Cole
As a conservative and Christian family, none of us are allowed to sleep like this. With another person, outside the house. But Mina's always an exception.
She fell asleep fast. I lay still beside her, wondering just how much she's going through. I look at her and smile at her peaceful form. If only she could stay like that, peaceful.
Her beauty radiates most when she's confident and calm. When she's sure of herself and not afraid of physical or emotional abuse.
Her face changes and her eyebrows meet. She starts shaking and I sit up.
"Mina?"
She tosses and turns, whimpering. Tears stream down her face as she tries to fight off whatever is haunting her.
She's punching the air, and pushing away something invisible to me.
I gently touch her arm and she flinches.
"Mina. Mina, wake up." I whisper, leaning towards her ear. I put my arms under her back and lift her so she's cradled in my arms. "Mina. Come on, wake up, hon."
She stops shaking but she's still crying. "Mina. I'm here. I've got you." I whisper into her ear, rocking myself. She also moves with me as she calms down.
"Mina, I'm here." She sits up straight, gasping. I'm caught off guard and almost fall backwards. "Mina?"
She looks back at me, eyes wide and scared.
"Mina. It's me. Cole. I'm here." I say softly, trying to sooth her. I place my hands on her arms and slowly rub them. She's cold.
It takes a while for her eyes to focus. She leans towards me, her head buried in my chest as I hug her to me.
"Cole..." She whispers.
"Yes? What is it?" I ask, rubbing her back.
"I don't want to go back." She continues.
I stop rubbing her back and stare at the fairy lights on the wall. "What about your mom?"
"I don't know. She can take care of herself. She always has." She says. I detect bitterness in her voice.
"Mina. She loves you." I say. "And you didn't tell her about it so it's kind of on you too."
She punches me and I chuckle.
She sits back and looks up at me through tears in her eyes. "I don't know what to do. He threatened me, Cole. And when he found out through all those posts about me, it no longer stayed a threat. He's doing it. Taking it to another level. And then there's-"
Her eyes widen and she gasps. "Mom."
She scrambles out of my arms and hurried down the tree. It takes me a second before I realize she's already on the ground.
"Mina, wait!" I call out, following her.
She's at their backdoor, trying to open it. She runs to the front of the house just as I reached the backdoor.
She runs back to me. "It's locked."
She's frantic now, panicking. I take her hands in mine, gently rubbing circles on her palms. "Mina. Tell me. What's wrong?"
"M-mom saw me, right? She saw that. She saw what he did." She stutters.
I nod.
She sinks to the ground her head in her hands. "This is my fault."
"Mina, what's your fault?" I ask, really confused right now.
She takes deep breaths and stands. "If mom ever found out, if I ever told her, h-he'd hurt her. He knows I favor mom over him. He knows hurting her would hurt me and he can't have any opposition to what he's doing at home."
YOU ARE READING
Beautifully Broken
Spiritual"I'm tired." I whisper, my voice breaking. "I can't do this anymore. It's too much." He pulls me closer and holds me as he always does. "You're a strong girl. People look up to you, Mina. You'll get through this, okay? You're not alone. You're a bea...
