The War.

Chapter 17: Memories.

!! TW FOR ABUSE AND ALCOHOLISM !!
this one is also quite sad so proceed w caution !

thank you to Belle_WritesBooks and kelseyattwell for the help on this one

i'm very grateful to have people who love this story and each comment telling me they love it makes me so absolutely happy i can't even explain.

^^ thank you to everyone ^^

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As everyone settled in the living room, Autumn headed to the kitchen for her usual morning coffee. Inside, Ella and Lila were playing with a few empty glass bottles, their laughter filling the room. Autumn barely acknowledged them, her expression blank as she moved past them to grab her mug.

The moment they noticed her, their giggles quickly died down. They stared at her cautiously, their fear evident in their wide eyes. They were genuinely terrified of Autumn, and her presence was enough to silence them.

She didn't really care all that much about what they did, and, truthfully, she found their fear of her quite amusing. As much as she hated to admit it, in that regard, she was just like her father. She thrived on power and being feared.

The next minute, Mia walked in, having heard the girls go quiet and becoming concerned. "Why did you two get so quiet?" she asked. Ella glanced over at Autumn, and Mia chuckled at the obvious cause. She looked over at Autumn, who rolled her eyes with a hint of playfulness. "It's fine, you can keep playing... right, Autumn?" Mia said. Autumn just gave a brief nod and returned to her coffee. The girls resumed their game, and Mia sat down at the table with Autumn to drink her coffee too.

Just a couple of minutes later, Ella playfully tossed one of the bottles at the wall. It shattered into pieces on the floor, and Autumn physically jumped at the sudden sound of glass shattering.

Charlotte walked in, having heard the loud crash. She spotted the shattered glass scattered across the floor and sighed, grabbing a broom from the corner. "Ella, you need to be careful," she said in a calm but firm tone as she began sweeping up the shards.

Ella, with a defiant look on her face, protested, "We were just playing! No one got hurt."

Charlotte shook her head as she continued to clean up. "Someone could've gotten hurt, Ella," she said, her voice gentler this time. "What if a piece of glass had hit someone? Or what if you stepped on it? Sweetie, stop playing with glass. You have tons of toys you can play with safely."

Ella looked down, feeling a bit scolded, but still slightly stubborn. "But it's more fun with the bottles," she mumbled.

"Go play something else, darling," Charlotte advised, giving Ella a gentle nudge. Ella and Lila, still grumbling a bit under their breaths, got up and left the room to find another game.

Autumn took a deep breath, a subtle but noticeable shift in the room's energy. Both Charlotte and Mia immediately picked up on it, their eyes darting to Autumn. Mia raised an eyebrow slightly, and Charlotte paused mid-sweep. The moment was small, but in a house where everyone had to be so in tune with each other's emotions, even the smallest changes were like ripples in still water, especially for Autumn, who rarely showed emotion.