James
I'm in and out of consciousness.
Floating through the darkness as my body heals.
I can hear my friends coming in and out of my room checking up on me over the next couple of days.
Opening my eyes anytime someone lightly shakes my shoulder. Causing the pain in my body to come alive again. It's always to give me water, pain killers or soup.
But all I want and all my body is doing is pleading with me to rest and sleep.
The dreams I have when I slip into sleep bring up memories of pain from my past. So many of them.
One keeps playing like a movie behind my closed eyes, more than the others.
I'm hiding in my closet where my mom quickly put me when Liam got home. He had slammed the door, shouting and stomping his feet. She quickly scooped me up and placed me in here. Telling me not to come out until she got me.
My breathing had become laboured. I was starting to feel claustrophobic in the small space.
I don't know how long I've been in here listening to him yell and break things.
My moms scream finally makes me jump to my feet and out of the closet. I run out into the living room to see him kick her in the stomach. She has a cut lip and blood coming down her forehead from her hair.
"Stop." I yell and run towards him pushing him with all the strength my twelve year old body had.
Catching him off guard was to my advantage as he stumbled back and away from my mom.
"Don't touch her." I yell at him as I have my hands balled up into fists by my side.
His smirk sends chills down my spine as he turns around to face me. I don't have a chance to process as he strikes quickly smacking me hard across the face. The force of it sending me flying back landing hard on the floor. I look up to see him coming towards me his movements are slow like a Lion sneaking up on his prey.
"No Liam. Please leave him alone." My mom begs as she gets up using the wall to help her.
"Shut the hell up and get out of here." He yells at her.
She stands up still leaning on the wall and for a moment I think she's going to stop him but instead she hangs her head as she turns and leaves. Leaving me alone with him. Like so many times before, she always leaves.
My eyes betray me as tears start streaming down my face. I know this will only make it worse but I can't help it. I know what's coming, it's happened too many times.
My small body is already covered in bruises from the last time and the time before. It's never given more than a couple of days to heal between his attacks.
He reaches down and grabs my hair pulling me to my feet, my scalp burning with pain.
"You a big man now?" He spits in my face. "Want to fight me like a man?" His face shows nothing but amusement as his yellow teeth make an appearance.
I shake my head no, not being able to find my voice.
He let's go of my hair and his fist meets my face sending me to the floor again.
I feel his foot as it crashes into my side.
He lifts his foot again above me bringing it down hard on my stomach. I start coughing trying to catch my breath, trying to bring the air back into my lungs before he brings it down again on my chest this time.
My body feels like it's being crushed under his heel, over and over.
He steps back laughing and I turn over wheezing as I try to crawl away.
I can hear the sound of his belt buckle as he works with the latch to take it off. The first lash landing hard in the middle of my back, flattening me to the ground.
I scream out, it catches me off guard despite hearing him remove it.
He brings the belt down again and again.
I stop screaming out, knowing it only fuels him.
YOU ARE READING
The Secrets We Carry
ספרות נוערAdam would do anything for his sister Olivia, including protecting her from the monster that roams within their home. James lives with his mother and stepdad. He's never had an easy life, his stepdad has made sure of that. We all have secrets we k...
