Chapter 1

I'll never forget the night I heard banging and screaming. I ran down stairs without hesitation to find my mother laying on the floor. My father was standing over her yelling and screaming saying things so fast and mixed as if he was drunk, which he was.

I was only eight at the time so I was frozen at the bottom of the stairs, yet somehow I managed to scream at my dad and beg him to stop. After the shock and realization of me being there, he turned to me. He grabbed my neck and lifted me off the ground. He dug his nails into my throat causing me to bleed all while I was struggling to breathe.

I suddenly saw a glimpse of blue and red lights outside before he dropped me to the ground. I saw the door open before my eyes shut.When I came to my senses, I herded many people talking about me, but I couldn't wake up. It felt like a never ending dream except I didn't see anything. It was like I was in a dark room and all I could do was hear people on the outside.

I heard the word coma a few times the first day or week. I couldn't tell time in this state until I heard someone say "happy ninth birthday Nev." The only person to call me Nev (short for Nevaya) was people who'd known me since I was really little. Most of those people didn't contact us anymore or had past. This person started coming around more and I realized they were a man due to his voice.

I wanted to know who this guy was so bad and one day, my dark world suddenly had a white light. It was in the figure of a tall man. And when it reached me, I closed my eyes only to open them in a hospital room.

The nurses ran around checking my vitals and such. I was still confused on what was happening until I finally asked a nurse what was going on. She called in this strange woman who sat down in a chair next to me bed. "Hi Nevaya, my name is Karan. I'm a social worker who's going to help you." I didn't understand why she was here and where was my mom?! I guess she could see the confusion on my face and took a deep breath and let out a sigh. She stepped outside and made a call and soon after another woman walked in. They both sat down and the other introduced herself as doctor Jammie, she was a physiatrist.

I asked them what was going on and Jammie went on and on about things. Eventually she starts talking about abandonment and it all hit me. My mother had apparently left the hospital and never returned to see me. She then disappeared without a trace. My father was put in jail for attempt murder and child abuse. Which means I'd have to go live with a relative, but there wasn't anyone who would answer any calls. This meant I'd have to go into the "system". I didn't know what to do or say except "what about the man who visited me?" Both the doctor and social workers seemed so confused I explained that I heard a man's voice almost every day. They told me no one has visited me the entire seven months I was in a coma. They told me it was all probably just a dream or a mind trick. I zoned out most of the rest of the conversation.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***