Chapter 24: Internal Scream

[Erin]

My legs finally gave up. The burden I was carrying felt so heavy that even my physical body could no longer bear it. My knees hit the hard floor, my joints recoiling from the impact, but it seems that my entire being numbed.

I could not hold back my emotions. I was crying loudly. My shoulders shook, and my tangled hair came curtaining in front of my face. My tears clouded my vision, and everything around me became hazy as a result. The next thing I knew was that a domineering presence loomed over my hunch frame, a pair of strong arms wrapped around me and then lifted me up in the air. 

A loud voice inside my head screaming, retaliating, berating me for doing nothing but weep like a cry baby. Call me things.

Weak.

Filthy.

Stupid.

And so many other things.

I sucked a trembling lungful of air, sniffing the clogs out of my nose, ignoring the pain in my ribs. My hands curled into a tight ball but then loosened them at the realiz