Hide (Mommy's House 3)

3

Bella's eyelids slowly peeled apart when she heard her bedroom door creak open. Several footsteps walked into the room, but she just closed her eyes again, sinking back into her pillow.

"She's just been sleeping the past few days. I don't know what to do," Bella heard her father say. "She hasn't eaten, she doesn't get up at all. She ignores me when I talk to her. I'm so worried."

Bella felt a hand touch her forehead gently, before the hand then brushed her greasy hair off of her face.

"Bella, sweetie," Liv's voice sent a wave of warmth throughout Bella's body. "Wake up."

"Do you think she should go to the hospital?" her father asked. "I don't know what to do at this point. She hasn't taken her meds."

"Let us talk to her for a second, then we'll figure out what we can do," Liv told Bella's father.

Bella heard her father sniffle.

"That Daniel guy is horrible," he said, his voice shaking through tears. "He does nothing but make her miserable. This is the worst she's ever been. She was doing so much better."

Her father cried, and Bella heard rustling, but she still didn't have the energy to open her eyes.

"It's not your fault," she heard James speak to her father. "It's common for traumatic experiences to cause a relapse. All we can do is stand by her, show her we're here for her."

"I'm sorry," her father let out an embarrassed laugh through his cry. "I'll, I'll let you guys talk to her. I'll be downstairs if you need anything."

She heard her father's footsteps growing distant.

Then, the door closed shut. Bella could feel Liv's presence, and also James'. Her eyes slowly opened to find Liv was on her knees in front of her, her soft eyes big and her hand caressing her face. James was standing beside Liv, looking down Bella.

"Hi, Honey," when Liv realized Bella's eyes were opened, she smiled.

"Hey, Bella," James said, smiling and kneeling down onto his knees in front of her as well. "How are you doing?"

Bella felt like a rubber band was wrapped around her skull. Her eyes hurt to move. Her body felt weak. There was a pit in her stomach. Her misery was filling to the brim, clouding her every thought - she didn't feel real. She barely felt alive.

The light of her pink desk lamp set a rosy hue across the worried faces of James and Liv. Their eyes sparkled as they watched her closely.

"Bella, we have a surprise for you," Liv said. "There's someone who wants to see you, and I think you'll be happy to see them."

Bella was still wearing the clothes that Liv dropped her off in just a few days before - Daniel's black tee shirt, and her underwear. She felt disgusting, but also couldn't possibly care less. She didn't have the energy for embarrassment. She wanted to wither away.

"But we can't see them unless you take a shower and get dressed," Liv explained. "Can you do that?"

Bella just closed her eyes again.

"What should we do?" James asked Liv.

"I'm not giving up on her yet," Liv whispered back to him, her words just barely audible.

Bella opened her eyes again, and Liv was once again in front of her.

"Come on, you're going to take a bath," Liv said, pulling the comforter off of Bella.

Bella felt the cold air from outside the blanket nip her bare legs, but she was too weak to sit up. She reached for the comforter, but Liv was holding it away from her, in her grip.