Silent Scars

CHAPTER 13

The morning sunlight crept through the edges of the blinds, casting soft rays across the room. The Hastings estate was eerily quiet, as if the house was holding its breath, waiting for something to shift. The only sound was the occasional rustling of leaves outside, a subtle reminder that the world outside was still turning, even if the family inside seemed frozen in place.

Marcus was the first to wake up. He moved quietly through the dark, his mind already weighed down by the thoughts of the previous night. His feet made soft thuds on the stairs as he descended, and soon he found himself in the kitchen, the comforting smell of brewing coffee filling the air.

He poured himself a cup, taking a long sip, the warmth of the liquid offering a small sense of normalcy. He’d barely slept, his mind never truly leaving Ariana, never truly shaking the worry that clung to him. His thoughts circled back to her, to her silence, to the strange way she seemed to shrink into herself.

A few minutes later, Luca appeared at the kitchen door. His dark circles were impossible to ignore, a clear sign he hadn’t slept much either. He shuffled toward the table and sat down heavily in the chair opposite Marcus, rubbing his eyes.

Marcus wordlessly slid a cup of coffee across the table to him, watching as Luca accepted it with a silent nod.

“Long night?”

Marcus asked quietly, his voice low, almost reluctant to break the silence.

Luca didn’t answer right away. He just stared at the coffee, his mind still lingering on Aria.

She’s hiding something. But what?

The unease he felt about her only deepened with each passing hour.

“Yeah.”

Luca finally muttered, his voice rough, as if he hadn't spoken in hours.

“Couldn’t sleep.”

Kendric came down next, dressed in his school clothes. His backpack was slung over one shoulder, but his eyes darted to Marcus and Luca, both of whom looked like they hadn’t rested a single minute. He noticed it immediately, the way the shadows clung to their faces, how their shoulders seemed heavier, like something had been weighing on them all night.

"You guys look like hell."

Kendric said, his voice light but with a hint of concern.

Neither Marcus nor Luca responded. Instead, Marcus gestured toward the milk, handing Kendric a glass without a word.

At that moment, Leonardo descended the stairs, his footsteps deliberate and purposeful. He was dressed in his usual suit, sharp and well-tailored, but today he seemed more tense than usual. Normally, Leonardo would have avoided breakfast, preferring to handle matters at his company or in his office, but today was different. Today, something about the silence in the house bothered him.

"Good morning. "

He greeted, his voice deep and calm, but there was a sharpness to it that suggested he hadn’t fully woken up yet.

The others muttered their greetings in return, though there was an unspoken weight in the room, like everyone was still carrying the burden of the previous day.

Marcus made another cup of coffee for Leonardo, but as he slid it toward him, he noticed that his older brother’s eyes were scanning the room, his sharp gaze landing on the one spot that seemed to unsettle him the most.

“Isn’t she up yet?”

Leonardo asked, his voice casual but carrying an edge of impatience.

No one answered immediately, the question hanging in the air like a delicate thread waiting to snap. Luca exchanged a glance with Marcus, and then stood up, pushing his chair back with a soft scrape.

"I'll bring her down."

Luca said, his tone firm but quiet, as if he were trying to reassure himself as much as his brothers.

Leonardo gave a brief nod. Luca turned and left the room, heading upstairs.

Upstairs, Aria hadn’t slept a single minute after the nightmare that had haunted her the entire night. The shadows of her stepfather's voice and her mother’s cold indifference lingered in the corners of her mind. Her ribs ached with a deep, hollow pain, and each breath she took felt heavier than the last.

She dragged herself out of bed, feeling the weight of her own body, every step an effort.

The cool, sterile feel of the bathroom greeted her, but it did little to calm the turmoil inside her. She stood in front of the mirror for a long moment, staring at the reflection that seemed foreign to her.

𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘥𝘰 𝘪 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴?

She thought bitterly, the bruises from the past not just on her body but in her eyes, in the hollow of her cheeks.

𝘐 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘶𝘨𝘭𝘺.

𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘴.

𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘤𝘢𝘯'𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘱?

She was just a shell, a shadow, haunted by ghosts she couldn’t escape.

With a trembling hand, she reached for the toothbrush, brushing her teeth with mechanical motions. It felt like everything in her life had become mechanical. Her heart, her mind, her body, they all moved without purpose, just going through the motions.

Then, she stepped into the shower. The water was hot, but the steam didn’t clear the suffocating weight in her chest. The pain in her ribs intensified with the hot water hitting her skin, but somehow, it became a strange kind of comfort. The discomfort grounded her, made her feel like she was still alive, no matter how much she wished she wasn’t.

She didn’t know how long she stood there, her body and mind both numb. The rhythmic pulse of the water against her skin was the only thing that kept her from losing herself entirely. The sound of the water was both soothing and tormenting, like a lullaby and a punishment all at once.

Finally, when her skin had turned pink from the heat and the water had run cold, she stepped out of the shower, her body feeling like it belonged to someone else.

She dressed quickly. She was still just a stranger in her own skin.

As she finished dressing, a soft knock at the door interrupted her thoughts. She froze for a moment, her heart hammering in her chest.

𝘞𝘩𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘣𝘦?

Her breath hitched, the familiar anxiety creeping up her throat.

Carefully, she walked toward the door, her fingers shaking as she grasped the handle. She opened it just enough to see who was there, her breath caught in her throat.

Luca stood in the doorway, his expression unreadable.

“Can I come in? ”

He said softly, his voice quiet, almost gentle.

Aria's heart was racing. She hadn’t expected anyone to come for her. She hadn’t expected anyone to care.

Without a word, she stepped aside, letting him in. The silence between them stretched, but it wasn’t as suffocating as it had been before. In that moment, it felt like something had shifted, though Aria couldn’t name it.