Nightmare In Rehab

prologue (trigger warning: rape)

The night it happened

By the time I was 17, I was no stranger to the awful terrors of rape.

I had seen countless news stories on my television at home while I was doing homework. I had read dozens of news articles, with sick curiosity. A girl at my school was even raped by her boyfriend and committed suicide because of it. It was everywhere. Lingering around every corner, waiting to claim its next victim. But it wasn't one of my relevant fears. I never thought it would happen to me. I thought I was protected.

Boy was I wrong.

I dragged myself home, feeling shameful and broken. Like a defective toy that was ready to be discarded.

I was ruined.

I could still feel his touch lingering all over my body. Possessively, and aggressively holding me in place as he stole my innocence and deflowered my soul. 

It was my fault.

I should have stayed home. Had I stayed home like my mom had encouraged me to, I might still be the pure, innocent girl I was before I left my house tonight.

Now I was dirty. Tainted.

I vowed to never ignore her subtle warnings again. I just needed to get to my house.

Home sweet home.

Later that night

The house was dark. That should have been my first clue.

Our house was never dark.

Even in he middle of the night when everyone in my family had succumb to unconsciousness, a few lamps scattered around my home were still illuminating the silent air. My mother had always said a completely dark house was bad luck.

I guess she was right.

She wasn't saying anything now though. She was completely silent and dead. Long gone forever.

Blood.

There was a lot of blood.

Thick, warm, gooey blood that was such a deep shade of red it was practically black.

My mother was always smiling, it was impossible to ever catch her with a frown. She was always reminding me that it took less facial muscles to smile than to scrunch up all your features. Even when she cried she was grinning like she had just hit the lottery.

She had also said that the trick to being happy was convincing your brain that you already were.

Now she had a permanent smile.

A long, deep scar ran from one of her ears all the way to the other, slicing right through the corners of her mouth. I hope that smile carried on with her in the afterlife. She deserved to be happy for all eternity. Her lips were widely parted like she had been trying to scream before her soul was snatched away from her.

I now screamed loud enough for the both of us.

I screamed until my throat had gone so numb that I wasn't even sure it was there anymore. I screamed until I was positive that my voice was gone forever. Lost somewhere in the pits of hell, where all other shrieks of torment rested.