TW: abuse (if you may get triggered by this, then skip to the end and I'll do a brief summary of the chapter in the authors note)
The next morning, I found myself awake at 5am, already wide wake and unable to get back asleep. The shadows in the room leered at me, forcing me into a state of pure fear.
Each little movement scared me, as the thought of David plagued my mind, forcing me to scramble out of bed and to my feet upon looking at my fit bit and seeing the time. I needed to make breakfast.
I had to assume that David's schedule remained the same and he would be down by 7 O'clock, leaving me time to cook, clean, wash the utensils and dry up. However, I doubted I was going to be able to have enough time if I didn't hurry downstairs now.
Quickly hurrying to my feet, I silently crept across my room, the only sound that of my ragged breathing and soft footsteps. God only knew what David would have done if I had accidentally woken him up.
It was still dark, and I fumbled slightly when opening the kitchen door, only just able to see the outline of the handle. However, I soon realised I had worse issues to worry about, as I was reunited with the smell of drugs and alcohol.
I scrunched my noise up at the familiar stench and almost gagged at the sudden intensity of it. It had been a couple of months since I was last greeted by this stink, and I was unprepared for just how much it burnt at my nostrils.
Deciding not to have to torture myself with the stench, I inhaled deeply through my mouth, still gaining a weak smell of acidity but finding it was a lot better.
Upon solving the issue of the reeking smell, I reached over to the wall, allowing my hand to skim the damp surface before I came across the light switch. I quickly switched it on and after a few seconds of it just flickering, the bulb above my head lit up, its light so dim that I didn't even have to squint to become accustomed to the sudden light.
The small, cramped space that met my eyes brought back more memories than I would have liked. Glass shattered on the floor, blood staining the walls, peeling paint, bottles strewn across the counters, white powder resting on the sides.
Just at the sight of it, I wanted to cry, remembering the days of torture I had once had to face in this very room. Every twist of my stomach, every pound of my heart, every new scar never leaving my skin.
I could never forget that.
Quickly, I hurried over to the stove, my face contorting into that of disgust at the greasy, dirty, dust- covered surface. Being at my biological family's house, I had grown used to actually living in decent conditions.
Glancing at my fit bit once again, I saw ten minutes had already gone by.
Time to cook.
REUNITED
I was beyond scared.
The scrambled eggs had been sat on the table for the last fifteen minutes, and David still hadn't appeared downstairs, meaning the food was probably quite cold by now.
I had been hearing movement from upstairs for the last five minutes, and I had constantly debated whether I should have placed the scrambled egg on a low heat just until he came down, so it would warm up. However, I didn't want him to come down if it wasn't ready. I was sure he would have punished me.
But, after not hearing any footsteps thumping down the stairs after fifteen minutes, I finally decided to place the scrambled egg on the stove, feeling tense as I watched it heat up agonisingly slowly.
Who knew when he was going to appear?
I kept my gaze on the pan, deciding to wait five minutes before I took it back off the heat, not wanting to still have it on when David came down.
Only two minutes in, and I was more anxious than I cared to admit. The stove must have been broken or something because the egg wasn't heating up in the slightest, leaving me with a pan of cold mush. I was beyond scared to see how David would react.
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps thumping across the floor above me and beginning to walk down the stairs caught my attention. Shoot. David was coming.
My heart pounded harder against my chest, my head swirling with pure agonising thoughts of anxiety that ate away at me.
I quickly twisted around to check on the pan on the stove, only to immediately breath in sharply as I realised I hadn't turn on the right ring. I had put on the back one, not the front one.
Shoot!
Deciding I didn't particularly have much of a choice, I grabbed the pan filled with the cold egg and ran over to the table, my heart pounding as I heard David's footsteps reach the bottom of the stairs.
He would be walking down the hall in just a second, and then into the kitchen, only to see that I hadn't gotten his breakfast ready.
I knew I didn't have much time, and even if I did manage to have it ready, the fact that it was cold would have been enough to blow a fuse.
I hurriedly poured the sloppy mixture out of the pan and onto the two pieces of cold toast, wincing as I could practically see just how cold it was.
By now, David's footsteps were right outside the room and I took a shaky breath as he rounded the corner, dressed in a tank top and sweats. His hair was messy, and clearly hadn't been washed in days. His eyes were red with dark bags underneath.
