My back, braced against the side of the building, lungs expanding as much as possible in an attempt to restore my regular breathing pattern.

The street lights overhead seemed a little dull, and the moon was cast in shadows leaving the night darker than I was used to.

"They actually tried to sell me off to the highest bidder." My quiet mumble was almost too loud on the silent night air. Goosebumps coated my arms as they wrapped around my body in a desperate effort at keeping myself warm.

My legs collapsed underneath me, shaking from running so far. Licking my lips, I glanced around the area, trying to work out where I was.

Shops littered each side of the road, not one open at the moment. I could see a street sign further down the road, but the letters were too hard to make out.

"Ha. What does it matter anyway?" I grumbled to myself. "It's not like I have anywhere to go now." Drawing my legs up to my chest, I fixed my dress, so it covered my feet before wrapping my arms around them.

I could head over to Claire's house, but her parents will call mine, then they will force me to marry that guy they sold me to. Eyes burning, I laid my head on top of my knees, closing my eyes just as the first tear ran down my cheek.

Cars drove past every now and then, growing less the later it became. The low growl coming from my stomach drew attention to the fact I had no money, no phone, or anything.

"Come on, Yasmin, you have a brain, so use it."

I needed a place where I could spend the night and get something to eat. Pulling myself to my feet, I began walking away from the direction I came running from. I remember some food shops had started putting the older fruit at the entrance of their shops for the homeless to eat so it wouldn't just get thrown out.

"Okay, find an open shop with free fruit then a church to sleep in for the night." Laughing at the silliness of talking aloud to myself, I focused on moving my tremendously sore bare feet to my first target.

Unsure how long I had been walking, everything started to look more residential with fewer businesses lining the streets.

Stopping was when I heard the first sounds of the gentle pace of feet behind me. I could feel my heart race, but I had seen enough movies to know not to turn and look, letting them know the fear that froze my body.

Move-Yasmin MOVE. Chanting the words in my mind, my feet continued. Every bone in my body was screaming at me to run, but I forced my movements to remain calm. Street lights came into view.

The closer they grew, the louder the steps behind me became. Unable to hold back anymore, I grabbed the hem of my dress once more and pushed myself into a run. The lights up ahead turned red, the opposite direction having turned green.

It was late, and I hadn't seen a car in a few hours, so without stopping, I sprinted into the street.

"WAIT!" A deep voice yelled. Shit, he was closer than I thought.

It happened faster then I realized. Blinding lights came out of nowhere, milliseconds before impact.

The jolt of pain was instant, giving way to weightlessness.

I could hear myself groan as I attempted to move my body. It was no use. I wasn't able to move; heaviness coated my limbs.

There was no pain. Why was there no pain?

Rolling my head to the side, boots covered in mud stepped next to my face. "Please, help," I managed to cough out.

"Shit girl, what a waste. We could have had a lot of fun together."

Watching as he bent down, he reached his fingers towards my face traveling them along the side of my cheek, moving my hair. "Damn, you were a pretty one too. Thanks for at least putting on a show for me. I had never seen anyone get hit by a car before, and let me tell you, girl, you flew."

His laugh was drowned out by the loud white noise which had started to ring in my ears. It felt like someone had started to squeeze my head. It was hard to reopen my eyes after blinking, but I managed to lift them only to see the man who chased me crumble to the ground, his neck at a weird angle.

My body still felt as if it was disconnected from my head, so when a pair of arms wrapped around me, my head was pulled off the ground by a dead weight tugging on my neck.

My head was shifted upright by what felt like an arm cradling it. My eye connected to a pair of deep chocolate eyes. I could see his full lips moving, oh he was speaking to me, but it was as if he was trying to talk underwater.

Blinking again, it was even harder to reopen them. My racing heart had finally slowed back down, but it was more of a tightening feeling than anything else. Refocusing on the strange man, I knew his face would be the last I ever saw. I had never given boys much thought because mum was always trying to force them onto me. Now all my choices were taken away from me. Dying without ever being kissed was hard to grasp.

Taking as deep a breath as I could, I managed to speak. "I have n-never been kissed before."

His lips stretched over perfectly straight white teeth, showing me a sad smile just as my eyes closed for the last time.

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T. xx