Compassion and Oblivion

Chapter Sixteen: Hurt

Author's Note:

Please take note of the Trigger Warnings below. The end of this chapter will contain verbal abuse and mentions of prior physical abuse. No physical abuse is actually depicted in this chapter, but it is mentioned. If you feel that reading about these topics will be triggering to you, I have added a separate warning towards the end of the chapter where you should stop reading and skip to the end for a brief summary. Please take care of your mental health, I will ensure in the summary that you do not miss any important details.

TW-Abuse, Mention of Alcohol, Alcohol Use (Penny's Four Heart Event Expanded)

The rest of the day was uneventful at best. You'd gone home after talking with Sam for a long while, and having breakfast with Jodie and Vincent. You decided to take it easy, so you stayed in and studied. The past week had been intensely strange, on top of physically and emotionally taxing, so you figured it would be best to take a break from cleaning up the farm and chopping wood for your fireplace.

In less than a week and a half, you moved two hours away from the city you grew up in, met a town of people, made some new friends, and already something traumatic had happened. Well, aside from the tiny, green, apple shaped ghosts in the Community Center. You still weren't certain if you'd hallucinated it, if your body was just overstressed and under-slept. You hadn't gone back since then to figure it out.

You also weren't sure if you should tell Sam. What would he say? Would he laugh? Would he tell me to make an appointment with Dr. Harvey? Would he help me try to find them again? You didn't think you wanted to figure it out. You weren't ready to ruin another friendship by making him think you're losing what few marbles you have left.

After dinner, you realized it had been a few days since you'd heard from Penny. You texted her to check in, asking if she wanted to get together soon to hang out. By the time you went to bed, you still hadn't heard back from her. Odd, maybe I'll check in with her tomorrow.

The next morning, your alarm sounds at six o'clock sharp.

You squeeze your eyes shut, not willing them awake yet. A disgusted groan escapes your lips at the sound of the ringtone chiming from the phone that lay on the bed next to you. You grip your blanket tightly as you stretch your sleeping limbs, and brush your messy (H/C) bedhead out of your face.

You finally accept that your alarm is not going to shut itself off by sheer willpower alone, though not for lack of trying. Releasing a discontented sigh, you roll over and slam your palm against the lit screen, shooing away the iPhone Twinkle ringtone that quickly became the bane of your existence since you started working at Joja. Why on earth did I decide that starting my day at 6:00 AM was a good idea?

You squint as you glance at your phone's lock screen, eyes still adjusting to the light. You smile, seeing your newly placed lock screen wallpaper - a goofy selfie with Sam and Shane at the bar. Sam sent a few memes in the group chat with you, Seb, and Abby that he must've found online while you were sleeping. Sebastian made a few witty comments, and Abby called him a doofus. Sebastian had also messaged you individually, saying goodnight, when he went to bed around 5AM. He has been doing so each night since Friday, and you always respond similarly.

Sebastian 🐸:

Goodnight. Good morning, in about an hour, lol

You:

Good morning, sleep tight. Text me when you wake up? 😁