In Maxim’s childhood world, everything was quieter than elsewhere. Even the wind seemed to whisper softer by his window. He rarely cried—not because he was brave, but because crying made his head ache. And everything else ached too. He was the kind of child who could fall ill from a draft, from someone’s shout, from a TV turned up too loud.
His mother always said,66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ54D8hzcvZG
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCv7a2OCTFp
“You’ve got too kind a heart, Max. It tires faster than the rest.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSKXtuE4l8j
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLlbY8Twj1E
He didn’t understand then that she wasn’t talking about his heart, but his soul—and that it wasn’t kind, but fragile.
Six years old.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAxRZbQPoOw
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpYnrdWxvD2
A small table. Watercolors. A jar of cloudy water. A piece of bread. Maxim paints—carefully, meticulously, as if it’s something more than a picture. He paints a house. His mother. The sun. Himself—a little figure with crooked arms, but smiling.
His mother strokes his hair from behind.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ33Az2lUHZw
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc4QRRaVgKm
“Pretty. That’s us?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0eQo4ki2tu
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8p87DaI0Zv
“Mm-hmm,” he hums.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlCLEynPvAk
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhs85844VHK
“Why didn’t you draw your dad?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg8RrjhmT8r
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc9LqHjL0w7
He shrugs. “No space.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3dywH0lUcf
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlSThoLX8wm
She smiles, but her eyes go sad. He notices—and feels ashamed. He wants to fix it, add his father in. But his hand won’t move.
There isn’t no space.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLphH8CxAJc
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw6j17JJ9GX
It’s just that next to his father, there’s always darkness.
His father comes home late. The smell of alcohol arrives before he does. Sometimes with the heavy footsteps, the door slam, the shouting. His mother shrinks then, becomes smaller, hides her smile in her palm.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvUBXppJd54
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHvohvRHaGa
“Go to your room, sweetheart. I’ll come in a bit.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAZs0JC2y5Y
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY8Np33Gv8e
He obeys. Not always. Sometimes he sits by the door, listening.
At first—just voices. Then—thuds. Blows. The sound of things hitting walls. The sobs. The crash of falling objects.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUrvm6MtbzD
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4aA77bdQ5x
Then silence.
That ringing kind that makes your ears hum. He would press his hands over them, close his eyes, whisper:66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkbrKSRZ1fj
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0cnhULHhJc
Please stop, please stop, please…
And sometimes, it actually did.
That day his mother told him that if he ever got scared, he should hide.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpu6JN45x2t
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ35qCLe8sWl
“In the closet,” she said, opening the door where her dresses hung.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6pnMVAjkgV
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN2WzVlxmot
“What about you?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVxDBDf7pr7
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS63esn3YOC
“I’ll be right there. I promise.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEERrym17UN
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0BSVPS7tYg
He nodded. He believed her completely.
Eight years old. Evening.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfGVreyoU1U
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz62QKig4gu
His mother brews raspberry tea, sweet-smelling. Maxim sits at the table, swinging his legs.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv7T1oDEJ8s
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9SExfVXwWw
“You’ve got school tomorrow,” she says softly.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcgMSyW1qZV
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3etrLGQD3z
“I don’t want to go.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU7gcu21E2G
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCDbx56UI0t
“Why not?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7nM0dUpyIa
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeapvHyKmAC
“It’s loud.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9vgeurDeAX
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvv48gWII9f
She laughs. “But there are friends there.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFrhD4GrmwO
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuJQ1R5PgFj
“I don’t know how to make friends.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg9O37i0bJb
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVl9LIroyR2
“You’ll learn,” she says with confidence.
He smiles. He likes it when she talks like that—as if she can defeat any misfortune.
But trouble never knocks. It barges in.
A slam. The door. A bottle clattering to the floor. His mother turns, no surprise in her eyes now—only tiredness.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9CqzarlVNa
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTsuRniPjNK
“Again?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm6I0rIlNkk
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9RskcMcpNq
“What do you mean again?!” His father’s voice shakes the walls. “Where’s the money, Natasha?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd8tE2Fqukl
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzq09zhN2AI
“We… talked about this—”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQyNYsBLCyE
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxZe3hW4lQt
“We talked? You talked!”
He staggers forward.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7WAS4EXlIW
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXFCJZXfxiE
Mother grabs Maxim’s hand, pulls him toward the closet.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaTbkE7KsQX
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq9MmVGwzA5
“Quiet. Quickly. Don’t breathe,” she whispers.
He obeys. He already knows something bad is coming.
The closet smells of soap and her perfume. Through the crack he can see a slice of the room. His father hurls the bottle at the wall.
“Stop!” she cries. Her voice cracks.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtHnHl4KzgS
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRxEwHGmcii
He steps closer. His arm rises.
Maxim wants to run out—but can’t. His body won’t move. His insides lock up.
Then—a blow.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSrfx4Zn2Dy
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMY3nTQmgNe
A dull sound. The crash of glass.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQtiDoU931N
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNvLP8n4uEC
And then—silence.
That same silence he would hate for the rest of his life.
When Maxim opened his eyes, the ceiling was strange—white, with a crack in the corner. He didn’t understand where he was at first. The air was thick enough to write on with a finger. Moving felt like a dream.
The system’s voice hovered at the edge of hearing:66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQXRTy40uW9
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsiXonSVqTP
[Subject stabilizing.]66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqFx1simhbK
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4MsuWsyVdB
[Mode: passive recovery.]
He blinked. His throat was dry. His lips salty—probably from tears.
On the chair sat Lapin. No ears now. Gray sweatpants and a hoodie. Calm eyes, almost curious.
