It Haunts Us Once Again

X

Guys I did it. I finally got through chapter ten. I could cry🥲

I had this whole joke I was going to say with me talking to my brain about knowing what to write and it not getting back to me until a couple of business days later, but it's been about half a month since the last chapter? I just want to get right into it now.

This chapter is a whole lot longer than the others. It gets very gory and violent throughout the whole thing. There's also mention of abuse. Please, please, please proceed with caution.

But I do hope you enjoy :)

-qures5

P.S. I was on Instagram and I saw a post talking about how you can be stuck on a chapter that you already had planned out because you just can't write it. Instead of calling it writer's block they called it "writer's paralysis" and I'm definitely using that from now on. It described how I felt writing this to a tee🥲 I guess I know what I need to practice and work on, but enough about that. On with the chapter.

...

Five Years Ago August, Tristen
Part 2

That day was still so vivid to him. It was like he could still feel the impact of his dad's hand on the back of his neck. He always found himself holding his hand there, just to see if the burn managed to magically disappear, which it never did. If anything, it left a scar.

He snapped out of it, clearing his mind from the event. Tristen looked at his watch. Class was about to end in a couple of minutes and he still had a blank document sitting on his computer. He knew that it wasn't going to take much time to finish the assignment, and that's why he allowed himself to space out. But he didn't think it would turn into a whole flashback thing. He was going to have to finish it later. He didn't mind, it was just a slight inconvenience.

Everyone started packing up and he did the same. "Alright. You guys have a good one. Don't forget that this is due tonight at 11:59," the professor said. Tristen left the building and went to his car. He sat there, debating on his next move. He was off today, meaning he could go straight to the apartment and see Nevaeh. And as much as he wanted to do just that, there was something else.

While packing his things to move out, he was sure that he had everything. He didn't want any reason to go back to that house and potentially have to confront his father. And while he did get everything he needed, there was still one thing.

His high school diploma.

It wasn't necessarily a need, but a want. He worked so hard for it. His mom didn't get to see him graduate, but he still wanted to work like she was going to. He finished his senior year on the honor roll and he was so proud of himself. That day, he imagined that she was proud of him too. He did it all for her and he wanted that proof. He wanted to have that accomplishment with him. Because he knew for sure that his dad wouldn't appreciate it as much as he did. And he'd be damned if he was going to leave it in that house to accumulate the smell of smoke and alcohol.

This will be the last time. I promise. I'm never going back there after today.

He turned on the car and started his drive to the house.

...

The closer he got, the more he hoped that his dad wasn't there. He highly doubts that he isn't there. He has nowhere to go and definitely isn't fit to drive anywhere even if he wanted to. I wonder how long you can be in jail for a DUI. I guess it really depends on the circumstances. It was a random thought, but at least he'd sober up if he was incarcerated. To think about that might be going a bit too far though. I mean, I'm not wrong. He paid no mind to the thought. It's not like it was going to happen anyway.