Never Again

Sera

I was slightly alarmed that my state of shock faded within the next hour. Had I really gone through so many traumatic experiences that I was barely fazed anymore?

But the pain of my injuries didn’t get better. They smarted and stung, and it hurt to talk. And eat. All I wanted to do was enjoy Pepper’s chicken noodle soup, but every swallow sent a sharp ache down my nerves. I quickly gave up and took Olivia’s offer to head up to the “apartment” Killian used to live in when he was younger. Mom and Penny were already in the process of transferring my belongings up there. It went unspoken that I wasn’t going to return to either of my former bedrooms for a while.

“Do you want one of us to help you shower?” Olivia asked. “We can wrap up your scratches again, no problem.”

I did want to shower. Mattia’s blood was crusted in my hair. Even though my friends had cleaned me up, there were still flecks of red drying on my face, neck, arms, and legs. And I desperately wanted to change my clothe