Chapter 37: You Can’t Keep Hiding
Alex had been home for three long days. He hadn’t smiled. He hadn’t spoken much either, not to Emma or anyone. His eyes stayed distant, his body slumped most of the time on the couch or on his bed, and his mind seemed lost in a dark place no one could reach. He was broken. Shattered by something no one could understand because he refused to say a word about it.
His bruises had faded slightly, but his silence grew louder.
Emma tried at first, softly, and gently, asking what happened, what went wrong, but each time she asked, he would just shake his head and say nothing to worry about. She didn’t push but worry consumed her. Her brother was falling apart right in front of her.
Sarah, on the other hand, had just finished her classes and went to his house. He wanted to look after him because of how quiet and strange Alex had become. She barged into his room the moment she arrived.
There he was, sitting on the floor by the window, knees pulled to his chest, staring into space like he was waiting for the world to end.
"Alex," she said softly but got no response.
She walked in fully, arms crossed, her voice suddenly rising. "Enough, young man! It’s been three days, and I can’t keep watching you like this. What the hell is going on? You’re not eating, not talking, not sleeping properly. This isn’t you. This is not the Alex I know!"
He didn’t flinch. He didn’t blink.
She took a deep breath and stormed toward him. "Look at me!" she said, her voice now shaking. "Spit it out. Whatever it is, just say it. Stop sulking like a child."
Still silence.
Then she said it, the name he hadn’t heard her call in years. "Alexander."