Starless Sky

The First Meeting

I wipe off the blood covering the left side of my face. I don't feel the pain. I don't feel anything anymore. In a way I guess that's worse. Another blow lands on my stomach causing me to fall onto the floor. I bark out a laugh while the invisible attacker tries to choke me. It's like they think I can die. I was stripped of that pleasure a long time ago. My vision starts to cloud over as I lay on the floor, almost letting out yawn.

As soon as I prepare to succumb to the darkness they let me go. I lay shocked, unmoving, knowing something was wrong. The hand never stop this early into the punishment.

I scramble into the corner, bracing myself. Then I see it. They were careless this time. They left the door open a fraction. I see him. The child's eyes are wide open, their pupils dilated in fear. I try to peek into his thoughts and find his name and category but realise I can't. My eyebrows furrow in confusion at this innocent mystery. A sharp jolt pierces through my head as I try to scan him again. This has never happened before.

His auburn hair is dirty and greasy hiding its beauty, his scrunched up face tells me he is close to bursting into tears. The thought brings me discomfort. The tear that falls from his eyes highlights his innocence. He's crying. For me? Or himself? He's crying. The little boy is silently crying. He tries to step forward into the room but can't. The Hands have the key to the barrier. I can see his small form struggling to get past the barrier on the Other Side. My heart yearns to comfort him and wipe away his tears, to tell him everything will be okay.

The sudden rush of emotions has me staggering back. I put my arms against the wall to keep my balance and I understand why the Hands stopped. They saw him too. The thought of them doing to him what they do to me, the thought of his vulnerable body collapsing, the sound of his bones breaking makes my heart ache and as I look towards him with my eyes glazing over with foreign liquid I say the only word that comes to mind, the only word that wasn't said to me, my only regret.

I didn't "Run."