Evelyn Marrow moved to the small town alone, dragging her suitcase across the cracked pavement. Her mind buzzed with the voices she called knives—sharp, endless, and impossible to silence.
People had called her delusional for as long as she could remember. Maybe they were right. Maybe they weren't. Either way, she had stopped trying to explain herself. Words were useless when nobody believed them. Silence was easier.
Now, silence was all she had....
The house she bought sat at the edge of a quiet street, white paint peeling along the edges. From a distance it looked welcoming almost pretty but standing in front of it, Evelyn felt her stomach twist. Something about the place was wrong. Like the air itself was holding its breath.
She stood there for a long moment, staring at the dark windows. Then she tightened her grip on the keys, filled her lungs with one shaky breath, and stepped forward.
This was her new beginning. Whether it would save her or ruin her.She didn't know.
She opened the door to her new house. It looked... well, dirty. Dropping her suitcase on the floor, she headed straight to the living room. With a deep breath, she began to clean.
All of a sudden, a sound came from the basement.
In movies, basements were always the most horrifying, eerie places. Evelyn stared at the basement door, debating whether she should go down or not. Her mind filled with the voices of knives again. She shut her eyes, took a slow breath, and turned away. Instead of going downstairs, she climbed up to her room.
The bedroom was small, cozy even, though dusty.She cleaned it as best as she could or at least, enough to convince herself it was livable. Then she opened the window.
The view was peaceful. Directly across from her was another house, and from her spot she could see straight into the neighbor's window.
Evelyn lingered, her gaze fixed on the glass. Then, without warning, the opposite window opened. Her black eyes met a pair of hazel ones. A boy stood there, dark hair falling over his forehead, hazel eyes catching the last of the fading light.
Evelyn offered an awkward small smile and a little wave.
He didn't return it. He simply looked at her, then closed the window without a word.
Evelyn's hand fell back to her side. A strange heaviness sank into her chest. She had hoped for kindness just a little but instead, she was left with silence once again.
She closed the window and started cleaning the house. It took her hours, but at last, the place looked livable. Since she still needed to go grocery shopping, she ordered pizza for the day. After eating, she took a bath and went to sleep.
The next day, she woke up with her mind throbbing in pain, as if pierced by the sound of knives. Holding her head, she began to cry. Her mother died at her birth and her dad married another woman who was cruel to Evelyn. At eighteen, she moved into a hostel to live on her own while working a small job at a café. Life had always been hard for her.
School was no better....it was hell. Every single day, she was bullied. She wished, more than anything, to have someone who would love her, someone who would take care of her. She longed to be loved, but it was the one thing she had never known.
She got up and went through her usual morning routine. After freshening up, she grabbed her bag and stepped outside for a quick grocery run.
As soon as she stepped out, she caught sight of the same boy from yesterday standing across the street. Their eyes met briefly before she looked away and headed straight to her car.
At the store, she picked up a few essentials, then drove back home. Dropping the bags on the counter, she settled onto the couch with her laptop.She scrolled through a few nearby universities, checking out their arts programs, though she wasn't sure where she wanted to go yet.