"I told you that you would disobey me, didn't I? And you proved me right. You can't even speak properly yet." He spits out. "But that's fine. At least now I can torture you the way I wanted to."She feels him grab her by the hair and push her head upwards. She closes her eyes tightly and waits for whatever he will throw at her next. "Now, I'm gonna teach you how to talk properly." He whispers.He pulls her to her feet, causing her to stumble forward."Your mother used to say that you were quite good at talking, that you talked well." He smirks. "It took you two hours after each sentence before you could form complete sentences. But since you can't speak anymore, maybe that makes me stronger."She feels herself being dragged through the hallway and down the stairs, toward the living room where the others are sitting in silence, looking worried. It hurts to breathe."Daddy!"The moment that Anna sees her father appear in front of her, she opens her mouth, ready to yell for help. But
As she sits curled up in the corner of the room, she suddenly feels something land on her chest. She opens her eyes and looks down, noticing the stuffed animal she usually carries around with her. She smiles slightly."Are you okay?" Someone murmurs.She glances up.Sergio kneels down beside her, resting his hand on her shoulder."Are you alright?" He asks concerned.She nods silently."That's good." He smiles softly. "Because I heard everything. My dad is very strict with his punishments. He's always been like this, ever since mom passed away. And now you've done something that made him really mad."A tear rolls down her cheek as she stares ahead blankly. She's still confused as to why her father had decided to act this way. She understands why he's angry, and he has every right to be furious, but why did he treat her the way that he did today? Did she really mean nothing to him after all? Maybe her mother was wrong, and her father loved her.She bites her lip. No. That wasn't true
So, for the next two days, she keeps to herself. It's not easy for her, however. Every time she goes downstairs, she has to bite her tongue as she forces herself to eat something. She doesn't even dare to make eye contact with anyone in case their father shows up. Sometimes, she can hear him talking to someone, but he doesn't speak to her. She doesn't try and listen in on their conversation either. She doesn't want to hear what he has to say. When the day finally comes where she will leave her room, she quickly hides under the covers of her bed and stays there until it's time to get ready. She never wants to leave her room again, which is ironic because she's been staying there so often recently. Finally, the day arrives. For the last two days, she has been constantly distracted by her own thoughts and fears. She can't stop thinking about the things that had happened during those two days. As much as she loves her father, she can't help but think that maybe, just maybe, he migh
"Sorry." She whispers, letting her gaze wander towards the ground."Don't apologize. What happened?""Nothing. Nothing that you need to worry about."Sergio rolls his eyes."Of course I need to worry about it. It must've been pretty traumatic if your eyes look like that."Serena shakes her head once more, refusing to meet his gaze."I said it's fine." She repeats.A heavy silence settles over the room again. They remain like this for a couple more minutes before Sergio speaks up once more."I'm sorry." He says suddenly.Serena glances up at him curiously."For what?""For hitting you. I was angry and scared. I didn't mean it.""I understand. Don't worry.""But still...I wish that I had stopped it sooner."Serena nods, averting her gaze from his again."Me too." She murmurs quietly.The two stay in that position for a short while longer before Serena decides to stand up, walking across the room and sitting down on the floor next to her bed."Come on." She tells her brother, gesturing t
She lets out a soft sob, burying her face into the pillow. When she comes home, it will most likely be a death sentence. No one will accept her. Her family won't accept her. They won't let her leave. And she knows that they're right. She'll never leave. They'll lock her in here and they'll kill her and she'll never see the light of day. She'll stay locked away until the end of time, unable to come out. Unable to see anyone and able to hear anything at all. Just her and her dark thoughts. Alone. Forever."Hey, kiddo? You awake?"She blinks her eyes open slowly, staring up at the ceiling blankly. She doesn't reply, not bothering to move from the comfortable position she's fallen asleep in. Her heart clenches painfully in her chest, feeling like it's going to burst out of her chest."Kiddo?" Sergio calls out again, concern lacing his voice.No response. He huffs, shaking his head softly."You haven't eaten anything today, have you?"Her breath hitches in her throat, her entire body fre
The older man seems to notice her distress, and walks back towards the bed slowly, sitting next to her."You can tell me whatever it is, you know," he states gently, a warm smile playing on his lips.She swallows thickly, glancing up at him hesitantly."It's... It's nothing," she answers shakily. She hates herself for sounding so weak. She hates it. She wants him to know that she's strong and brave and independent. Sergio raises an eyebrow at her, a playful smirk appearing on his face. "If you say so..."She bites down on her lower lip anxiously, avoiding eye contact with him."Don't worry about me, alright?" She says. "It's nothing."Sergio frowns. "Nothing?"Serena nods."Are you sure?" She shrugs."Okay… Well, if you need anything, I'll be downstairs," he replies with a small smile, standing up and putting his hand on her shoulder reassuringly, squeezing lightly. "Just remember that I love you, okay? Don't forget that."She smiles weakly. "Yeah."His expression softens, and he l
After she finishes brushing her teeth, Serena grabs her phone and goes downstairs. Sergio is still working, sitting at the kitchen table, reading a newspaper. She walks towards the table slowly, unsure of whether she wants to ask him if he knows where her father went and why he hadn't told her. But before she can decide what to do, Daniel looks up and greets her with a smile. "Hey! How are you feeling?" He asks cheerfully.Sergio forces a small grin onto her face. "Much better," she replies quietly.He looks at her suspiciously. "Really?""Yeah," she confirms with a nod. "Sorry about waking you up last night.""No problem," he assures her. "I've missed talking to you. And I'm glad that you're okay."She smiles sadly, moving closer to the table so that she can sit down beside him. "Me too."There's a long silence between them, neither of them really knowing what to say. They both seem lost in their own thoughts, both of them having different reasons for being here.Serena isn't comp
He frowns slightly. "I...don't really want to talk about them right now. It's really embarrassing.""It wouldn't bother me, Sergio," she assures him earnestly. "Whatever you wanna tell me, I will listen."He takes a deep breath and shakes his head. "It's nothing important.""It's obviously something," she insists. "If it bothered you, you wouldn't have brought it up. Come on, spill it."He gives her a small smile. "Nothing. Forget about it. It was just a silly memory anyway. Now we better get going before Dad realizes that we've been gone all morning.""Good point," she agrees, taking a quick glance out of the window. There's no sign of her father' car yet. She guesses that he must be driving around town. He usually drives around during the weekends anyways, so it doesn't really make sense for him to be here already.She follows Sergio upstairs to their room, closing the door behind them. He takes off his jacket and hangs it up carefully by the closet before sitting down at his desk