The rain had followed her home.
Ryu stood under the shower longer than usual that night, as if the water could scrub away the strange glances, the cruel whispers, and the deafening silence of Section C. She barely ate dinner. Her aunt's voice echoed from the kitchen, talking on the phone like always. Her uncle hadn't returned yet.
She changed into her loose cotton kurta, hair damp, sketchbook untouched.
The house was too quiet. Too still.
Her bed felt unfamiliar. Like a place that knew too many secrets.
⏳ That Night...
She turned to her side and closed her eyes. Sleep came fast — but it didn't stay kind.
🔥 The Dream
There was fire.
Not around her — on her.
Her left wrist was being held over a candle, her skin blistering slowly, painfully.
A man's voice, muffled and violent, roared around her.
"Speak! Or I'll burn it deeper!"
She screamed.
She fought him. Clawed at his hands. Kicked his chest.
The room was dark. No light. Only shadows moving like monsters.
Blood on her fingertips.
Glass breaking.
A door slammed shut.
And then—
Nothing.
💔 The Panic Attack
Ryu's body jolted upward from her bed like someone had pulled her out of water.
Her breathing was uneven.
Then sharp.
Then choking.
Her fingers clawed at her neck. She couldn't breathe.
Her chest caved in.
Her windpipe was closing.
She gasped.
No sound came.
The memory — the heat, the screaming, the man — slammed into her like a truck.
But the faces were blurred.
The voices distorted.
🧠 [Ryu's Inner Voice — Fading In and Out]
It happened...
He grabbed me...
Why can't I remember his face...?
My hand... it burned... someone hurt me...
Am I... broken?
I forgot... again... I always forget...
Why? Why? WHY?
🚪 A Door Opens
Strong arms wrapped around her, pulling her up. A warm hand covered her forehead. A bottle uncapped.
Medicine. Drops under her tongue.
Her uncle.
"Ishi... shh. You're okay. I'm here."
He gently rubbed her back, helping her breathe again, her body shaking like paper in wind.
She was drenched in sweat, heart pounding out of her ribs.
He didn't ask questions.
He just said, "Sleep, child. It's over."
😶🌫️ But it wasn't.
Because when her eyes closed again, she felt it — a phantom memory pressing on her mind.
A name she once screamed.
A face she once trusted.
But as her body slipped into sedation, the memory faded...
...like it always did.
📓 End of Chapter 4
"Some wounds don't bleed. They burn."
"And some memories don't fade. They wait
❓ Do you think her uncle is hiding something... or protecting her from the truth?
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