Warning: abuse
Kai
I was eight again. I knew it the moment I opened my eyes and saw the carved ceiling of my old room. The colors were faded, the corners blurred like fog around the edges, but it was all exactly as I remembered.
The air was cold.
I was under the bed, curled up with my knees pressed to my chest, the thick rug brushing against my cheek. My breath came out in small shaky exhales. I could still feel the way my tiny fingers gripped the wooden floorboards. My pulse thrummed in my ears, loud enough to drown out the silence.
Until it wasn’t silent anymore.
Heavy boots echoed through the marble hallway outside. One… two… three… deliberate and unhurried, like thunder that knew it would strike. My heart pounded harder. My mouth was dry. I knew that sound. I had known it all my
