Natalia ran into her room, tears streaming down her pale cheeks.
She had gotten away this night, away from Ivan.
Where was Katyusha? Her loving older sister always seemed to soothe her brother.
But not tonight, it happened that on it fateful night she was alone with her big brother and he was more aggressive than usual.
The doorknob rattle and Ivan swore in Russian. Natalia praised herself for having the good sense to lock it, buying her at least a few more precious moments.
"Open this damn door right this instant, Natalia!" he screamed. The door began to shake, threatening to topple over.
Natalia trembled and shouted in response, "Go away!"
And for a moment, there was silence. Then a sudden crash as the door fell to the ground, revealing Ivan behind it.
"Stay still sister," he chuckled as he moved closer, ignoring the look of terror on her face.
The next morning….
As her eyes opened to the dingy light and depressing sight of her room, Natalia groaned. Why must I wake at all? She questioned herself. More importantly, why am I even alive? The cuts on her wrists seemed especially visible today.
She threw on a long-sleeve t-shirt although the winter's bitter cold had never fazed her. Then it was off to school, the place she hated almost as much as home.
Upon exiting the bus, Maria practically jumped on her.
"Talia!" Maria called.
Ugh. Natalia hated that nickname. "What is it?" Her best friend's excitement wasn't helping with her depressed mood.
The Prussia sensed the somberness and frowned. "What's wrong?" she glanced down and saw Natalia's long sleeves. The frown grew deeper. She yanked up her friend's sleeves and grimaced at the marks.
"Did Ivan do this to you? Or did you do this to yourself?" Her tone was dry and flat, demanding.
"I don't see why it matters," Natalia responded, pulling down her sleeves.
Maria crossed her arms, "It matters to me."
"I know," one of the Belarusian's greatest fears was others caring about her.
The two were silent during the rest of their walk to class. Natalia's deep thoughts kept her occupied and distracted. So much so that after saying goodbye to Maria she tripped, straight into the arms of Alfred F. Jones.
"Shit!" she screamed. Their foreheads smacked together during the fall. "I'm sorry, I-"she rubbed her head and looked up. His blue eyes seemed to pierce her soul, sending a shock of a foreign emotion through her.
"Natalia, right? Wow, I'm so sorry." He collected their books and looked at her for the first time. She was beautiful, with long blonde hair and deep blue eyes. They were like the ocean, and he was lost as sea. "Um wow, WOW. Are you ok?"
The Belarusian girl looked startled, "Yes and I'm fine," she picked up her books and gave him a cool stare.
"I'm Alfred, I've seen you around…what's up?" he rubbed the back of his next in anxiety.
Her gaze could've been sharp enough to cut diamonds. "What do you want?"
"Nothing! I just..." his gaze shifted from her face to chest and finally rested on her arm where the sleeve had crinkled up. "What's that?" he reached out for her hand and felt a wave of despair when she recoiled.
"You don't need to know," she said harshly and stormed away, contemplating the boy's unusual kindness as she left.
"Wait-" he tried to stop her but Natalia had already left, sending his spirits even deeper.