A tear slowly rolls down her cheek. Why is it ending this way? She feels so numb, so scared, so sad... Will it ever change? This is all she's ever known... This. And now it's ending. Her happiness shattered, thrown out the window in an instant. The news hit her like a ton of bricks. She'd fainted, and her dad had picked her up and laid her on the couch. She'd awoken to the feel of a cold, wet washcloth over her eyes. She'd sat up, dizzy. She'd thought everything was okay, they would be together forever! How can this happen? She didn't understand. They seemed so happy together, they never argued. For 17 years.... Had it all been a lie? Her world had turned black in one instant.
"Hunny, you're mother and I are getting a divorce. This is not your fault, sweetheart. It's just something that has to be done. Neither of us are happy..." Daddy, what are you talking about? "...We want what's best for you, we want you to be happy. We understand it'll be a hard decision to make, but we know you can do it. All it'll take is some time. We hope you understand. Do you, hunny?"
Now the words echoed in her mind, sounding like they were spoken in a cave, reverberating off of the walls. They bounced back at her, over and over again. This isn't right. We're supposed to be happy. Why? There had to be something more. What aren't they telling me? How can I possibly decide who I want to live with? Her lungs wouldn't cooperate with her, her throat was closing in, she couldn't breathe. She lay on her bed, staring at the ceiling. Angry, loud music blared from the speakers of her stereo. She could faintly hear the knocking at her door, but she didn't answer it. She didn't see anything, everything was a blur. Shadows danced on her ceiling, making puppets, mocking. They laughed at her tears.
It was so dark in her mind. She was running, stumbling, crawling on her hands and knees, begging, sobbing. The twisted trees in this dark forest would not let her escape. The grabbed at her, tried to take her prisoner. She fought, she screamed. The branches twisted around her, pulled her in. Wrapped around her ankles, her wrists, her waist. She cried, she kicked. She couldn't stop them from pulling her in. She was their prisoner now, a captive of them, their puppet.
She got up from her bed, unlocked and opened the door. A strange light danced in her eyes. Her father did not notice.
"How are you, sweetie? We've been worried about you!"
"I'm fine daddy, I was just taking a nap."
"With that awful music so loud?" He asked, an incredulous look on his face.
"Yeah, I do that sometimes when I'm alone," she answered, lying through her teeth.
"Well, it almost dinner time, sweetheart," he said. She thought he wanted to say more, but he turned around and walked away, his shoulders sagging. She wanted to wonder what it was, but she couldn't. The thought was a faint whisper through her mind and nothing more. Numb was playing on her stereo now. Linkin Park. She thought that the song should mean something to her, but it was nothing more than a fleeting thought, and it quickly ran away.
Is there something wrong with me?
Inside her mind, she was tortured by the twisted trees in the dark forest. It was so dark, but she could somehow see. Black were the trees, black was the sky, black was the earth. She screamed so loud, but no one heard her. No one was looking for her, no one could find her in the darkness. Her screams split her own eardrums, but she could not stop. Her mouth was forever frozen in that scream, her vocal chords forever singing the song. She still fought and cried, but her strength was going, and her tears were drying.
She ate dinner, neither smiling nor frowning. It was her favorite. She didn't enjoy it. Her parents talked to her, she didn't hear them. She finished, brought her plate to the sink, rinsed it and went back to her room. She locked the door, put on some music, and laid on her bed, staring at the ceiling. What is wrong with me?
She stopped. She quit fighting. It was useless. They would never give her up, they had her now. She was theirs. She still screamed, but her strength was gone and her tears had dried. She let them pull her to them. They controlled her now. They had the power.
She lay there for a long time. She thought maybe she should get up and do something, but she did not. Her eyes did not see, her ears did not hear, her hands could not feel. She was just..... there. Isn't this wrong?
A long, suffering scream is heard. So much pain, so many tears. A gunshot is heard. So much pain, so many tears.
A broken soul, a wounded spirit. No tears fall. No sadness shows. A lost little girl, standing on the edge of the world, looking out. She's just... there. She sees nothing but black, rotting black. Corpses... yes... rotting black corpses... She laughs.
