𝗛𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗻 & 𝗦𝗶𝗻 || 𝙠.𝙣𝙟✔️

IV - stay 🎨

My body lightly shakes with every sob. I try to close my red swollen eyes to bait myself to slumber but it doesn't help.

Nothing helps.

Yet my heart still clutches onto the last strings of hopes that maybe when I wake up tomorrow, things will revert to how they were, that maybe, just maybe this is nothing but a nightmare.

And I'm not alone.

And the next morning will greet me with the aroma of the breakfast cooked by my mom and soon I'll fetch dad from his small-gym-room and three of us will have our breakfast together filled with laughters and chuckles.

And they'll shower me with pecks on either of my cheeks before I scurry off to the door.

A fresh tear rolls down my cheeks when I dawn over that whatever I've been fabricating in my head is only an illusion to deviate myself from the grim reality.

That it isn't a nightmare.

Amidst the pattering of the raindrops against the window panes, an another voice fills the silence of the living room.

My head shots up and my vision lands on the glass photo frame lying shattered into shards on the ground.

Broken like my once happy family. Broken like my world.

In another second, the obnoxious thunderbolts crashing into the dark leaves shudders streaming down my spine. As I flinch terribly, my heart loudly thumps into my chest and I feel its presence inside my ears than in ribcage.

In all such misery, the door to the front door pushes open and strikes against the back wall as a blend of rain and thunder pushes its way inside.

But that's not all.

"Dad..." a whisper falls from my lips and follows a fresh trail of tears cascading down my cheeks. Tears of happiness.

He's back.

And he's here, with me.

He stumbles into the room, barely acknowledging my presence. I slam my body into his embrace that has him hobble back a step. Even though he reeks of alcohol, I hug him tightly.

"Ari... let me go." His voice is stern. His hands reach out to grab my wrist and breaking my grip around his waist, he shoves me aside. Staggering, he advances up the stairs.

What if he's here to grab his stuff?

I need to stop him.

I run upto him and wrap my arms around his torso from behind, snaring him into a backhug.

I couldn't stop mom.

But maybe I can stop him.

"Dad please don't leave me." Sobs leave my lips, my cheeks pressed against his soaked wet shirt.

"I won't...Go to your room Ari." His voice comes out breathy and ragged as he pants and firmly grips my wrist to detach himself from me but I don't let him.

Tightening my grip around his waist, I plead through tears, "I want to stay with you, dad please.."

"Ari listen to ---

"No..." I shout only to end up in more tears, whispering, "please stay with me."

That has him turn around in my embrace. But what he does next leaves me thunderstruck.

With a swift turn of moments, his hands hold my face and his mouth...

fuses with mine.

Hastily and harshly, his lips brushes past against mine and my body freezes into the spot having lost all of power of motion.