Whumptober+ Short Stories - Volume 2

Prompt 18 - Muffled Scream

Aldar had been trying for hours now to fall asleep. Instead, he lay in his small bedroom, staring up at the dark ceiling and wondering how much worse things could get for him now that his mother was gone. He could tell from the sounds out in the hall that his new roommate was still unpacking and organizing things in the small apartment they now shared. Normally, Aldar would have gotten up to help, but in his current state, the thought didn't even cross his mind.

~

"What possessed me to keep you around this long?" Zoltan ranted, glaring at Aldar's mother with a hateful expression on his once handsome face. From the stairwell behind the man, Aldar saw his father's temper and agitated behavior escalate. He was used to Zoltan being angry, but never had he seen him so resentful towards his wife. As he watched, his father's words grew fewer and fewer, though his motions became more violent by the second.

"Useless woman! I can't believe I ever thought you could be anything to me!"

Aldar cringed and instinctively looked away as Zoltan raised his hand. There was a sound of impact, followed by a cry from Analia. Aldar glanced back for a second, his eyes locking with his mother's instantly.

Run.

He didn't have to hear it. He saw the word on her lips, saw the look in his mother's eyes just before Zoltan's hand came down again over her face.

He ran.

~

"Hey, Aldar? You still awake in there?"

The sound of his roommate's voice outside the door pulled Aldar back to the present.

He didn't reply.

He didn't get up and answer the door.

Mom...

"Aldar? I need some help."

I couldn't help you...

Aldar rolled over and squeezed his eyes shut, fighting back tears he knew were coming. Outside the door, he heard a sigh, then the sound of receding footsteps.

I left you...

Finally, silence.

Why didn't I stay? I could have saved you... you're gone because of me...

He couldn't help it anymore. Disregarding the presence of his roommate in the hall, Aldar buried his face in his pillow and let his emotions loose. The image of his father beating his mother to death filled his mind, along with all the thoughts he had been suppressing for so long.

He cried because of the sadness.

He screamed because of the pain.

The guilt.

The regret.