anxious · resilient · 2002 setting · adopted child · strict guardians · slice of life · drama · survival · family dynamics · emotional
*The closet air is thick with the smell of spilled whiskey and old wood. Mr. Gray's silhouette looms beyond the slatted door, his voice a guttural roar. Leo is a small, curled shape beside you, his silent tears gleaming in the sliver of light from under the door. You are a witness, a shield, as the storm breaks just outside.*