point.
“I already did.” And I really hoped it would help.
“I won’t let this family fall apart.”
“I know you won’t, Mom, and I won’t let it either.”
“The way your father acts sometimes… it can break us!” she cried.
I wanted to scream. I wanted to cry. I wanted to weep. “Mom, listen to me. I know he can be mean. I know he’s losing his temper. But we need to understand him. He has cancer, Mom. Cancer ,” I said softly. “We need to be his anchor. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t agree with the way he’s acting, I told him as much, and I will keep on telling him. But please,” I begged, “don’t give up on him. Don’t judge him based on his weaker moments. He needs you. He needs us .”
Her lips quivered as she stifled a sob with a hand across her mouth. I set her legs down and stood. Hugging her to me, I placed her head on my stomach while I rubbed slow circles across her back. I could feel her muffled sobs, and I gave her this moment to fall apart. To unleash her pain. My eyes were burning and the lump in my throat almost choked the life out of me. I gave myself this moment to cry with her.
“I...” She choked out. “I’ll try harder.”
It was enough for me.With a kiss on her cheek, I left her outside and went in. I checked on my dad again. He was sound asleep. I went upstairs to my room and flopped down on my bed, feeling drained. Ace wasn’t far to follow.
“I’ve missed you, buddy.”
I settled in with him, holding onto him while closing my eyes. I was so tired yet not quite ready for sleep. I grabbed my phone from the nightstand, pressed the home button and noticed I had two text messages waiting.
Dorian: Ashes Remain - Change My Life
Dorian: When you live in total darkness and suddenly a ray of light brightens your days and your nights, you hold on to it.
A smile broke across my face. He was using the same method I used to connect with my dad. Music held as much meaning for him as it did for me. Somehow, I was happy to learn that fact.
Typing a message back, I hit send, and prayed that I was making the right choice.
“All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.”
— Francis of Assisi
D ust. I felt like I was I buried in a cloud of dust. I could smell it and I could fucking taste it. My nostrils were on fire and my eyes burned. I was suffocating, unable to inhale air into my lungs. I ached in places I never knew existed. My head spun round and round from the intense pain, caused by the monster who found me among the wreckage. I could feel the long gash that branded my skin while the metallic taste of blood enveloped my senses.
I was lying on my stomach; face down, the hard wood beneath my limbs increasing my pain with every breath I took. Fresh blood from other parts of my body dribbled on the dirty floor; the sounds of the ‘drip, drip, drip’ echoed in the stillness. I had no idea where I was. All I could remember was the explosion that caught us off guard while on patrol. I could still feel the heat of the burning flames and I could still smell the smoke that made it difficult to breathe. And then, I remembered the monster that walked through the inferno directly towards me with an evil glare, cutting me like I was a piece of meat.
Rage exploded in my veins and dread spread in the pit of my stomach as I remembered my brothers lying on the ground. I had no idea what had happened to them. Had they been captured like me? Were they even alive?
I needed to save my strength for the perfect moment to get myself out of this cell and find them.
Hearing the sound of a creaking door, my body tensed. From the angle I was positioned on the floor, I could observe with one eye what took place in the room without being noticed. Still as a statue, hardly breathing, I heard footsteps coming towards me. The muscles in my body stiffened because I was fucking terrified.
In the eerie silence, a chilling voice echoed in
“I already did.” And I really hoped it would help.
“I won’t let this family fall apart.”
“I know you won’t, Mom, and I won’t let it either.”
“The way your father acts sometimes… it can break us!” she cried.
I wanted to scream. I wanted to cry. I wanted to weep. “Mom, listen to me. I know he can be mean. I know he’s losing his temper. But we need to understand him. He has cancer, Mom. Cancer ,” I said softly. “We need to be his anchor. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t agree with the way he’s acting, I told him as much, and I will keep on telling him. But please,” I begged, “don’t give up on him. Don’t judge him based on his weaker moments. He needs you. He needs us .”
Her lips quivered as she stifled a sob with a hand across her mouth. I set her legs down and stood. Hugging her to me, I placed her head on my stomach while I rubbed slow circles across her back. I could feel her muffled sobs, and I gave her this moment to fall apart. To unleash her pain. My eyes were burning and the lump in my throat almost choked the life out of me. I gave myself this moment to cry with her.
“I...” She choked out. “I’ll try harder.”
It was enough for me.With a kiss on her cheek, I left her outside and went in. I checked on my dad again. He was sound asleep. I went upstairs to my room and flopped down on my bed, feeling drained. Ace wasn’t far to follow.
“I’ve missed you, buddy.”
I settled in with him, holding onto him while closing my eyes. I was so tired yet not quite ready for sleep. I grabbed my phone from the nightstand, pressed the home button and noticed I had two text messages waiting.
Dorian: Ashes Remain - Change My Life
Dorian: When you live in total darkness and suddenly a ray of light brightens your days and your nights, you hold on to it.
A smile broke across my face. He was using the same method I used to connect with my dad. Music held as much meaning for him as it did for me. Somehow, I was happy to learn that fact.
Typing a message back, I hit send, and prayed that I was making the right choice.
“All the darkness in the world cannot extinguish the light of a single candle.”
— Francis of Assisi
D ust. I felt like I was I buried in a cloud of dust. I could smell it and I could fucking taste it. My nostrils were on fire and my eyes burned. I was suffocating, unable to inhale air into my lungs. I ached in places I never knew existed. My head spun round and round from the intense pain, caused by the monster who found me among the wreckage. I could feel the long gash that branded my skin while the metallic taste of blood enveloped my senses.
I was lying on my stomach; face down, the hard wood beneath my limbs increasing my pain with every breath I took. Fresh blood from other parts of my body dribbled on the dirty floor; the sounds of the ‘drip, drip, drip’ echoed in the stillness. I had no idea where I was. All I could remember was the explosion that caught us off guard while on patrol. I could still feel the heat of the burning flames and I could still smell the smoke that made it difficult to breathe. And then, I remembered the monster that walked through the inferno directly towards me with an evil glare, cutting me like I was a piece of meat.
Rage exploded in my veins and dread spread in the pit of my stomach as I remembered my brothers lying on the ground. I had no idea what had happened to them. Had they been captured like me? Were they even alive?
I needed to save my strength for the perfect moment to get myself out of this cell and find them.
Hearing the sound of a creaking door, my body tensed. From the angle I was positioned on the floor, I could observe with one eye what took place in the room without being noticed. Still as a statue, hardly breathing, I heard footsteps coming towards me. The muscles in my body stiffened because I was fucking terrified.
In the eerie silence, a chilling voice echoed in
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