The clock strikes midnight, sometimes even one, and a familiar dread washes over me. Not the dread of something bad happening, but the dread of another night stretching endlessly, suffocating me in its silence. I’m in my late teens, living with my grandparents, and while they shower me with love, there’s a chasm inside me they can’t see, a void my parents’ constant bickering and eventual separation carved deep. My home, once a bustling sanctuary, became a battlefield, and then, eerily quiet. I was sent to live with Nana and Nani, a safe harbour, but one that felt miles away from understanding the storm raging within me.
My Secret Midnight Walks: Hoping to Disappear, But Always Coming Home
Published Anonymously
Submitted by a real person and published with their consent. Identity is never revealed.