The Girl Behind the Window

Chapter 1

If there is spice I'll put 🌶️ on the chapter just so you guys know ❤️
Also this and the moretti book is the books I'm going to be focusing on so I'll be posting this book every Friday Saturday Sunday and Monday ❤️

Elena PoV

The sound of my alarm dragged me out of sleep at exactly 5:30 a.m.

I stared at the cracked ceiling above my bed for a few seconds before reaching over and silencing it.

For a moment, everything was quiet.

Peaceful.

Then I heard heavy footsteps downstairs.

My stomach immediately tightened.

Dad was awake.

The small sense of peace disappeared instantly.

I pushed myself out of bed and quickly got dressed in a pair of black jeans and an oversized hoodie. The hoodie was one of my favorites because it hid everything—my figure, my nervous fidgeting, and sometimes even the bruises.

Not that anyone usually noticed.

Most people didn't notice me at all.

I walked downstairs carefully.

Dad was sitting at the kitchen table with a coffee mug in one hand and his phone in the other.

I kept my eyes lowered.

"Morning," I said quietly.

He grunted.

I moved around the kitchen, making breakfast exactly the way he liked it.

Eggs.

Toast.

Coffee.

No mistakes.

No excuses.

No reason for him to get angry.

Years of practice had made me good at predicting his moods.

Unfortunately, it didn't always help.

When I placed the plate in front of him, he looked up.

"What time do you finish work today?"

"Six."

"Don't be late getting home."

"I won't."

His eyes narrowed.

"You said that last week."

My grip tightened around my coffee mug.

"I was only ten minutes late because—"

"Did I ask for excuses?"

I immediately shook my head.

"No."

The silence that followed felt suffocating.

Finally, he looked back down at his phone.

I released a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding.

Crisis avoided.

For now.

⸻

The bookstore was my favorite place in the world.

It wasn't fancy.

It wasn't popular.

But it was quiet.

Safe.

The moment I stepped inside, the familiar scent of books wrapped around me like a blanket.

"Morning, Elena."