Chapter 58: "Whispers Louder Than Screams"
The drawer creaked open like it knew her.
Zariah stared at the blade inside. The same one from last night. The same one from the week before. Its edge still had dried blood she hadn't bothered to clean.
Her fingers hovered.
She could hear the blood in her ears again — loud, rushing, like a wave ready to crash. Her breathing grew shallow. The bathroom light flickered once.
She locked the door.
And the silence returned.
Zariah didn't cry. She couldn't anymore.
Her face was blank as she sat on the cold floor, pulling back her sleeve with shaking hands. The gauze from the day before had bled through — her body still protesting the last cut.
But her mind didn't.
She pressed the blade against a fresh patch of skin on her forearm, slower this time. Not out of hesitation — out of calculation.
One more.
Just to breathe.
Just to feel.
Just to silence the noise in her head for five seconds.
She dragged it across with a sharp inhale.
Blood spilled faster than she expected.
Her head spun.
Then came the knock.
A light tap.
"Zariah?" Jasmine's voice called through the door. "I know you're in there."
Zariah's heart froze.
"I followed you. I know you're gonna be mad, but I couldn't let you go home alone again. Something felt wrong."
Silence. Zariah's hand was slick with red. Her vision was blurring again.
"I heard you lock the door," Jasmine said, her voice trembling. "Please. Open it."
Zariah tried to speak, but only a whimper came out.
Another knock, harder this time. "Z, I swear—if you don't open this door, I'm breaking it down."
She couldn't move. The towel she grabbed slipped from her hand.
Jasmine's voice cracked. "Please don't make me lose you."
Zariah's fingers reached toward the door handle.
Then collapsed.
Her whole body gave out, slumping against the bathroom wall.
The door suddenly burst open — Jasmine had found the emergency key.
What she saw made her stop breathing.
"ZARIAH!" she screamed, falling to her knees beside her. "No, no, no—look at me. Stay with me!"
Zariah's eyes fluttered open. Her lips were pale. She didn't speak. Just stared at the ceiling, numb and half-conscious.
Jasmine grabbed every towel she could find, pressing it to the wound. "You're okay. I've got you. I'm not going anywhere. I should've stayed yesterday. I should've known it was this bad…"
Zariah blinked slowly, her lips forming words Jasmine barely caught.
"I'm… tired."
Jasmine bit back a sob. "Then rest. But you're not leaving. Not today."
She stayed with her, holding her hand tightly, blood on both of them, but not letting go.
Not this time.