Chapter 8

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                                    Eli ••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••The walk home from Hudson's house was icy and bitter

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                                    Eli
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The walk home from Hudson's house was icy and bitter. The cold wind blew Eli's hair in his face and Hudson's big shirt that he was still wearing was pulled against his thin frame. The feeling of fear spread throughout his body like a raging wildfire and he couldn't help but let a tear or two slip from his eyes as he saw his house.

He shakily grabbed the cold door knob and twisted it open as quietly as he could. The door let out a long creak and all Eli could do was cringe at how loud it was.

He could hear the radio station playing from the living room, the person on air was talking about some kind of drug crime that Eli didn't care enough about to tune into to. The shards of glass that were on the floor had been cleaned up and Nick must have mopped because there wasn't any stickiness on the ground from the beer that was leaked.

The door clicked as he closed it and he tried to walk up to his room but the presence of someone behind him made him stop and slowly turn around.

His mom stood there, staggering on her feet and a bottle of beer in her hand. She guzzled a bit of the liquid and looked Eli up and down. "Where the hell have you been?" She asked, her words slurred.

"My f- my friend needed help...he got hurt and needed someone to take care of him." Eli lied. He could feel his face heating up and sweat beginning to bead up at his hairline from nerves.

"Mhm. You know, since you left, Nick has been doing all the work. Don't you think that's a little unfair?" She talked calmly even though Eli knew that she was fuming inside. He knew that she had some plan going on in her brain and his knees threatened to buckle under her intense stare.

"I'm sorry." Eli said quietly, looking down at his feet. His mom grabbed his chin, forcing him to look her in the eyes. He could smell the alcohol in her breath as she spoke.

"Don't you think you deserve some kind of punishment?" She said in a way that Eli knew it wasn't a question...it was a warning.

Eli gulped, not even muttering an answer before she dragged him into the living room and holding him against the wall. Eli may have been taller than her but she was stronger than he was, having more weight to hold against him, his chest aching from the impact.

Eli's eyes watered as he smelt the smoke of the cigarette blow next to his face. The neck of the shirt was yanked down and as much as Eli tried to brace himself, he couldn't help the scream that scratched his throat as the cigarette was held against the skin of his shoulder.

The burn was incredible and he squirmed against the wall, trying to move the heat off of his skin. The cigarette was moved away but the burn stayed. Tears made their way into Eli's mouth and he winced in pain when his mom let go of his back and his shirt rubbed up against the new mark that would sink into his skin.

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