A New Chance - a Doki Doki Literature Club story

Chapter 5: A Watchful Eye

A vivid brightness shown through the dark, pink curtains of the small bedroom, lightening up the room so that everything was visible. A small white chair could be seen pushed into a computer desk filled with pink flower designs of different sizes and shapes. Overall, the setup was made for a person of short stature and seemed cutesy enough to assume that the child was young. Mounds of clothing cover the floor, ranging from t-shirts and dresses to underwear and sleek bras. Even though the room was full of wonderful, innocent decorations, it couldn't hide what had been done to the one who lived there. A small body started to rustle, finally waking from a heavy slumber that was short-lived. This person struggled to lift herself out of her makeshift bed, made out of many pillows and fabric. Once she got out of bed, in the light it was easily recognizable who it was.

Natsuki.

Ugh, it's too early to be doing this.

She limped while she searched for her school uniform around the carpet floor where limitless clothing littered it's soft surface. Before she finds her uniform, Natsuki catches a glimpse of a fresh spot of blood that made its way there only a few hours ago. The memory of her father smashing her arm against the kitchen table makes her eyes water a bit since she had tried to put her father in a good mood after his drunken adventure yesterday. She cleaned the kitchen and the living room in hopes of appeasing him, however it was useless. Her father always came up with a reason to lash out at her, this time saying how he wanted to save the leftover beers for later. She clutches her arm in pain, hoping her arm recovers enough that her faltered movements aren't noticeable to the people in her school.

She didn't like to keep attention to herself too long since she's long given up on anyone caring about her horrifying reality. The last time she tried to explain her situation to someone, they had failed of keeping her secret sound, giving her more pain than resolution in the end.

~~~

Her father got a call from her middle school, suggesting that someone suspected him of child abuse. He softly questioned her about why the school wanted to talk about this "nonsense about abuse." Natsuki tried to keep her voice as calm as possibly as she told him that someone ratted her out to the counseling office. Her father looked at her with a look of emptiness that made her feel a pit in her stomach. Before he enter the counseling office, he told Natsuki to look at him, looked her straight in the eyes, and said...

"I'll figure what to do with you after I've sorted this out."

He was able to smooth talk his way out of any concerns they had for the girl and quickly let out the two from school grounds without further intervention. The car ride home was felt like an eternity for Natsuki, knowing with each minute they got closer to their home, the sooner the impending hell would commence. When they arrived at their house, her father simply told her to get out the car and stand near the front door. Before they entered, he looked down at her and had a spiteful expression on his face.

"You'll get what you deserve, you bad girl," he said as they entered into the living room.

She cringed at that sentence, knowing that this wasn't his usual anger towards her. She tried to mentally prepare for the chaos that would ensue. As she predicted, Natsuki experienced the most brutal beating that she would ever get in her lifetime. Her father first whipped her with his leather belt, leaving many scars on her back. Next, she was punched in the gut and her chest for almost half an hour before her father took a minute rest. She was barely able to pull herself up, tears streaming down her face as she tried pleading to him to have mercy.

"I'm sorry Papa! I'm sorry for being a bad girl! I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."

However, her father never said a word as she was picked up by him. He walked up the steps to her bedroom. For a moment, she finally thought it was over and that he would simply tell her to get out of his sight and leave her there. She relaxed for a moment, not expecting what happened next.