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Obviously I knew that I had a lot to be grateful for

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Obviously I knew that I had a lot to be grateful for. A nice place to sleep and good food to eat. But for the first time, I didn't think about how unfair the world was, or what a bitch mom was for sending me to live with dad.

Instead I remembered the people who had next to nothing and if it weren't for dad's building, they would be on the streets, or in dangerous relationships, or starving to feed their drug addiction.

The morning sunshine comes in through the building tops as I sit on the roof and drink a smoothie. It's peaceful, the traffic hums below, birds sit on the brick surround and chirp, the tips of full green trees can be seen dotting down the street.

I prop my feet up on the glass coffee table, the sunlight reflects off my freshly shaved legs. My fingertips graze my smooth thigh and I'm winded because suddenly, it's not my fingertips, it's his.

There's a lot I don't remember about that night, I still don't know what I'd been slipped but it made me incoherent. What I do remember, is enough. His kisses, they were harmless at the beginning. His fingers dragging along the inside of my thigh, his words, "you're beautiful, Luce."

Trembling, my hand goes higher, underneath the hem of my skirt and images of his hand doing the same thing come rushing in. More of his words. "Come on, don't be a tease." A struggle took place, I tried to grab his wrist. "Shut up, shut up." His hand clamped down on my mouth. It's more of a blur until a picture materializes, him on top of me, his hand still pressed across my lips while he moves in and out.

The painful friction down there, it felt like I was being burned.

Tears roll down my cheeks as I sit, hand in my underwear, not even able to touch myself without his presence coming along and reminding me that I've been stolen. That's his now. The most intimate part of my body belongs to someone else because if I had given it, I'd have received something in return. Perhaps love, or at least pleasant memories. Instead, he took what wasn't his and there's no respectful exchange in theft.

I shower for the second time that morning.

That afternoon, I sit in the living room, scrolling through my phone, bored. My finger stings and I raise it to find a pin drop of blood pooling around my nail bed. It's a visual reminder to breathe, relax, leave my hands alone, stop clenching my jaw. I stick my finger into my mouth and suck while I double tap a photo of Nari's new cartoon sketch.

It's a photo of two girls in superhero costumes. Capes, armor, the head wear. Nari will never draw her super girls with their boobs falling out of a small top or their ass cheeks showing from the bottom of their skirts. If men get armor, so do we. Her fan base loves it too.

There're two light taps on the front door. Dad isn't home and I contemplate ignoring it until there's a third and fourth tap. When I look through the peephole, I see Niles standing on the doorstep, hand leaning on the frame while he looks back at me. He can't really see me of course but I still jump with a startle and then open the door.

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