The Dangers of Falling. [Harry Styles.]

Chapter Three.

I huddled silently in the corner, the screams from downstairs echoing through my head as they reached my ears. She was screaming her lungs out, not catching a breath. It was as if she was waiting for the air in her lungs to burn out, to leave her blue. I covered my ears, the quiet tears dribbling down my cheeks. The screams ceased to nothing, and I stood up quickly, my small feet padding across the hardwood floor to the door. The door swung open abruptly, and she wasn’t standing like normal. She was crawling on the floor, her black and blue arms reaching out to grasp the floor to pull her forward. Her face was covered in a red liquid, seeping down her face like raindrops. I stuck my hand out, caressing the side of her face. The liquid was sticky.

"Run." she croaked, her arms finally giving out on her. "Hide, Meli." she collapsed on the hardwood floor, her chest heaving up and down slowly. I heard the stomping up the stairs, the same curse words flying out of the monster’s mouth as she swung the door open, the back of the door hitting the wall with a smack. The monster’s mouth was turned up in a grin, a beer bottle in her hand. She had the red liquid dripping from her mouth. The monster held up her belt in her right hand, holding it high. She smiled in cruel contentment as it flew down, the weapon slashing at my legs, at my arms, at my face.

"Mommy!" I screamed the monster’s name.

My eyes flew open immediately, my spirit finally returning to my body. I gasped for air, my breathing heavy as I sat up in the satin sheets. I was sticky with beads of sweat, my pulse racing beneath my skin. I slowly pulled my hair up into a ponytail, cold air hitting the back of my neck in sweet relief. I rested my head on my knees, closing my eyes, trying to calm my racing thoughts. But even with my eyes closed, I could still see the monster, I could still see the pain of my younger self. I kept my eyes wide open. These dreams weren’t new to me. I used to wake up in panic attacks, screaming and tangling around in the sheets. But I got used to having the nightmares; it was like a routine now, although I had no idea what the setting would be. Sometimes I would be a little girl, sometimes I would be barely into my teens, and sometimes I would be a few years younger than I was now. All of it was just a nightmare, but they felt so real. I traced my leg, cringing as I could still feel the slashing of the belt. No marks covered me anymore, but the scars hadn't all faded. I laid back on the bed, turning my head slightly to take a peek at the small alarm clock on the bedside table. 3:51. I sighed in annoyance, knowing I would never be able to fall back asleep at this hour. I crept over towards the door, sliding out silently and closing the door quietly behind me.

I wasn’t the only one sneaking out of my bedroom. I kept my back pressed to the wall as a hazy Jayden quietly walked down the hallway. Her black hair was a tangled mess, her electric green eyes glazed over. "Jayden?" I whispered. She ignored me, and continued down the hallway towards the stairs. "Jayden." I said, more urgent and aloud, walking after her. She ignored me again, descending down the staircase with her hand on the rail. "Jay-" A hand clamped over my mouth, dragging me backwards up the stairs. My arm automatically jerked back, my elbow hitting someone straight in the gut. The hand left my mouth and the body fell to the floor with a thump. I turned quickly, straddling the body and grabbing the person’s hands, holding them tightly above their head.

"Amelia, let go. It’s just me." the raspy voice whispered breathily, gasping for air.

"Harry, you nitwit, you scared the bloody hell out of me." I whispered harshly, clamping down on his wrists. I rolled off of him, taking a seat on a stair.

"I was just trying to get you to be quiet. I didn’t expect you to go all fighter on me." he argued, adjusting his t-shirt. I surveyed him as he rolled his arm back and forth.

"I didn’t hurt you that bad, did I?" I muttered, a bit of guilt building up. I shoved the emotion down. I had no reason to be guilty.

"Just a little bit."