Only Broken

The Burden of Protection

It’s been a month since I came back.

A month of being locked down like a prisoner. A month of guards shadowing my every move, like I’m made of glass and might shatter if I'm left alone.

A month of cold silence, stiff smiles, and a suffocating routine that leaves no room for freedom—not even a simple walk into town.

“Mom, Dad, come on—it’s been an entire month!” I argue, trailing behind them into the home office, still in my pajamas with frustration boiling just beneath my skin.

Mom slips her sleek laptop into her leather bag with a graceful, practiced motion, like she’s already tuned me out. “And your punishment still stands,” she says without even looking up.

“Dad?” I turn to him, clinging to hope.

He opens his mouth, but Mom throws him a warning look and he shuts it like a trap.

“You mother is right, Claire.”

Seriously?

I grit my teeth. “This is ridiculous. You're acting like I committed a crime.”

“This is for your safety,” Mom says gently, stepping forward and cupping my face. Her touch is soft, but I’m too angry to lean into it. “One day, you’ll understand.”

I force a smile that feels more like a grimace and follow them down the staircase. My voice rises, laced with exasperation. “At least let me go into town. I’m not asking for much—I just want some air.”

“You’re grounded,” Dad replies firmly. “And that’s final.”

I blink, then raise a brow. Okay... when did he go full Mom on me?

Suddenly the weight of their stubbornness hits me all at once, and something inside me just—snaps.

I stop cold in the middle of the hallway. My bare feet rooted to the marble floor.

They both pause, sensing it.

I cross my arms tightly over my chest, frustration bubbling in my throat like lava. “Seriously? It’s been an entire month. I’ve been stuck in this house with no phone, no friends, no freedom. You can’t just keep me locked away like I’m some kind of—”

“Prisoner?” Mom finishes gently, but there’s a hard edge beneath her tone.

My jaw tightens. “Yeah. That’s exactly what it feels like.”

“It’s for your own good,” she says, trying to keep her voice level, but there’s something brewing under it—anger? Guilt?

“It’s not good, it’s suffocating!” I shout. “I get it—I messed up. I shouldn’t have wandered off. But you’re acting like I deliberately tried to get kidn*pped or something.”

Mom turns to face me fully, her expression softening. “Why?” she asks quietly, almost like she already knows the answer. Her eyes shimmer with unshed tears. “Because I’m not your real mother I'm not allowed to correct you?"

Her words hit harder than they should. Even Dad looks stunned.

“That is not what I'm saying." I mutter, the fight draining out of me. “I'm just trying to make you understand that I'm too old to be grounded."

She takes a step closer. Her hands tremble as she reaches for me again. “Do you know how terrified we were?” Her voice cracks. “We thought we lost you, Claire. We thought you were gone—forever.”

I turn my head away, but she gently catches my chin and lifts it, forcing me to meet her gaze.

“I may not have carried you,” she whispers, “but I love you as if I did. I would move heaven and earth to keep you safe. And I’d do it again.”

The sincerity in her eyes punches straight through my defenses. My throat tightens. I blink rapidly, trying to hold it together.

But the storm inside me is still raging.

“This is a stupid punishment and I've had enough of it." I snap causing her to move back with wide eyes.

I spin around and storm up the stairs, slamming the door behind me with a thunderous bang that rattles the hinges.

I pace my room with my hands clenched into fists and my chest tight. Why can’t they just understand? I didn’t mean to wander off that day.

Okay… maybe I did. Maybe I just needed to breathe. But this? Being locked up, watched like a criminal—it’s too much. It's suffocating.

I stride toward the window, yanking the curtains aside just as they’re getting into the car. Dad climbs in first but Mom lingers on the doorstep for a moment.

Suddenly her eyes lift and find mine.

We just stare at each other as a whole conversation passes between us in silence.

Mom holds my gaze for a single heartbeat longer… then turns and steps into the car, shutting the door behind her with a soft finality that echoes louder than any goodbye.

The vehicle backs down the driveway and I take a step back. I exhale sharply then turn away, before dropping onto my bed with frustration.

This past month hasn't been easy. Thankfully I got my parents to believe the lie that I wander off and got lost.

I even told them a nice family helped me find my way back, but they somehow weren't totally convinced.

And after that conversation with Peter, the urge in my chest hasn’t eased. His words loop in my head whenever I hear something sharp or smell something strange.

I may have finally lost it.

I sigh, frustrated, and crawl under the sheets to shut the noise out. For a little while the soft weight of the blanket calms me.

BOOM!

I feel the ground quake beneath me causing the window and even the entire house to shake violently in its frames.

I leap to my feet and rush to the window with a pounding heart as I stare down the driveway

Fire curls hungrily into the sky, devouring the space where their car had just been.

I hear screaming—guards, staff, someone crying out in shock—but all I can do is stand there, frozen.

My hands grip the windowsill so tightly my knuckles turn white.

My mouth opens, but no sound comes out.

Just moments ago, they were there. Now there's only smoke and fire where their cars should be.