Elizabeth Thomas saw her former teacher Tad Cummins for the first time in court since he abducted her and sparked a 28-day nationwide search.

Elizabeth Thomas was in the courtroom as her former teacher, Tad Cummings, was sentenced to 20 years in prison.

Elizabeth Thomas said teacher Tad Cummins was an encouraging adult role model to her, showering her with attention.

Elizabeth Thomas says she was teased by students and teachers after Tad Cummins was suspended from her school.

"Sometimes he'd be threatening to kill himself or ending someone else's life if I didn't go," Elizabeth Thomas said about Tad Cummins.

Elizabeth Thomas said she was losing hope of ever seeing her family again and saw the news of the nationwide Amber Alert for her.

Thirty-eight days after Elizabeth Thomas left her home in Tennessee with Tad Cummins, she was finally rescued by police.

"Why didn't they notice?" Elizabeth Thomas said. "They knew. And they knew that they knew."

Elizabeth Thomas said the relationship started when she was the new kid in school and Tad Cummins was her health teacher.

"He threatened to shoot himself or use the guns," Elizabeth Thomas said of her teacher Tad Cummins. "He had two of them."

Elizabeth Thomas, now 17, tells "GMA" her former high school teacher, Tad Cummins, first kissed her in a classroom.

Reporter's notebook: ABC's Eva Pilgrim shares the treacherous journey she and "20/20" producers took to the compound where the two had hid out while on the run.

Tad Cummins and Elizabeth Thomas had been missing for over a month.

Elizabeth Thomas and Tad Cummins were missing for over 1 month.

Tad Cummins was on the run for over a month after allegedly kidnapping the teen.

Jill Cummins said her husband told her that he slept with Elizabeth Thomas.

Tad Cummins faces kidnapping and sex crime charges in Tennessee.

Tad Cummins was arrested in April after allegedly kidnapping a student.

The man who tipped off authorities and led them to a former Tennessee teacher accused of kidnapping his 15-year-old student said there were "clues."

Elizabeth Thomas, 15, and Tad Cummins, 50, were found in a cabin in California.

Tad Cummins has been arrested, and Elizabeth Thomas, his 15-year-old student who he allegedly kidnapped, has been "safely recovered" in Northern California.

Tennessee teen Elizabeth Thomas disappeared with teacher Tad Cummins.

Elizabeth Thomas' father says she had experiences that may have changed her.

"Daddy, no matter what you’ve done, we just want you to come home."

Brother says "she's like herself and in ways she's not."

Elizabeth Thomas’ sister spoke out about how it felt to see her sister again.

After more than a month on the run amid a nationwide manhunt, former Tennessee teacher Tad Cummins was found with his 15-year-old student, Elizabeth Thomas.

The 15-year-old Tennessee girl who was allegedly kidnapped by her former teacher has been reunited with her family and friends, the family's attorney said in a statement.