Mae heard the pounding and yelling, but couldn’t move or respond.  She had curled up in a ball the night before and then hadn’t moved since.  She was stiff from sitting and the dried mud.  She shivered, but she wasn’t cold. In fact, she was overheating.  Sweat glistened on her face and her breathing was shallow.   The whole room was buzzing around her, while black spots in her vision spooked her into thinking someone else was in the storage house with her.  She heard the cracking of metal upon metal. After a few shrieking blows, the sound of the chain running away from the door handle was audible.  Tao burst in, frantic and anxious, scanning the room.  He spotted Mae cowering in the corner and practically jumped to her.  Tao bent down to her.

“Mae?” He spoke softly.  He reached out his hand and she flinched away.  “Hey. It’s okay.  It’s just me.”  Mae turned to him dazedly.

“Panda.  You came.”  Tao was suddenly overtaken. He fell backwards onto the floor, staring wide- eyed as a memory pierced its way through his brain. He saw himself as a child opening a large door to a darkened room. It was crowded with boxes stuffed with items that had been forgotten. He noticed a small figure and went to the child.  He couldn’t make out the shadow’s face, but the child Tao reached out.  The figure turned to him.

“Panda.  You came.” A girl’s weak voice rang.  Tao was brought back to the present when he felt Mae’s body press against him.

“Mae?”  There was no response.  Tao felt her forehead and winced.  She was burning up and covered in a sheen of sweat.  He brought himself upright and then gently lifted Mae into his arms.  She nuzzled against his chest, and Tao thought his heart was going to stop beating.  He released a breath he hadn’t known that he was holding.  He stopped and looked around the store house, a little disturbed by the flash of his memory, and then left.

Tao carried Mae the entire way home and was exhausted by the time he reached the house.  One of the female employees noticed him and called for Mae’s father.  A group of employees crowded around him, questioning.

“Is she okay?”

“What happened?”

“Is she hurt?”

“Where did you find her?”

Kris approached Tao, fighting his way through the people.

“I can take her, man.  You look exhausted.”  He said, extending his arms out.  Tao growled.

“I’m her bodyguard.”  Kris knew when to leave his friend alone.  He nodded.

“Okay.  There is Mr. Jin.  I’ll get him for you.” 

Mae’s father parted the crowd. His employees instantly made a clear path for him, stepping back. He gave Tao a grateful look, placing a hand on his shoulder. 

“You did well son.”  Tao’s heart began to race and he surprised himself when a thought all too familiar began scrolling through his mind.

You are not the one I wanted to hear that from. 

*                                                  *                                                   *                                                  *                                                 *

Hello~ I want to apologize for this pathetically short chapter, but I hope you enjoyed it anyway.  Anyway thanks for reading and I'd love to hear your comments and questions!

Reasons to not give up on me:

-What is going on with Tao's memories?  Why did the storehouse bother him so much?

-How is Mae's father going to react once he gets over the joy of finding his daughter?

-What's up with Amberleigh? What's going to happen to her and her friends?

-Is Mae really sick? or is it something else?

- How will Mae react to Tao saving her?

-What will happen when Mae goes back to school and sees the girls that locked her in the shed?

-Is a new character going to be added soon?  *i dont know!*  Thanks for reading!