Life can grab you and pull you in, make you the happiest person on earth, then stab you in the side with a knife until you bleed out and lay there helplessly. Okay, that’s a little extreme, but that is how I felt about four years ago. I was eighteen and had just graduated high school. Things were looking up, and I was going to be attending Florida State University that fall. I was finally done with the cold, judgmental, halls of high school, and I couldn’t have been more content. There was also this girl. She was unlike anything I had ever seen before. Her name was Sydney Sterling and made me feel ways that I only had heard explained in books and movies. I never thought that I would be so lucky to date someone who took my breath away and made me fall in love with them over and over again, every time we were together. I’m usually not one to admit how I really feel but this was the truth. After graduation we had planned to stay a couple when we both went off to college, but things didn’t really go as planned for us.
The day after graduation seemed like it was going to be one of the best yet, and an incredible kick off to summer. My buddy Keith was throwing a huge party that night to celebrate the end of high school. I was with Sydney early in the day and she was being quieter than usual. I kept asking her if anything was wrong, but she would just brush it aside and change the subject. I was concerned even though she repeatedly reassured me she was okay. I wasn’t used to this quiet Sydney, she was always loud and laughing and making fun of me jokingly. Today, while we were driving to my house, she sat in the passenger seat and stared out the window not even humming along to the radio. I finally got her to spill a few details of the reason she was acting so strange. Sydney told me that this man she works with keeps texting her inappropriate messages. This upset me right away and I could feel my temperature rise. I didn’t want anyone making my girlfriend feel uncomfortable or unsafe. She told me how she was scared to go to work, and that the man would stare at her and say things that are not meant for the workplace. I read the texts and he had asked where she lived and if she had a boyfriend or not. The man was 30, and should have been charged for sexual harassment. I told Sydney I wanted to report him to the police but she begged me to let it go, just for tonight. I tried to listen to her but this matter was infuriating me. I wanted Sydney to feel as safe as possible especially when she was with me. Not doing anything was driving me insane and I asked her to at least block his number, so she did that to settle me down. I was glad she finally told me what was wrong, and I felt a little better about her blocking his number.
Night time rolled around, and we made our way to Keith’s party. It was a bittersweet feeling being there honestly. I was with all of my best friends having a great time, but knew this would soon come to an end and we would all go our separate ways. I was standing with my group of guy friends just joking around and talking about summer plans, when I caught Sydney with her girlfriends across the yard. Every time I look at her I swear I fall in love again. She is so perfect standing in the dim light with her plain white sundress and long curly hair. The outside lights light up her blue eyes and I am blown away. I thought to myself about how I would do anything for her and follow her anywhere she went. Even though she was only going to college an hour away from me, the thought of being alone for more than two days killed me inside. I returned from my reverie and brought my attention back to the party. Everyone seemed to be having a good time and the night was going just as planned. I was alarmed when one of Sydney’s friends came up to me and told me she was crying in the bathroom. I swiftly walked through the crowds of people and into the house. I found Sydney all alone weeping in the bathroom holding her phone. She handed me the phone and on the screen was a text that read, “I am coming to get you.” I asked her if she thought it was the man from work on a different number and she agreed. I could feel my blood boil again. I didn’t want anything bad to happen to her. I was unsure if we should leave the party or stay where there were a bunch of people. I told Sydney not to leave my side the rest of the night. This plan was working for awhile until a neighbor called the police because of a noise complaint and they showed up to the party. Everyone there ran opposite ways, creating chaos. I had lost Sydney and my heart dropped. I needed to find her and know she was alright. i sprinted to the front of the house and saw an older man grabbing her and pushing her into the back of a truck. He moved aggressively and quickly drove away with my girlfriend in the back.
I was in my car driving faster than I ever had before. I followed his truck all the way downtown. I lost sight of the vehicle when I reached a red light that he had ran through. After driving frantically around the city for a couple minutes, I saw the truck parked in parking lot of an old rundown brick building. I got out of my car and sped to the door. Insider there was what seemed to be a life time of stairs. I started climbing and could hear Sydney screaming on the fifth floor. I opened the door and saw her sitting on a chair with duct tape over her mouth, and in her underwear. I attempted to run over and help her escape but the man came out from a room and tackled me to the ground. He was bulkier than me and was able to handcuff me to a metal pipe in the building. Sydney was screaming and crying and now I was screaming but it was like no one could hear us. The man started saying extremely derogatory things to Sydney, and I could feel the adrenalin pumping through my veins. He came over to me and started spitting in my face. I used all the strength I had and kicked him in the stomach. The man stumbled back and tripped over a pipe on the ground causing him to fall hard into a window. His strong build cracked the window and he fell five stories to the ground. When the window broke alarms sounded and I knew it wouldn’t be long till the police arrived. I was in awe and unable to speak for a few seconds. I then got my words back and told Sydney to run. I was screaming telling her to run far away and hide from here. She was crying and wouldn’t leave me, so I just screamed louder until she got the point. I told her how much I loved her and she kissed me, then out the door she ran. Just like that I the best thing in my life was gone and I didn’t know if I was going to see her again. I eventually slipped out of the handcuffs and ran down the stairs, when police cars started to pull up to the building. I looked a policeman in the eye and then sprinted the other direction. I was on the run, but all I could think about was Sydney.
I was extremely out of breath as I reached the edge of the city. I rounded the edge of the woods and was aware the police would find me soon enough. As I turned to turn into the forest, something caught my eye. There was a small lake no bigger than 700 feet across. The light of the full moon illuminated the lake and the land surrounding it. The moon reflected off of the surface and created a beautiful scene. Looking at this lake took me away from reality and all it made me think of was the time I took Sydney fishing. It was one of our first dates and the light coming off of the lake matched her eyes. That was one of the best nights of my life, and now I didn’t know if I would ever have another night like that. The lake was very peaceful with a small boat and dock on the side. The boat looks like the one Sydney and I rode in, she tripped and fell into the water the one time and I could not help but laugh. Everything in that moment on that day was perfect. I started thinking about how things were now and realized, this wasn’t how it was supposed to be. I soon returned to reality when I heard the piercing sound of sirens and dogs barking. I jumped in the lake to remove my scent so the dogs would have a harder time following me. I turned around and took one last longing look at the lake. Maybe in the future I would see Sydney, but as of right now things weren’t looking too promising. My heart was in the pit of my stomach as turned and ran. It wasn’t supposed to be like this.