ch. 1 ~ emotions are for children

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A scream rips through the night.

"AAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!"

It jerks me out of sleep, my heart pounding like a trapped animal in my chest. I sit up, gasping for air, eyes wide as I try to orient myself in the suffocating darkness. Another scream echoes through the house, sharper this time, and layered with a sound that makes my stomach twist—a grotesque, wet squelching.

What is that?

I swallow, but my throat is bone dry, and the effort sends a painful scratch down my windpipe. Shakily, I lift the covers and angle my body toward the narrow slit of light spilling in through the door, straining to see anything, any hint of what's happening. My ears strain for another sound, something that might explain the noise.

Then it comes again.

Another scream slices through the air, barreling straight into my room.

But this one is different.

There's something about it, something familiar.

It's not just any scream. It almost sounds like . . .

No.

I throw off the blankets, heart leaping into my throat as I dash into the hallway, heading straight for Kosuke's room. The door creaks as I shove it open, hoping—praying—to find my big brother fast asleep in his bed, but when I look inside, it's empty.

He's not here.

I take a step back, my mind scrambling for an explanation. He could be in the bathroom. Maybe he's downstairs. But before I can move, that sickening sound—the wet, fleshy squelch—returns, louder, closer. This time . . . coming straight from my mother's room.

I hesitate in the doorway, a sickening knot forming in my gut. My legs feel rooted to the spot, but I force myself to move, step by shaky step. My brain, desperate for normalcy, offers ridiculous explanations. Maybe it's just a bunny stuck in honey. Or maybe Kosuke is slurping the leftover Jell-O we made last night.

Yeah, that's it. It's nothing bad.

It can't be.

Nothing bad ever happens to us.

But the sound continues, pulling me forward. Each step feels like it drags me deeper into something I won't be able to come back from. The air grows heavier with each footfall. The hallway stretches before me like a tunnel, the shadows pressing in. As I pass the kitchen, I glance inside, half-hoping to see Kosuke grinning back at me, shoveling food into his mouth like always. But the room is dark and empty. The knot in my stomach tightens.

The squelching grows louder, now unmistakably coming from my mother's room. My body moves on its own, carrying me closer until I reach the corner. I peek around.

And I freeze.

A creature—no, a monster—is hunched over Kosuke's body, its face buried deep in his abdomen, tearing through his flesh. It slurps at his intestines like they're some kind of grotesque noodle dish. My eyes lock onto my brother's lifeless face, his eyes wide open, staring into nothingness.

My heart stutters in my chest, the sight overwhelming, too horrific to process. I want to scream, to run, to do anything—but I can't. My body refuses to move. It's as if my legs have turned to stone, and all I can do is watch.

Then I see her.

Mom's body is slumped against the wall, her mouth frozen in a twisted scream, her skin a ghastly shade of white. She's completely drained of blood, which now stains the hardwood floor, spreading into the white rug—the one I helped her pick out.

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