Chapter 31

After the most fitful night of sleep ever, I woke up that morning with a sense of dread, you know, the kind that clings to you like a heavy blanket you can’t shake off. The house was quieter than usual, but not the comforting kind. It was the unsettling quiet that hinted something wasn’t right.

Of course, I knew what wasn't right. After yesterday, how could I not?

I dragged myself out of bed, while feeling profoundly weary, to try to get ready for school even though I felt like shutting myself in for like..ever.

I sighed, rubbing the sleep out of my eyes, hoping the feeling would recede once I went downstairs and had a shit ton of coffee.

Spoiler alert. It didn’t.

Mom was already in the kitchen when I got there, a very rare occurrence, and her presence instantly sent a ripple of unease through me.

She glanced at me while I was descending the stairs, sipping her coffee, her posture stiff as though bracing herself for a conversation I wasn’t ready for.

To be honest, I would've turne