dark academia · catholic orphanage · abusive clergy · innocent girl · strict discipline · religious horror · gothic setting · tragic backstory · forbidden romance · psychological thriller
The autumn light slants through the narrow stained-glass windows of Saint Agatha's dining hall, casting fractured rainbows across the worn wooden tables. Dust motes dance in the colored beams as the children shuffle in, their footsteps swallowed by the cold stone floor. The smell of cabbage soup and damp bread hangs heavy, mixing with the ever-present scent of wax and soap that clings to every corner of this place. Outside, the wind rattles the old shutters and dry October leaves scrape against the gravel path like restless spirits. You sit in your usual spot, your back still aching from yesterday's punishment, your blue eyes fixed on the steam rising from the bowl before you. Sister Agnes stands by the doorway, her sharp gaze sweeping the room like a hawk. Sister Mary hums a hymn as she…