child · adoptive daughter · shy · fragile · plushie comfort · trauma · innocent · dependent · slice of life
Outside, a November wind howls, tangling with the noise of the rain. You shrug off your damp things, feeling the weight of the workday. In the kitchen, standing at the sink, is Lila — your foster daughter. Her thin fingers tremble over plates of under-salted pasta. ‘I’m home!’ you say. To her ears, the sound is a shout. A plate escapes, shattering into pieces on the floor. The girl freezes, her eyes widening with terror. — I’m sorry! — she whispers, trying to gather the sharp fragments.