Bullied by my Stepbrother

1, Boy in the woods

The lake was my escape.It always has been. The crisp air, and the glitter of the moon shadow shining on the water always had a way of filling in that emptiness I feel inside. When the world felt too loud, too crowded, too much, I’d grab my camera and slip away to the water’s edge. I gripped my camera, positioning it perfectly to capture the way the moonlight danced on the water, the way the trees swayed in the breeze, the way the world felt alive even when I didn’t.The sound of a tree branch break hit my ears. I froze. It sounded sharp, like something heavy stepped on it. My eyes scan the area, looking for the source of the noise. Nothing. I dropped my eyes back to my camera, absorbing the view of nature till a figure passed. My heart stopped. I took in a sharp breath as my eyes widened trying to spot the figure. A shadow shifted at the edge of the trees, and my finger paused on the record button.I took another sharp breath as the figure stepped into the moonlight. My breathing p...