Seep Into Me Slowly

[Chapter 01]

The busy Saturday night at the Jensen household brimmed with all daughters and sons scattering from the spacious, lively-with-chatter living room into the squeezed up table which was located near the kitchen, a perfect space for serving food due to its strategic place; just near the kitchen so food doesn't get cold.

The sound of chairs scraping against the bare flooring was overbearing, though fell insignificant because the people around were busy in their own harmless conversation, while others eyed the food hungrily.

Not Tatiana though. While everyone else was downstairs enjoying the family meal, she remained locked in her room. Clear instructions from her mother upon hearing the devastating dreadful news.

It was as simple as that- her mother didn't know what to make of her, or of the unbelievable story she had told her, for that matter.

Certainly, she didn't want her daughter to rattle everyone's mood, especially at dinner time. Neither she wanted her to cause a ruckus with her preposterous claims, dragging her family name through mud and sewage.

The eerie quiet must mean that everyone's indulged in their meal, thought Tatiana to herself. After they're finished, her mom would discuss her situation with her father and they'd come up with a solution.

The girl laid stiffly on the ground, scrunching up the material of her dress between her fists forcefully. The fabric was getting wet by the stream of tears falling off of her agonized black eyes.

She didn't know what she did to deserve what had happened to her. She surely didn't think of herself as a bad person in general. Quite the opposite, she viewed herself as kindhearted and genuine. Again, which maybe got her in this terrorized situation in the first place after all.

She remained on the rug-less floor, the cold digging through her skin, biting and nibbling, almost serving as a constant reminder to the horror she has been subjected to. Sardonically, a reminder of her tainted body.

Her small back rested against the wooden bed board that dug her spinal cord in half, her shiny black waist-length hair sticking to her face and neck from the current state she was in.

She started thinking of her situation. What would her father do once he hears of what his daughter has become? Obviously, it wasn't her fault. She didn't have any choice in the matter. It wasn't her fault her innocence got robbed away from her by the hands of a man she trusted. A man she thought was a gentleman who turned out to be a sly beast who didn't understand the meaning or importance of consent.

Her eyeballs felt dry, empty of all tears she had spilled. If only she could gather them, they'd fill up the entire ocean in how much she cried the past two hours. It still didn't feel like she was done anytime soon. As a matter of fact, she only grew more worried as she got to thinking more and more of her hopeless situation. She was doomed. That's for sure.

She'd expect her father to send her to live with her relatives out of state, an alternative was studying at a boarding school, either way she'd disappear from the face of this town before any gossip spread out into the wind and carried away to the perky ears of its nosy people.

Nevertheless, what she didn't expect, were the words her father spat at her once her mother requested her to descend downstairs, after everybody has finished their respective meals and were sent to their rooms for the remainder of the night.

She took the stairs step by step, her feet, scratch that- her whole form shaking with utmost fear and trepidation. Her wobbly legs went out on her, she would've fallen badly to the ground if hadn't been her arms that clung to the banister in despair, clutching it like a lifeline to keep her afloat in this dark restless sea.

She made it to the living room. Her father was sat on the leather couch exuding authority, one leg crossed over the other in a manly nonchalant way. She took notice to her mom, who was standing in the far corner, too scared to come into the room without her father's invitation, she only stood to the side with senile features, a mere spectator to the whole ordeal that was about to happen.

"Tatiana" Her father finally called with his voice sharp as sword, cutting her guts in half. Her throat bobbed up and down when she swallowed her fear while nodding in acknowledgement at her elder.

"Y-yes father" She managed to squeeze out of her scratchy throat that felt sandy due to her excessive crying earlier in her room. She kept her eyes down, trained onto the intricate patterns of the dotted floor tiles, finding counting how many dots decorated each individual tile more interesting than looking her father in the eyes when she couldn't do that.

"Tell me what happened" Was all he said in a demanding tone, letting her know that her case was the least of his interests as he was rather a busy man with more vital things to do than simply waste his precious time on her.

"I-i umm, haven't mom told you?" She asks, shifting her eyes to her mother in a doubtful -much pleading- questioning manner. Surely, her mother couldn't keep what she had told her a secret and not have told him, right?

"Your mother did mention to me, albeit I want to hear it from you. So, by all means do explain" He gestures for her to get on with it, having dismissed his hand her way, eager to get rid of her, her case was nothing but a pebble itching the soles of his feet.