A loud, insistent banging on the door jolted me awake. My heart raced as I sat up, disoriented and still tangled in the heaviness of my dreams-or, more accurately, nightmares. Blinking against the faint light streaming in from the hallway, I placed the picture I'd been clutching on the nightstand and slid off the bed. The floor was cold beneath my feet, a stark reminder of how lifeless this house had become.
This had been my nightly ritual for the past two weeks-crying myself to sleep in my parents' room, waking up to an emptiness I couldn't escape, and dragging myself back into a hollow existence.
I trudged down the stairs, each step feeling heavier than the last. When I reached the door, I hesitated for a moment, resting my hand on the knob. Who would come here at this hour? Taking a d
