On of the social workers cuts me off, "You haven't anything to be sorry for. It's her fault. Now, we suggest you press charges, and you'll get compensation, and you'll be free of the hellish existence you've been living all this time."

I bite my lip as I look up at Doubt's face. No, she doesn't deserve this. They're taking her to a rehabilitation center anyways.

"I won't press charges. I hope you recover soon, Doubt," I say and shake her hand, much to everyone's shock.

Doubt begins to cry as she looks at me.

"Doubt, this isn't your fault. I brought out the monster in you, it's my fallacy. I'm so sorry, and, as much as I hate this, I wish I never appear in your life again. You deserve so much more than me," I say and walk out of the room, to see Trust waiting for me.

She runs to me and hugs me, singing, "The world can be a nasty place, you know it, I know it."

"I sure do know!" I say, my heart leaping in joy at seeing Trust again.

"I love you so much, Trust!"

"I love you, Hope," she says as we kiss.

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Dedicated to Carol19920 for the resplendent cover!

This is my entry for Beingwoman's and Skyizblue's contests.

Phew! Go take a look at this profile, and I might make a sequel to this sometime not in the near future...

There are two songs that I particularly felt struck the right chord with me while I write this particular one-shot, so I'll add the videos here...

Sia's 'Elastic Heart' featuring The Weeknd...

... and Selena Gomez's 'Kill' em With Kindness'

If there are any other songs you feel suit the theme, comment them here, and I'll add them.

Thank you for reading, and please remember that someone's gender or interests do not influence how they should be treated, and treat everyone as a human...

Any feedback is welcome, and feel free to let me know what you think of any part(s) of this story.

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