The Existence I Crave

2

BANG!

I opened my eyes, letting them adjust to the darkroom, looking over at my bedside table, to see that the alarm clock read 2:30 a.m. I slowly sat up in bed, trying to be as quiet as possible.

What was that noise?

Has someone broken into the house?

I got out of bed, tiptoeing over to my bedroom door, quietly opening the door to see if I could see anything. I walked out into the hallway, looking around to see no one there, I made my way further down the hall only to stop in my tracks.

The living room light was turned on and someone was definitely in there. Taking a shaky breath, I poked my head around the corner, hoping to catch a peek at the intruder.

"Kevin?" I asked, letting out a sigh of relief.

I walked into the living room, as he sat on the couch staring at me.

"Well, well, well. Look who it is, it's little Tommy," he slurred out, causing me to cringe at the nickname.

Great, he's drunk.

"Are you ok?"

Kevin stood from his spot on the couch, stumbling over to where I was at, with each step he took, I took one back until my back was flat against the wall. I was scared right now, I've never seen him like this, I mean yeah I've seen him drunk before, but he was different this time.

"You know if it wasn't for me your pathetic ass would be on the streets right now," Kevin said, his voice full of malice.

I breathed in a shaky breath as he placed both of his hands on either side of me, trapping me in.

"You should show a little gratitude for the man who saved your ass."

Kevin's voice was low, threatening almost. The air around us was thick with tension, it was hard to breathe as I stared up at his cold eyes.

"I, um."

Kevin leaned away from me, removing his hands from the wall, as his right hand made contact somewhere on the right side of my face. My body collapsed onto the cold floor, as I desperately tried to back away from him, but my attempts were for nothing. Kevin took one step forward and was standing in front of my cowering form.

Tears began to fall from my eyes, the warmth from them made contact with my swelling cheek, bringing me little comfort as I watched Kevin draw back his fist once more.

"You disrespectful little shit," Kevin screamed at me before grabbing the collar of my shirt, pulling me closer to him as his fist collided with my mouth.

Kevin forcefully shoved me to the floor, an overwhelming metallic taste filled my mouth, he didn't even give me time to recover before he delivered a swift kick to my stomach. My lungs felt as if they had quit working as I wheezed out what felt like my last breath.

I curled myself into the fetal position, praying that he would leave me alone, I could feel his eyes staring down at me, as blood started to drip onto the floor. My body was shaking, I couldn't stop the tears as I tried to get air back into my lungs,

Kevin sighed loudly as he began to walk away from me.

"No wonder your mother left you behind, you're pathetic and worthless."

A loud sob escaped from between my bloodied lips as the sound of his door slamming shut reached my ears.

"And clean up your mess before going to bed," Kevin screamed at me after he had reopened his bedroom door.