I hear the front door downstairs slam shut. He's home. And he's drunk again. I hear him drag his feet up the stairs and down hall.
"Tenkooo~" he calls
I almost gag hearing that disgusting excuse of a man call out my name. I'm currently hiding in a messy walk in closet under a dresser from my father. You might be wondering 'How is a seventeen year-old girl hiding under a dresser ?' I'm small due to lack of food stopping my growth. I hear him open my bedroom door.
"C'mon my little kitten~ , come out of your hiding spot!" He playfully calls out
After that it's just silence. The tension is so thick you couldn't cut it with a knife. My (I dare call a) father got like this after my mother died. Drank away his pain. Became an alcoholic. He's also bipolar. I would have told the police. But he's one of the head police officers. I hear him flip my desk.
"I told you . . . to get . . OUT !" he yells
He then whips open my closet doors slamming them against the wall. I can hear the sound of his boots walking towards me. Silence. I can feel his eyes on me. He suddenly aggressively pulls me out of the closet and starts kicking my stomach.
"Tenko you little brat ! ! !" he yells as he continues kicking me
I feel my intestines twist and turn. I throw up . . . blood ? I feel myself start to go unconscious. But before I do he picks me up by the throat and chokes me up against the wall. He then lets go of me and gently sets me down. He looks horrified. His eyes are filled with tears. He gently embraces me for a moment. He just kept mumbling under his breath
"I'm sorry...I'm so so sorry..I'm sorry. I hurt you again. I'm sorry"
I was shaking. I'm terrified. He's still crying with his arms wrapped tightly around me. I'm so happy I'm a only child. I would never want any other kid to experience this. He suddenly lets go and punches me in the stomach. I throw up a little more blood and remember that my guts are most likely mangled. I drop to my knees. He continues beating me. I scream and cry out in pain but I know no one will hear me. It's like I'm screaming out into a void. I start choking on my own blood. I feel my body slowly shutting down. I start to go unconscious. Pitch black. Nothing. I wake up only to be blinded with a bright light. I hear panicking voices. I open my eyes and look around and try to sit up. I think I'm in a hospital. I a nurse with black boy length hair gently pushes me down. I try to ask 'Where am I ?' but it comes out as a scratchy sound , I go into a coughing fit and a bit of blood comes out.
"Lay down dear, try not to say anything , you screamed so much you teared your tubes. Your going into surgery right away, your guts are all mangled and a few ribs are broken.From the way your injuries are it shows that your were beat." said the nurse
I panic slightly. But I'm too weak to move. I realize they're taking me into the Emergency Room. That makes me more uneasy I start to overthink and panic. I was so distracted with my thoughts that I didn't even notice they were putting a mask on me to knock me out. I pass out. I feel my eyes flutter open. There's a bright light blinding me. I look over and see a nurse with shoulder length brown hair.
"Ah , Miss. Saito , the surgery was a success, but we can't let you go till your fully healed or someone comes and gets you. I hope you do understand."
I just nod knowing I can't use my voice , even if I could I can't really argue. My entire body aches. The nurse leaves the room. I get lost in my thoughts. About forty minutes later my father walks in. I tense up. He smiles a warm kind smile at me. How can he always act like nothing has happened after everything he's done !? He walks towards the bed
"I'm taking you home , are you ok to walk or do you need a wheelchair ?"
I'm horrified. I don't want to go with him. But I don't really have a choice. I hesitantly stand up. He hands me clean clothes to change into. After I'm done he's signing papers in the bottom floor of the hospitals. A few of the nurses were looking at me with sadness and pity. Do they know ? If they do why aren't they doing anything ??? He walks towards me and we leave. Our house isn't that far but the drive feels like hours . We finally drive up to the house. He parks and we step out of the car. He walks up at a normal pace. I'm so afraid I can barely move my body. But I still manage to walk to the house. He's gonna hit me again. I'm gonna be in the hospital again. I know it. It's happened before and It's gonna happen again.
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By, Emma Gerbrandt-Srigley