He was high.
I hurriedly placed the pan back on the top of the stove, taking in slow and shaky breaths to try and calm my nerves, watching as the monster in front of me scanned the room, taking in the cold meal, still hot stove and my fearful expression.
"So the slut's made breakfast?" David smirked, his voice slightly slurred and heavy with drowsiness. "And the kitchen still isn't ready for me. What a bad slut."
I tried to swallow back the lump in my throat at his words, still fully aware of just how harshly my heart was pounding against my chest.
"I think the slut deserves punishment later on."
With those menacing words, my stepdad sauntered across the small room to the table, slipping into the seat in front of the plate of scrambled egg.
I waited anxiously, knowing I couldn't leave the room unless I wanted a black eye, but knowing I would get a black eye for his food being cold anyway.
David seemed to notice something was off because he raised his egg- heaped fork up to his mouth agonisingly slowly, locking his eyes on me and causing me to move my gaze away with the anticipation of what was to come.
He pushed the egg to his lip and almost instantly practically threw his fork back down on his plate, spitting out the food once again. "What the fuck is this?!" my stepdad screamed. "Why the hell is this so cold?!"
I flinched back harshly at his loud yelling, trembling from head to toe upon seeing the murderous look creating a tsunami in his black eyes.
I found myself taking an instinctive step back as he suddenly shoved his chair back, practically jumping to his feet, his hands gripping the table in front of him until they turned almost blue.
"You fucking bitch!" David screamed, and I took another step back, my back almost meeting the wall behind me as fear punded at my heart.
Before I even had time to react, David was already lunging at me, grabbing my neck and shoving me up against the wall in one quick motion. I gaped for breath, feeling my airways being cut off, panicking as I found myself unable to breath.
His grip was too strong so I was unable to move, my body too weak to fight back. He didn't let up, David's eyes never leaving my face, his lips twisted into a disgusting sneer. However, I could barely focus in this as I took large gasps of air, fighting to at least intake some oxygen.
The harshness of his grip on my neck was no help. His nails were mercilessly digging into my skin, his hand pressed so tightly around my throat it hurt almost more than the actual strangling.
"P- please," I whimpered, drawing in the last remnants of my breath, feeling my head beginning to spin from the lack of oxygen. My voice was hoarse and dry, cracking slightly as I spoke.
At my words, David let out a sadistic laugh, his eyes boring deeply into mine. His rank breath only made me want to gag, decreasing my short breaths further. "Sure thing, sweetie," my stepdad smirked.
Before I even had time to react, David suddenly pulled his hands away, causing me to stumble slightly as I became aware of the fact that his arm had been supporting my weak legs, now giving way beneath me.
I placed a hand on the wall to steady myself, my legs like jelly beneath me, even though I was more focused on the large gasps of breath I was taking in. Despite the stench of the room, I found I had never been more grateful to be able to breath in any form of air.
My breath came in pants as I relished the oxygen, gaining feeling in my body and causing me to find more strength in my legs so I stood up with no support.
"That's what you deserve, you slut," David spat, raising his hand swiftly and causing me to flinch back, before I was greeted with a familiar stinging pain spreading across my cheek. The harsh sound of the slap bounced throughout the kitchen as my band flew up to my face, holding onto the now aching area.
I didn't reply, knowing it would just get me into more trouble, and watched through my vision, slightly blurred with tears which I hadn't even noticed welling up in my eyes.
I blinked back the wet drops forming under my eyelids, feeling relief when the tears seemed to dissapitate.
My stepdad grabbed a bottle of pills from the side of the sink before he stomped out of the room, leaving me cowering in the corner, my cheek stinging and probably red, my throat aching and probably bruised.
I just hoped my brothers would get me soon.
Authors note for if you skipped the chapter-
Gabby made scrambled eggs but they were cold, so when David came down he chocked and slapped her.
I'M SO SO SO SO SORRY!!!!!!!!!! THIS UPDATE WAS SO LATE!!!!!!! I've only got a couple of exams left but they'll be over by the end of the week, so updates should be more frequent then. Sorry again!!!!!!! 💖💖💖💖💖💖
-Elin