Cherish Every Memory

I Love You

I watched myself burn alive, the flames in his eyes engulfing me in a torturous agony. The man I once loved, the man I once trusted with my life, modeled myself after...he had disappeared. My hand, throbbing and bloodied, drifts to my lips, gushing with the crimson liquid I'd grown so accustomed to. The tears slipping down my cheeks were frozen, the warmth of my body slowly evaporating by the second, drawn from me slowly, replaced by a bitter chill emanating from an indescribable emotion. An emotion I couldn't seem to decipher as anger, guilt, or inevitable fear for my life. A sickly smile, mostly consistent with false empathy, crept from his lips as he slowly inched towards me, his fists bloodied, his knuckles glowing a vibrant white. I felt weak, my strength slipping away, struggling to obtain the strength to stand. I threw my hands up, attempting to ward him off, realizing it was the only thing I could think to do. My eyes snapped shut, my teeth gritting with as much strength as I could manage. I found it difficult to prepare for what was in store, though I had experienced this every night for weeks. I was tired, barely gaining the ability to sleep since it started. I felt my wrists being shoved to the side, my body lifting from the corner I had so desperately tried to hide in. I screamed, begging him to let me go, begging for all of this torture to stop. I managed to open my eyes one last time, to look into the eyes of my father one last time, as he flung my body across the room. My head hit the kitchen counter, an exposed knife knicking my throat. My body fell, limp from pain. I felt my heart slow to a dispersed beat. I fluttered in and out of consciousness, my eyes opening once more, as if something, someone, had prepared me to witness my last breaths in a wider perspective. My father......that man...grabbed the knife from the floor, slithering toward me, and the world around me became an ebony wasteland as the door burst open, and the knife dropped to my feet. I felt my life slip from my lips, and my last thoughts immediantly went to thanking
this man. Thanking him for ending what I had come to call a personal Hell on Earth....and yet, I had never once considered this Hell would continue....or rather, form into something different. This girl survived......for what, she still can't decipher......but she gladly stands with her head held high, repaying every debt and weight placed onto her shoulders, fighting to cover her battle scars and smile through what tears her down, and, most importantly, assuring each and every single person she loves and cares for that life isn't so dismal. Life is precious, and it took her losing it to truly grasp and accept it as a beautiful experience that should be cherished. I hope those around me can truly accept this fact, and embrace it. It may be a difficult concept to comprehend at times, but take my word for it when I say that every single cloud has a silver lining, and every heart has the potential to be golden.