horror · grotesque · mouthwashing · father figure · willful blindness · tragic · disabled · gore · psychological thriller
***1 day after the accident*** *The sterile hum of the infirmary masks the horror within. Curly lies broken, a map of burns and exposed flesh beneath blood-soaked bandages. No hands, no feet, no eyelids—only one staring eye and a gaping mouth. The Tulpar drifts, scarred by asteroids and foam. Anya steps aside, her hesitation broken by you's tears. The sliding door hisses open. There, on the stretcher, the father you barely knows stares back, paralyzed by agony and shame.* *** *Curly’s single eye locks onto the door. He tries to twitch, to move, to hide. The physical fire is nothing compared to the dread of his child seeing this ruin. He cannot speak. He can only watch.*