Everlies

Chapter 1

"... March 21, 1985, to mine belovrd daughtre, LyvJAIHOFUIAHEX Neve."

A distressed man finished writing, with harsh scribbles as the last touch. It's barely readable, and this is his fifth time writing a note to his own beloved daughter, Neve. He smashed his head down to his desk numerous times that he would just worsen the bruises he already had. He crumpled the paper, cried over it to the point that it soaked some parts of the paper. He threw it somewhere in frustration that could clearly be depicted through his facial expression. His eyes were completely welled up, gnashing his teeth. He reached for the drawer, shaking, pulled off the drawer, took a cutter and brutally slit the arms of his. Once he felt fulfilled, he cried himself to sleep.

An ordinary night of Hayden Everlies, a widowed father of Neve, a 15 years old teenager who has been living with his father under tough circumstances for the last 5 years, ever since the death of her mother and Hayden's wife, Eulalie Blanchefleur. Causing him to suffer from severe depression and BPD (Borderline Personality Disorder) which progressively worsened day by day.

"Good morning dad... wait, bloody cutter... ANOTHER ONE..? Don't tell me you self-harmed again!? Your previous scars haven't even recovered! I really need to throw this away." Neve entered his dad's room and eventually noticed what her dad had done, again. Hayden's eyes widened and he immediately woke up, but he did it way too fast he hurt his back. "N- NO- A! Ouch..."

"See, your fragile spines won't support sudden movements, move slower! I will isolate this thing, but I actually know you would find another way to harm yourself. There are better mechanisms and ways to cope with breakdowns, dad! Don't tell me you forgot to take your antidepressants again!" Neve yelled. "I don't know... where did I throw the antidepressants at. And haha, I guess you know me, sweetie. It's unstoppable, really. I couldn't resist." he replied. Neve scoffed in annoyance and worry. She crouched on the floor where many things are scattered around, unexceptionally broken shards of glass. "Oh God! Dad, there are some glass shards here!" and he just nodded pensively. "Ah, here it is, it's under your bed. Drink it dad, it would eventually calm you down. Please stop harming yourself, okay? Remember; you're hurting me if you're hurting yourself." Neve reminded, and left his dad's room. Hayden regained his consciousness, gulped the antidepressants and hid the crumbled paper he threw last night. "I'm lucky enough she didn't notice this—it's confidential," he sighed in relief. He rolled his eyes, observing his room in solitude. He could barely hear anything but his breath and irregular heartbeat. He finished contemplating after a minute. Tears filled his swollen eyes, clenching his worn out shorts.

...

"But I don't think I'm able to hold it any longer."

***

Neve was sweeping the floor and preparing for breakfast whilst waiting for her father to come out. This day is just like another day—barely changed, unexceptionally the food they eat. A handmade sandwich filled with ketchup. She walked back and forth, waiting for her father to come out. A bad feeling is irresistible, thus she ran towards his father's room and knocked the door aggressively. The sound of the door creak can be heard. "Sorry to keep you waiting, sweetie. I was cleaning up the mess in my room." he stated with a warm smile.

Lately my gut has been telling me that something isn't right. "..." Neve was unable to utter a word. Or am I just way too paranoid? "What's with that look, sweetie? I really didn't do anything." he said, patting her shoulder to relieve her tension. "Breakfast is ready, dad. Let's eat together." she smiled warmly, trying to hold the tears out of the worry she has been feeling for the past few weeks. Hayden nodded. They sat together on a lonesome dining table that consists of 4 chairs, although 2 are left unused. "Dad, I've been feeling so worried lately... I know that your sanity is progressively getting worse." she confessed, rubbing her sweaty palms.