♡BRANDON♡
The morning came, but I barely noticed. I hadn't slept at all after the nightmare, and now, the sunlight creeping through the blinds felt more like an intrusion than a new day.
My body ached with exhaustion, and my mind was stuck on a loop, replaying the accident over and over again.
I couldn't stop seeing her face–my mom's lifeless body, the wreckage, the sound of metal twisting and breaking.
I didn't move when the alarm went off. I couldn't.
All I could think about was how it felt that night–trapped, helpless. And now I felt that way all over again, like no matter what I did, I couldn't escape it.
I heard Aunt Dina moving around downstairs, but I stayed in bed, buried under the covers.
Maybe if I just stayed there long enough, everything would go away.
Maybe I wouldn't have to face another day of pretending I was okay, pushing everything down so no one else had to deal with it.
The door creaked open, and I heard Aunt Dina's footsteps enter my room.
"Brandon?" she called softly, her voice filled with concern. "You're going to be late for school."
I didn't answer. I couldn't find the energy to respond, much less get up.
She came closer, and I felt her hand on my shoulder, gentle but firm. "Brandon, are you feeling okay?"
When I didn't move or say anything, she crouched beside the bed, pulling back the covers just enough to see me.
Her face was a mixture of worry and surprise. I must've looked horrible–eyes red and puffy, dark circles from lack of sleep, the weight of the nightmare still dragging me down.
"Brandon?" she asked again, her voice softer now, almost pleading.
I finally turned to look at her, but I didn't know what to say. How could I explain the hell I went through last night?
How could I tell her that every time I closed my eyes, I saw the crash, felt the impact, and heard the silence that followed?
"I'm not... I'm not going to school today." I mumbled, my voice barely above a whisper.
She frowned, sitting down on the edge of the bed. "What happened? You look like you haven't slept at all."
"I didn't," I admitted, staring at the ceiling again. "I had... I had the nightmare again."
She sighed softly, her hand rubbing my arm in a soothing gesture. "The one about the accident?"
I nodded. I didn't need to explain it any further. Aunt Dina knew about the nightmares.
I'd had them for years consecutively after the accident, though they'd started to fade more recently. But last night... last night had been worse than usual.
"It was bad," I added quietly, my throat tight. "Really bad."
She didn't say anything for a moment, just sat there with me, her presence a small comfort. When she finally spoke, her voice was gentle, understanding.
"Brandon, you don't have to push yourself today. If you need to take the day off, that's okay. But you can't shut down like this. You've been doing so well lately... don't let this pull you back."
I squeezed my eyes shut, trying to hold back the wave of emotions threatening to overwhelm me.
"I don't know how to stop it. It feels like no matter how much better things get, it's always there... waiting."
YOU ARE READING
Cold Water
Romansa[BWWM] I was only twelve years old when the world turned cold. The day my mom died in that car accident, I felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over my heart. My dad, who had always been my hero, suddenly became a stranger, filled...
