Little Black Dress

I wake up crying steadily, tears running down my face. I clutch my hands in front of my face and squeeze my eyes shut. He's dead. He's gone. I killed him.

A small, cold hand presses on my cheek. “Larnie,” I sob, and hold her hand to my face.

“Don't cry, Ra-Ra.” Larnie pats my cheek gently and makes soft sounds in the back of her throat.

My breathing calms down, going from 3 inhales to just 1, and I open my eyes. Larnie is right up close to me, kneeling on hands on knees next to my head. Her huge green eyes are watching me with worry.

“You 'kay?” She asks.

I nod. “Yep. I'm 'kay.” I take her hand and sit up. The ground drops roughly for a second before righting itself and bumping along. Thoughts rush back into my head and I realise that we're still in this van.

I look around, see the dirty white walls and the grotty grey carpet that matches the curtains blocking out the light from outside. The forced breeze from a fan hits me and blows my loose blonde hair back behind my shoulders. I'm so confused and scared that I can hardly think straight.

“Casey,” Larnie mumbles, and tugs on a strand of my hair. “Where's Casey?”

I sit up straighter and look around. There's a small wooden coffee table, a mattress folded against the wall, and a fan in the corner. But Casey's not there.

“Oh God,” I moan, and stand up, catching myself against the wall before the moving floor can knock me over. I stumble to the tinted window in front of me and bang on it as hard as I can. “Casey! Where's my brother?” I scream.

Larnie stands next to me, banging the wall as high as she can reach. “Casey!” She yells.

I cup my hands around my eyes and peer into the glass. There's a silhouette of a man. “Casey!”

My head bangs roughly on the glass as the van screeches to a stop. I push myself off the wall and turn around. A car door slams and then the back door to the van is opening, and light is pouring in.

I have to squint and block my eyes, but the brightness still makes the back of my head pound.

“You're gonna break my glass if you keep that up, you know,” comes a sort-of familiar voice.

“Wha- Huh?” I ask, taking a tentative step backwards. It feels weird walking on ground that's not moving.

“Listen, Mira, I'm not going to hurt you.” The voice moves closer until a man blocks the sunlight and I can see. His features are dark because of the light behind him, but I can still make out the ash blonde hair and dark eyes.

“Andrew?” I whisper, and then a tremor runs through my body. “Where's my brother. Please don't hurt us!” My voice is a whimper, and I'm disappointed in myself. Why can't I be stronger?

“I'm here, Mira,” Casey says, and he steps into the light beside Andrew. His hair is ruffled and there are dark circles under his eyes, but he otherwise seems fine.

“Casey, oh my God. Where were you?”

He shrugs. “Up front with Drew. You were still out and Larnie is boring so . . . Well, I got bored.”

I smile, because that is so Casey. He got bored. The poor baby. But then the smile drops off my face. “Casey,” I begin sternly. “Come here.” He begins to protest but I interrupt him. “Now.”

He rolls his eyes but recognises my tone of voice. Within a few seconds he's by my side. I grab his arm and Larnie's hand. “We have to get out of here,” I whisper.

“Why?” Casey argues. “This is great!”

“He drugged us, Casey! He drugged Larnie! Do you know what that could have done to her!”

“I didn't drug the girl,” Andrew calls from the back of the van. “Or Casey, for that matter.”

“I- What?” I'm crossed between disbelief and relief. “Oh. But Casey . . . He was next to me. Why? Why me? Why us?”

“Because you're in danger, Mira.” Those same words. You're in danger.

“You have no idea how much I'm sick of hearing those words!”

Andrew sighs and rolls his eyes. “I don't care. Seriously. You just have to stay in this van, okay? And you'll be reasonably safe.”

“Ugh!” I put my head in my hands and pull at my hair. “What the hell is going on?”

“You'll find out. Just hang back here for the next couple of days, alright? Then I'll get you back to your parents.”

“A few days? Where the hell are we going?”

“Perth.” He looks at Casey. “You coming back up front, kid?”

“Hell yeah!” Casey calls, and jumps out. “See ya later Mira!”

“What-” I start, but Andrew just winks at me and closes the door, enveloping me in darkness once again.