The night was quiet after our little adventure.
The moon hung high above the rice fields, bathing everything in silver light.
We had done it our great mission, Catch the Rice Thief, was a success.
Goru, Jack, Twilight, and Edwin were still laughing as we walked home together.
Anna walked beside me, her small hand holding mine, her eyes half closed from sleep.
She hummed softly, a tune that only she knew.
"Goodnight, Erin!" Goru shouted.
"Goodnight!" the others echoed.
Anna let out a small moan half a snore, half a sigh and smiled sleepily.
I smiled too. I was happy.
The happiest I had been in a long time.
I didn't know that happiness could end in a single moment.
The Door
When I reached home, the light from the lantern inside flickered against the walls.
I tried to open the door quietly maybe my parents were asleep.
But the moment I stepped in, the world changed.
There were voices sharp, broken, angry.
My father's voice. My mother's voice.
Their words clashed like swords.
I froze in the doorway, my small hands gripping the edge.
The warm feeling I carried home vanished.
Then I saw them my father trying to leave, my mother standing near the fire, holding something.
Her eyes were red, her hands shaking.
"Don't go," she said.
"You always walk away."
My father turned, his face cold.
"And you always find a reason to fight."
The shouting grew louder.
The room felt smaller, tighter, darker.
I didn't understand.
I didn't know what was happening.
All I knew was that my home no longer felt like home.
The Accident
I took a step forward, wanting to call out, to tell them to stop.
But my mother turned suddenly and in that moment, the hot water she was holding spilled.
The air filled with steam and a sharp hiss.
Pain burning, shocking ran across my face.
I didn't even scream at first.
I just stood there, frozen.
Then the pain hit me all at once, and I cried out, calling for my mother, my father, anyone.
My father dropped everything and ran to me.
My mother screamed, trying to wipe the water away, trembling as she whispered my name again and again.
But I couldn't hear clearly.
The sound of my own crying drowned out everything.
The world became light and shadow, warmth and pain.
That night, everything changed.
Not just my face but something deeper.
Something inside our family broke.
The Morning After
When I opened my eyes, it was morning.
The smell of herbs filled the room.
My face was wrapped in soft cloth.
I could hear my mother crying quietly in the corner.
My father sat outside, silent.
The house that was once full of laughter now felt like a stranger's home.
I didn't know what the future held.
I was only five years old.
But from that day, I learned something
peace is fragile.
And once it breaks, it never comes back the same way again.