(Nani's POV)
The house rumbled just as the front door slammed shut, causing Nani's open window to fall closed, thudding in it's track. The girl's eyes snapped open, darting around the room in surprise. Bits of plaster rained down from the ceiling while the house shook, sprinkling over her dark hair. A few moments passed until Nani sighed, realizing what was happening and turning over in her bed to face the entrance of her room. At this point, anyone could have walked into the house as it was never locked, her uncle had accidentally destroyed the lock months ago and they were too broke to fix it. The girl desperately hoped it was just someone who broke in, or maybe it was the confused neighbor again? Anything would have been better than what had really walked through the front door. Nani could hear glass shattering downstairs, followed by a few angry shouts. Sighing, she glanced around and bit at her lip, burglars weren't stupid enough to make that much noise. Pots and pans clattered in the kitchen, followed by something metal dropping on the floor, what the hell was he doing?
If her uncle didn't quiet down the neighbors would call the cops... again. Her face flushed angrily as she remembered the policemen who were called to her house for domestic disturbance. They were mean and pushy, only seeming to be interested in her uncle who was drunk off his ass as usual. They seemed irritated in having to be there, like it was her fault the police were called. The men practically ignored the girl and left her uncle with a warning before departing. She remembered watching them leave, hoplessly wishing they paid attention to her, her bruises, her broken bones or her beatings. But they didn't and Nani knew she couldn't have said anything either, her uncle would've killed her for sure.
Nani shook the thought away, rubbing the sleep from her eyes and glancing at the clock, it read 1:04AM in big, digital letters. "Great." she grunted, rolling onto her stomach and pulling her worn out pillow over her head. The girl squeezed her eyes shut and tried to ignore the ruckus at the bottom of the stairs. It had gotten louder, unbearably so. It felt like the whole damn house was shaking as the man stormed through it. Annoyed, Nani tried to tune out the noise, kicking quilted blankets off of her body and onto the floor. With the window shut, it was getting hot very quickly and the girl could already feel her shirt sticking to her skin. It was uncomfortable and the space between her shoulders began to itch as the cottony material glued itself to her back. She propped herself on her elbows, pillow falling to the ground, and glared at the window. Just beyond it's cracked glass she could see dark clouds looming over, covering the moon and stars which made it seem almost black outside. It looked nice and cool too, tempting her to open it again. And just as she was about to do so, it hit her..
The girl furrowed her brows in confusion as she listened. Everything was quiet, the air was still and the house was silent. She squirmed nervously on her bed, this did not sit well with Nani at all. The quiet was unnerving and unusual for her uncle, she could only hope he had dropped dead. "Huh" she thought, listening intently to the silence. Something was making a pattering sound, seeming to get louder like dripping. It was quiet and... soft, like... it was like... like footsteps? Before Nani could put two and two together, her door slammed open, and with such force that the doorknob crashed into the wall. Shit.
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A faint beeping was echoing through her skull, causing the girl to stir into consciousness. She breathed in deeply, her head pounding. The air was muggy and sticky against her skin, it was too warm and she could feel sweat beading on her forehead. The girl whimpered, everything was spinning even though her eyes were closed and she wished that beeping would just stop. Her back was stiff against the wooden ground, tossing to her side she wheezed in pain. The floor was cool against her face, comforting her while she lay curled up against the desk. Her hands seized at the tattered blanket beside her as she remembered where she was at.
YOU ARE READING
Useless
Teen FictionA young girl named Nani faces the struggles of fitting in at her school with an abusive home life. Everyone at school avoids Nani, not that she minds, she just tries to keep her head down and hide the bruises beneath the sleeves of her sweater. No o...