Part 1: A Silent Battle Before Dawn
I kept telling everyone I was okay… but the truth was very different.
That night felt longer than any night I had ever lived.
Every time I tried to sleep, my thoughts pulled me back into the same endless cycle of questions. What if something goes wrong? What if I don’t wake up? What if I wake up… but I’m not the same person anymore?
The room around me was quiet, peaceful even. But inside my mind, nothing was calm. Every second felt heavy, stretched, and uncertain.
I turned from side to side, trying to escape my thoughts, but they followed me everywhere. Fear has a way of doing that—it doesn’t make noise, yet it fills every corner of your mind.
Sometime around midnight, the door opened slowly.
It was my mom.
She stepped in quietly, thinking I was asleep. But I wasn’t. I hadn’t really slept at all.
She sat beside me and gently placed her hand over mine, just like she used to do when I was younger.
“I know you’re awake,” she whispered.
I turned my head toward her. Even in the dim light, I could see her eyes—tired, and slightly red.
“I didn’t want to wake you,” I said softly.
“You didn’t,” she replied. “I couldn’t sleep either.”
For a moment, we said nothing. We just sat there, holding hands. It reminded me of childhood nights when I was afraid of the dark, and she would stay until I felt safe again.
But this time… it wasn’t the dark I was afraid of.
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