*Lena*
“I didn’t mean to,” I whispered. Dad had his back turned to me as he gazed out the window. His hand was on the windowsill, his eyes on the garden below. “What did I do to her?”
“Try to get some rest–”
“Is she okay?” I asked in a choked whisper.
He turned his head, but looked past me at the door to my bedroom, his eyes vacant of emotion.
I followed his gaze, noticing the ivy snaking up the walls of my bedroom. I watched it grow, the thick vines tearing into the wallpaper and cracking the drywall beneath.
“I don’t know how to stop,” I cried, turning to look at Dad again. But he was gone.
“Dad?” I said into the empty space before me. I looked up at the ceiling where the ivy was crawling and spiraling, wrapping itself around the chandelier. “Mama!”