Amanda flopped on her bed exhausted. She ran five miles tonight, more than she'd been doing since she moved here. Back home in Wyoming, five miles would have felt like nothing to her. But with her lifestyle change and less time for herself those five miles killed her. She knew she had to push it though if she wanted to stay in shape. A gym membership just didn't fit into her budget right now. Nor did time with her new job as the assistant photography editor for the local paper, it was her dream job. Well sort of, the hours were long and she felt they took advantage of her being the new girl on the floor. But it didn't discourage Amanda, this is what she wanted since she was old enough to write. The photography part was a little new to her but she was catching on quickly.
Amanda looked at the alarm clock on her night stand, it read 11:14pm, lucky for her tomorrow was one of her very few days off. If she had been up this late on a work night she'd never get up early enough to get to work on time. She pushed herself off her full sized four post bed, the one she brought with her when she moved. It was a gift from her parents when she was younger. She smiled as she remembered seeing it on the showroom floor, running over to it, loving the dark wood of the dressers and the how they matched the four posts. She laughed at herself now thinking back at how odd a child she must have been.
She maneuvered herself out of her sweaty running clothes and tossed them in the hamper. She opened her closet to take a look at herself in the full length mirror hidden inside the door. She took in how she looked in the mirror, her brown hair still pulled back, her face flush from the run and her body still tight and well toned. She cupped her breasts as many women do when they are checking themselves out in the mirror alone. They weren't huge but certainly not small. She thought they were a very good size for her. Amanda only stood a mere five foot six and was considered petite. It was because she was so thin, probably not an ounce of fat on her, though she saw room for improvement.
Amanda shook her head at herself and headed for the shower. She let the water run to warm up a little while she brushed her teeth and removed what was left of her make-up. The sweat pouring from her face earlier did a good job of washing most of it away. As she stepped into the steam filled shower the hot water immediately started working on her sore muscles. She stood there for what felt like forever as the water beat down on her. Finally she washed her hair then her body, standing for another few minutes while the water pelted her warm skin.
Amada emerged from the steam filled bathroom wrapped in a towel, her long brown hair still wet but brushed straight. As she made her way down the hall, suddenly all the lights went out. She nearly jumped out of her skin, she froze wondering what had happened. She felt her way along the hall wall towards her bedroom. She flicked at the switch but nothing. She could see lights on in the windows across the street through her window. Maybe it was her apartment building that was out. It happened once before but that was because of a thunderstorm. No storms tonight.
She managed to reach her bed, fumbling around to find the night stand and her phone. Knocking the alarm clock to the floor, she felt the phone. No dial tone. Her eyes must have adjusted to the darkness because she could make out objects in her room, the dresser, the chair by the window and the closet door. Amanda started to work her way over the chair, where she knew there were a pair of shorts and a t-shirt she occasionally wore before bed. As she moved past the closet door she realized it was closed but she could have sworn she left it open. She stopped for a minute trying to think. She could hear her own heartbeat in the silence. She turned quickly towards the chair suddenly feeling scared but as she turned she tripped and landed face first into the plush carpet beneath her.
She heard a noise behind her and as she turned to try to get up she saw a figure moving towards her. Amanda opened her mouth to scream but it all happened so fast, a man's hand was around her mouth before she could make a sound. She kicked and struggled, trying to get away from him. He over powered her, his size much greater than hers. Her towel now lying on the floor, his knee practically in her back as his one hand covered her mouth and the other grabbed for her flailing arms. Amanda tried to get up, his weight on her was too heavy, she couldn't move. She pulled at his hand over her mouth, screaming beneath it.
"Sssshhhhhh stop screaming. I don't want to hurt you. But if you don't stop trying to fight me I'm going to be forced to." The man's voice was deep and authoritative; he meant what he said she could tell. The fear inside her took over and she fought as hard as she could, pulling his hand from her mouth and screaming.
"HELP! HELP ME!" Amanda screamed but not before he covered her mouth again, this time he had some sort of clothe in his hand. Amanda tried to pull it off again but felt dizzy and weak. Everything went black and silent.
When Amanda opened her eyes, she felt groggy and everything was fuzzy. She blinked a few times until her sight became clear. She was in her bedroom, her lamp was on across the room. She must have been dreaming she thought until she tried to get up. She couldn't move, her arms were strapped to each of the posts along with her legs to the lower posts. She was naked spread eagle across her own bed.
"W...w...hat" her voice trailed off as she had a hard time speaking, her throat was so dry. Amanda looked around as she cleared her throat. She noticed the alarm clock she knocked off the table was set back up and the time was set, it wasn't blinking as if the electric had gone out. It read 2:15am.
"Help.. help me. Is anyone there? Please I need help" Amanda was trying to yell but her voice seemed so low and so small. What was going on? Who would do this to her? She pulled at the straps only making them tighter on her wrists and ankles. "Please help me" she cried out again.
Amanda heard someone in the hallway and saw a shadow getting larger coming towards the bedroom. She began to yank on the straps again, wriggling her body, legs and arms trying to free herself, all the while making them tighter. "Damn it" she mumbled as a man stood in the doorway. She stopped moving and stared at him, she knew him from somewhere, but where?
She could hear her heartbeat in her ears as he approached her. Think Amanda where do you know him from, she kept telling herself. But it wasn't coming to her. She began to really feel panicked as his hand slowly slid up her silky leg as he looked at her naked body on display in front of him. He smiled and seemed to make a growling noise before he made eye contact with her.
"Amanda if you continue to yell I will have to punish you. You don't want to be punished do you?" his voice was steady and was very powerful. He sat on the side of the bed, putting his left arm across her body as he stared at her intently. She shifted beneath him, trying to move away from him but with nowhere to go. She could feel the tears rolling down her cheeks and she was mad at herself for showing him how weak she was. Amanda you have to be strong she kept willing herself, but the tears flowed like a stream.
"Amanda I asked you a question. I believe you should answer me, where are your manners? Now I said, You don't want to be punished do you?" he said as his hand came up wiping the tears from her cheeks with his index finger. His touch was soft and it caught Amanda off guard. She stared at him wanting to smack him, spit on him, beat the hell out of him for doing this to her.