“You lost consciousness,” Lapin said. “For about twenty minutes.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpWfD16CxtP
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡznjTSds0Jk
“And the neighbors?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbhXQdFgCsb
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9d3D9ovIvG
“Gone. I convinced them you were sick.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdPpqFx9IEC
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGnzSUfF0mh
Maxim gave a weak smirk. “Not exactly a lie.”
Lapin tilted his head slightly. “The system warned me. Your psyche is unstable.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF9cv1itGGP
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzuCXr7NESF
“Yeah. Thanks for the update, doctor.”
He tried to stand, but his legs shook. Lapin leaned forward to help, but Maxim waved him off.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpFbFRfuWHw
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWEXQ9xwTp0
“Don’t touch me.”
Silence. The air froze.
“You had a dream,” Lapin said. “About the closet.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwCE2qpoOuY
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Fq86fsvl2
Maxim turned sharply. “Stay out of that.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuYaxuDTjOW
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ11WAEbBLtF
“I’m not in it,” Lapin replied calmly. “The signal was too strong.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp4YZJSHjgz
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡABEurXwFxl
“It wasn’t a signal,” Maxim rasped. “It was a memory.”
He sat down again, buried his face in his hands. The quiet pressed in on him.
“When you were eight,” Lapin said gently, “you met what humans call… fear.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡONiX1Bm3Sw
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3sifPi9H16
Maxim gave a bitter laugh. “No kidding. Thanks, Captain Obvious.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm5lFVbWQTv
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoEfEhrl6SX
“You joke,” Lapin said, “because that’s how you survive.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKj9S5oI1YP
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc3rAZBChRM
“It’s the only thing left,” Maxim murmured.
He closed his eyes. The scene replayed again. His mother. The closet. The glass.
Tears slipped down his face before he even felt them.
“She died,” he whispered.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzh9WA9kfBn
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzl8idNUakC
“I know,” Lapin said softly. “The system showed me.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡClSUX3Xx79
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCCy1l654bB
“Of course it did. It knows everything, doesn’t it?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡguFfz58XGO
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrkoBsyYqfS
“Almost everything. But not feelings. They can only be observed.”
Maxim let out a hollow laugh. “I don’t feel anymore.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ40DIxqbDvE
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwkyQLi7r5G
“That’s not true.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLZDk7x9Yb3
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMYgi5DeZpF
“It is. I’m just… empty.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDnhIQCPv7X
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj1pNDhhpoK
“Then where do the tears come from?”
He didn’t answer. His hands still trembled—but not from fear. Just because his body didn’t know what else to do.
Night. He never slept.
Lapin sat by the window, silent. His reflection in the glass looked pale, moonlike. Maxim lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, thinking that once he’d wanted to be an artist. To paint people who smiled. But after that day, he never painted again.
Colors annoyed him. Especially red.
“You know,” he said quietly, eyes still closed. “My mom always protected me. Even when she couldn’t.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqcOz5bZRlo
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCMiuE9oIBY
“And you wanted to protect her.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxW3B7bStbe
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFxaqp0s4dW
“I did.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ33lfaU8d0J
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWV0W06NR7u
“Why couldn’t you?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3NKKADiymq
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHg3I3rHO4C
“I was a child.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrMFR1FUry4
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeJ64KwcCLk
“But you still blame yourself.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmlNOY5Ktcx
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjOCaqXmKsZ
“Of course. Who else is there to blame?”
Lapin came closer, sat at the edge of the bed.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDOMiBj5mzb
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeYzSDj5oqp
“You’re not guilty,” he said. “Weakness isn’t a sin.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVnYLkgrgnp
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxVIVpcxzAP
“For the system it is,” Maxim muttered.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡy2wdx9A01i
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0YcKD3Yjf0
“Not for me.”
He turned to look at him.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBRO3BhLGcJ
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOeOoKAv72g
“Why do you even protect me?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqPUnjBcs42
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYfX0VPWapq
“That’s what I was made for.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK63VQLKXTw
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Xut7Mo3It
“Can you lie?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNwnqnMPpTE
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgGF4vRbgSW
“No reason to.”
He said it so simply that Maxim suddenly believed him.
Morning was gray. Still. The air felt lighter, but inside—still empty.
The system was silent, except for a faint pulse deep within:66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwzhte4OXHy
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡA35BwPY9HV
[Subject stabilized.]66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzPS6b1408X
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM5Pg1Aql8a
[Emotional response restored: 12%.]
He smiled without joy.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrhh0kxZMiJ
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTQILFkshDW
“Twelve percent. Progress.”
Lapin poured tea. “You’re still human,” he said. “You can feel.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQryftyFCUd
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4XB1CdaIqN
“What if I don’t want to?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQHmZ68BybP
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBpgiscPJil
“Then that will be your feeling.”
Maxim rubbed his eyes. “You know, Lapin…”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrvm4TBzkCB
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWPRCBbhTFY
“Mm?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvmFMRuVTLF
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWDiESV9Ge6
“If I ever break again—hide me in the closet.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡII62Om5l1A
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ79aZ636roh
“Like when you were eight?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGYpLFSY2ax
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8GaKnEEYGg
“Yeah. Just… don’t promise you’ll stay.”
Lapin watched him for a long time.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEfMRezyts
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡputl1pT1XM
“I won’t promise,” he said at last. “I’ll just be there.”
Light spilled across the floor in pale stripes. Maxim sat on the bed, sipping tea, thinking that for the first time in a long while—he wasn’t thinking about fear. Just quiet.
As if that little boy in the closet was still somewhere near.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaHw4CWh6FH
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRAJOXKDAVF
And maybe, this time—he wasn’t alone.
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and then Add to home screen.