A Safe Place to Fall

Prologue The snow covered the land too quickly. The cold mixed with the night gave off a feeling that it will be long and lonely. The fire crackled from the fireplace, fighting the coldness with temporary warmth. The mansion was engulfed by darkness as the night fell with only the burning fire lighting up the living room. Silence fell and the only sound was from the wood that cracks because of the intense heat. It was so quiet that the boy could hear his own breathing. Even his own loud heartbeat was ringing on his ears. Jace Faraday stood in the middle of a huge mansion, staring at the fire that supposed to give him warmth but all it did was bring back nasty memories that kept screwing his mind. The wood snapped and he flinched but still didn’t look away. The light coming from the fire was reflected in his eyes. His shadow casted over the room. It was unmoving. He was completely staying still. He looked like he was in deep thought. “Mr. Faraday, the bath is ready.” A man wearing a black suit emerged from the darkness. His soft features didn’t match the ambiance of the room. His deep voice echoed and it also didn’t match his baby face. He politely bowed at him with a towel on his hand. It took more than a minute before Jace answered. “Why did she bring me here?” His voice was low, angry and accusing. He sounded betrayed. He looked at the man with sharp eyes like he wanted to punch him right here and right now for bringing him to a place unwillingly. The man sighed. “She thought it will be best for you to stay here.” He put the towel on top of the couch. “Please go to the bathroom and wash.” “What does she know?!” He kicked the coffee table. The glass shattered and scattered on the floor. “I don’t want to be here! Why did she bring me to this place? I don’t even need her help!” “Mr. Faraday, you need to calm down,” the man said. “She did this all for you.” Jace kicked the remaining piece of the coffee table he already destroyed. “As I said, I don’t need her help! She should have let me die!” The man didn’t give away a hint of surprise. He kept his straight face but slowly and politely smiled. It showed how well he could handle a man like Jace. It was like he was born for this job. “Mr. Faraday, please take a bath. You also have to eat after. It’s almost time to drink your medicine.” Jace laughed. “You think I’m sick? You think there’s something wrong in my head?” He grabbed the man’s collar. “How do you know that it’s my head? How the hell do you know that it’s the f*****g problem?” The man grabbed his hands gently and smiled. “Mr. Faraday, please remember that everything we’re doing is also for your sake.” He put down Jace’s hands. “This is for you to get better. Please keep in your mind that Madam took you in when you were about to lose your precious life. And also, please also remember that she’s doing this for you because she loves you.” “My sake? She loves me? That’s bullshit!” Jace screamed. “If she really loves me, she should have saved us sooner.” The man fell silent. He couldn’t answer that. A family’s problem is always and always will be complicated. When it is supposed to be the pillar in your life, there will be times that it will crumble down. He’d rather stay silent than meddle with other’s family problems. He was just here to finish his job. Jace kept walking back and forth while clenching and unclenching his fists. His shirt was tattered, dirt was all over his body, his hands were covered in bruises and his face was drenched in tears. He looked like a lost kid. His body was shivering but not from the cold. His eyes were unfocused. His hands were shaking uncontrollably. “You’ll catch a cold if you don’t clean yourself up.” The man picked up the towel and walked closer to Jace. He handed him the towel and smiled. “You can think after cleaning yourself. Calm down.” Jace bit his lower lip. His hands were still trembling like crazy. He looked so afraid and hurt. Everyone who would see him in this state wouldn't be able to look at him longer. He gripped the towel on his hand. “What will happen to me? Am I going to jail?” His voice broke. The man sighed and gently squeezed Jace’s shoulder. “You’re safe here. No one will know you’re here. This is the reason why we brought you here.” “Safe...”—he mumbled—“...I’m safe.” “Yes, you are. No one will be able to lay a hand on you here. You’re perfectly safe.” Jace finally calmed down and did what the man said. He took a bath, ate and drink his medicine like a good kid. When the midnight strikes, he lay on his bed and slowly drifted off to sleep. The man stared at Jace too long. He couldn’t help but pity this child who experienced so much trauma, not just physically but also mentally. Jace’s head was messed up and he always thinks that he was in danger. The fear of being in pain again makes him anxious. Just because of his one great sin. A sin that made him built up his walls. A sin that changed his life. A sin that put the chains on him. An unfathomable sin that will haunt him forever. He was like a flower full of thorns and no one dared to pick him up, afraid that they will bruise their hands and bleed. But there was one thing they didn't know, Jace has always been bleeding by his own thorns, the petals have long gone, and the only thing left was the root that binds him.