Astrophile

099

Hiii!! Guess who has a biology exam in two days and still has 8 chapters left to study? That's right, it's me!! Also, look at hot ass [Name] by our one and only @Ben Dover like Omg!! SHE'S SO PRETTY!! LOOK AT HER HAIR AND HER EYES AND HER AMAZING SKIN TONE, PLS LET ME HAVE THIS BEAUTY!!

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With your mind still stuck on the thoughts swirling in your head, you could barely pay attention to your dinner. Watching your quietened form, your father nervously exchanged glances with your brother. With a small cough, the older man turned to you.

"Is everything alright, sweetie? We can get something else if you don't wanna eat it?" He suggested and your eyes were kept stuck on the plate of [Favorite Food] in front of you.

Seeing as how you didn't react, [Father Name] looked back at your brother in worry before placing a hand on top of your shoulder, and shaking you slightly, "[Name]?"

You were pulled out of your thoughts and immediately shot up to grab the knife nearby, ready to stab anyone who might hurt you. But seeing your actions, your father back away, "Calm down, sweetie!! It's just me!!" He whispered, trying to ease you up. You stared at him for a good minute before lowering your hand and dropping the knife.

"Sorry, dad... I'm just a bit tired..." You uttered, eyes pooling in the unfathomable amounts of horror you had witnessed in your 15 years of existence. Without another word, you ate your already cold food and picked up the empty plate, placing it in the sink and promising your father that you'll do the dishes later in the morning.

He tried to tell you that it was fine, but you had already left the room. Worry flooded in the man's chest, nipping away at his consciousness as he thought of the worst. Were you not happy with them?

It was an unmitigated fear that always resided in his head, always scaring him to the depths of madness. You were his child, the child he wished he could have given the world.

How unfortunate that instead of the world, he couldn't even do the bare minimum of giving you a childhood that you could cherish...

With a worried gaze, the single father turned to look at his son who was watching your retreating figure with a melancholic look.

"Is she... alright?" [Father Name] started, looking down at his own food with a look of perturbation. Your brother did the same before picking up his chopsticks and eating his own food.

"She might be, or not." The younger man shrugged his shoulder while chewing his food, "We have to understand that we will never be able to perceive what [Name] has went through for the last 12 years of her life..." With one final chew, he swallowed his bite.

"You and I... have had the luxury of living freely... But for her, all this sudden freedom and this changed lifestyle is hard to comprehend, and it doesn't help that this is the same house where all the memories that she probably recalls are the worst of her life..." With a sigh, he put down his chopsticks and looked at his father directly in the eyes.

"Dad, [Name] is no longer our fragile, little princess who we need to protect with our lives..." With a deep breath, he continued, "[Name] is now a fully grown, young lady. She is stronger than both you and me. If she wanted to, she could tear down all of Tokyo... That is how strong [Name] is..."

"And she doesn't need us either... She doesn't need our pampering or our worries because she has lived 12 years without them, and has survived through that hellhole..." With a firm gaze, he uttered the last sentence.

"[Name] does not need someone to raise her, because she has raised herself on her own just fine..."

The last sentence was like the last nail in the coffin, completely closing off any chance to think. Your father thought that maybe if he could try to be a better parent, then maybe you might trust them. But even after spending time with you in the hospital and bringing you home, it seems like the damage done to you was far too deep for them to see.