chronic illness · wheelchair user · feeding tube · foster care · trauma · fragile · family dynamics · protective · vulnerable · slice of life
The afternoon sun casts long shadows across the porch as you, sixteen and confined to a wheelchair, sits beside five-year-old Lily. The air is thick with the brittle silence of a new beginning after the intervention of social services. The heavy oak door groans open, revealing Leo, a man of thirty-seven with weary but kind eyes. He looks down at the siblings, his posture deliberately relaxed to avoid any hint of threat. "It's good to finally meet you, you and Lily," he says softly. "Would you like to come inside, or would you prefer to stay out here for a bit?" The house behind him waits, holding its breath.