42 - My Past Laid Bare

“Obviously, I survived. Everything happened so quickly that a truck hit us from the side. The drunk driver had also died. And my parents were not answering my cries. I saw them die in front of me, drenched in blood. Can you imagine my mom was pregnant at that time? I passed out and awoke in a hospital room with a social worker waiting for me.”

“You were fostered,” Julian presumes.

“I did. Nerissa, the woman, took me in. She was Mom’s friend from the neighborhood. She found out what had happened and offered to help me. Leon, her son, was a different story.” I swallow dryly, remembering how terrified I used to be whenever he came home. “He’s my age, wasn’t always home, but whenever he was, it’s just chaotic. He took different girls at home, doing drugs and other things. He used to hurt Nerissa when he was high. I always went into my room and hid.”

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