Running With Wolves

Chapter 1

One kick. Two kicks. After 4 I lose count and just try not to make any noises and upset my father more. 

"Stupid child!" 

"Worthless piece of crap!" 

"You wanna cry? Suck it up!" 

My father keeps repeating these words to me, punch after punch, kick after kick for about 30 minutes now. I've actually gotten used to it. 

After about 10 more minutes of tormenting me, my drunk father leaves me on the floor and stumbles towards the couch and passes out. I lay there for a few minutes deciding whether or not I should let myself die right then and there, or to get up. I feel the necklace on my chest that my mother gave me, and I get up for her. 

You see, my mother committed suicide when I was 6 years old right in front of me. Right before she swallowed the pills, she gave me this necklace and told to me to hold on to it forever. 

It's the silhouette of a wolf. 

Ever since she died, my father is always drunk, blaming me for her death, and punishing me for it with beatings. The first time he hit me was when I was 7 and he had slapped me right before my first day of school. 

My teacher called him asking what happened and he covered it up by saying I fell down the stairs. 

Since then, he hits me everywhere else other than my face. I slowly get up off the ground and limp upstairs to my washroom. When I get inside and lock the door, I stripped all my clothes and gingerly step into the tub. 

I turn on the freezing cold water and numb my body, and mind. After a few minutes of standing in the shower, I start to scrub my body of all the dried blood and dirt. I examine my body and see that I have multiple bruises on my stomach, ribcage, legs and arms. I have a large cut on my shoulder from the knife my father uses sometimes. 

I turn off the water, dry myself and I look in the mirror. I see a skinny girl with a hopeless look in her sleep-deprived eyes, a black eye and a bruise on her jaw. I notice that my grey eyes are now dull and don't sparkle like they used to. 

A tear rolls down my cheek realizing how much I've changed. I am no longer the happy, healthy girl I was before, and I feel more depressed than ever. 

At that moment I realize it's my 16th birthday.

 I try to forget about everything and tend to my injuries. After I finish, I plop onto my bed and curl up into a ball. 

Right before I fell asleep, I could've sworn I heard a howl and a pair of yellow eyes staring at me.