The Beast Made of Ink

A long time ago, you were asked something by Henry.

"What is family?" He had asked you.

You were about ten at the time Henry had asked you that, haven't even been living with him for a month. Back then, you had no opinion about the elder animator. If anything, you were more scared of him rather than comforted. So, when he had asked you what family was, you didn't have any warm answer to give him, because at that time, you were not close with your Grunkle.

In consideration to his words, you rolled your head to the left, then back to the right as you tasted his question upon your tongue, your brain searching for answers in your file cabinet of memories. The first person to pop into your head was your Grandmother, a kind woman whom you barely remembered. The next person to pop into your head was your father, an alcoholic who beat you for sport as he made promises of sexual abuse for when you were older. Both were dead, and both were out of your life. In a sick sense, they had left you alone.

"Metaphorically speaking, family is abandonment. Biologically speaking, family is blood." You had finally managed to cough out to Henry as a response. You watched in silence as his E/C eyes narrowed, brows burrowing deep into his tanned skin.

"Those... are some pretty big words for someone your age." He had finally responded to you with a small, pitiful smile. Meanwhile, your face stayed blank, however, your mind was loud as it rang nothing but one pestering question.

"Why do you ask?" You spat out thick in unneeded suspicion, making Henry laugh.

"Well..." He began.

And right there is where your memory is cut off.

.........

Do you know that feeling? That feeling of being absolutely broken? Defeated? If you do, then you're in the right place. Then again, I think everybody here knows the feeling of defeat. This story, if you haven't been able to notice, isn't exactly a romance. It isn't an action either, nor is it as fluffy as I wanted it to be. I think that it's a story where pain meets confrontation, where people's pasts influence them for years to come. This is a story about how important it is to properly heal.

Healing is a long process, for when something traumatic happens, your brain can't always comprehend it in a healthy manner. Sometimes, you need to will your brain into comprehending it in a healthy manner. Yet so many people don't do this. So many people just don't know how. They fall down deeper and deeper into the rabbit hole of grief, being unable to climb themselves out.

Repetition- The reality that many statistics speak of.

Confrontation- A phenomenon that so few accomplish.

Healing- A lifelong event that will never end.

Just words-