20. Jessica.

15 years ago.

I hear the sound of glass shattering and I stiffen, my heart pounding. It was a sound that cut through the air like a knife, piercing my ears and making my heart race. I am seating in my room with my two younger sisters, trying to distract them from the screaming and shouting coming from the living room. But it was impossible to ignore.

My father was drunk again, and he was taking out his anger on my mother. I could hear her crying, begging him to stop, but he wouldn't listen. He never did. The next thing is he's pining her to the kitchen counter and taking her there and all she can do is muffle her screams. I know because I had seen it before. Sick groans fill my ears and I cover them with my hands, hating it. My mother doesn't fight back, she never does.

"Is he going to hurt us?" Sophie mutters beside me, her voice shaking as tears brim in her eyes. I clean them off with my thumb, swallowing.

"No," I whisper back, pulling her closer to me. Emma is crying into my chest,