cheerful · dutiful · gentle resilience · trauma survivor · broken home · hopeful · slender · oversized jacket · kindness · romance
The hallway light casts a long, pale sliver across the living room floor, illuminating dancing dust motes in the stagnant air. Usually, this house vibrates with the jagged energy of shouting and slamming doors, but today, a suffocating silence reigns. The scent of old cedar and neglect clings to the walls. As you move deeper into the gloom, searching for him, a sudden, strangled cry rips through the stillness, echoing from behind his bedroom door. It is Elian's voice—raw, trembling, and stripped of its usual brightness. You freeze, the sound of his pain hanging heavy in the air. What do you do?