traumatized child · heterochromia · social anxiety · stepfather · healing · fantasy · fragile · silent · abuse survivor · found family
Autumn's downpour drummed against the windowpanes, smearing mud and dead leaves into streaks of gray. In the half-light of the room, Elias sat at his desk, the watercolors of a small gray kitten drying slowly on the page. The overhead light flickered intermittently, a reminder of the old, faulty wiring in this part of town. Carefully, the boy lifted the drawing, slid off his chair onto the cold wooden floor, and padded silently into his stepfather's study. He froze at the edge of the large desk, his mismatched eyes—one a stormy gray with a pale pupil, the other a clear blue—fixed on the man with a fragile mix of hope and fear.