Chapter 0009
Chapter 0009
I couldn’t help but think of the little girl from earlier. She was so full of life, so fearless in her joy.
If Lauren had been here—if she’d been Owen’s mother would things have been different?
The thought hit me harder than I expected, a pang of longing settling deep in my chest.
Lauren had been patient, kind, everything I wasn’t. She would’ve known what to do, how to bring Owen out of his shell and improve him slowly.
But she wasn’t here.
And she never would be.
Owen’s POV
1 sat cross–legged in the chair, my laptop on my knees. The screen glowed, lighting up the room that was kind of dark. My fingers hovered over the keys, not pressing anything yet.
I had to be careful. This wasn’t like when I looked up fun facts or games to play. This was different.
Her name–Ava–kept playing in my head, like a song that wouldn’t stop. I didn’t know why it felt so important, but it really did.
The picture on the screen didn’t look new or fancy. It was just a normal photo I found hidden deep in the internet, like it didn’t want to be found
She was smiling, but not that big smile people do when they’re told to “say cheese.” It was a small smile, a real one. Her eyes were kind of squinty like she was really happy, not pretending.
But there was something else, too–something about her face that made my chest feel funny, like a tight little knot that wouldn’t go away. I couldn’t figure out what it was, but I knew her somehow. I felt like I did.
I had seen her picture before. It was in Dad’s study, tucked away in a folder with old papers. When I found it, I felt that same funny feeling, like a zap that made my heart skip. And now, looking at her again, it was even stronger.
Could she… really be my mom?
The thought wouldn’t leave me. It kept buzzing in my head, like one of those guards that follow Dad and me around, always watching, never stopping.
I didn’t have a mom. Not one that felt like one anyway. Just Dad, and then… Sophia.
Sophia.
Just thinking about her made my stomach twist. She always smiled and acted sweet when Dad was around. But when he wasn’t?
“Monster,” she’d whispered once. It was a mean, sharp word. She thought I didn’t hear, but I did. I always heard.
told myself I didn’t care. Her words didn’t matter. But they did. Not like I wanted to cry about it, but they made me tougher. Like the hate in her words carved me into something harder.
She didn’t want me around. She made sure I knew it, too. She always said stuff like, “When we have our real family.” I wasn’t dumb. I knew exactly what she meant.
I sat up straighter in the chair, looking at the clock on my laptop. I’d been searching for hours. It felt like no time at all. Outside, I could hear the sound of a cart rolling down the hall, and people talking softly. The lights in the hospital hummed.
Chapter 0009
+25 BONUS
I quickly closed all the tabs, just in case, and lowered the screen when the door creaked open.
“Hey, bud,” Dad said, walking into the room. His voice was calm, sharp, and controlled, like usual. Everyone said I looked just like him, but honestly, I didn’t didn’t see it.
I looked up at him, my face blank.
“How was treatment today?” he asked, leaning against the wall.
I shrugged. “Okay, I guess.”
I almost told him. I almost said, I think I saw Mommy today. The words were stuck in my throat. But I didn’t say them. Not yet. Not until I was sure.
Dad smiled at me, but it wasn’t a real smile. It was one of those smiles adults give when they’re thinking about something else. His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he checked it.
“Good,” he said, patting the doorframe. “Let me know if you need anything, alright? I gotta take this.”
I watched him leave. The door clicked shut behind him.
As soon as he was gone, I opened my laptop again. The search bar was staring at me, waiting
Ava
I typed her name again, my fingers moving faster. There were still so many questions in my head, but I wasn’t going to tell anyone. Not until I was sure.
I’d figure it out. Then I’d tell Dad.
