Chapter 4 Chasing Love, Losing Myself

By the time Elara turned Ten, the world no longer surprised her. The beatings from her mother had become as normal as breathing. Pain was no longer something she ran from; it was simply part of her life. In her brokenness, she started seeking out something she had never truly known - affection. Boys' attention became her escape, even if it was shallow, even if it left her emptier each time. She craved to be wanted, to be seen, even if it was for all the wrong reasons.

But it wasn't just the boys. The anger and resentment growing inside her needed somewhere to go. So, Elara began stealing from her mother - small things at first: coins from purses, hidden bills from drawers. Each time she took something, it wasn't the thrill of stealing that satisfied her; it was the twisted sense of taking back power from the woman who had stolen her childhood.

It didn't matter if she was caught. She almost wanted to be. Because inside, she felt invisible, and any reaction - even more beatings - was better than the silence of being forgotten but the day she was caught, she was beaten to an extent of her fainting and her mum had to pour water on her and continue the beatings, at this point she felt like she had no mom at all cause it felt like her mum hated her so much

In the chaos of secret boyfriends and stolen money, Elara drifted farther from the girl she once had been. The lines between love, pain, revenge, and survival blurred until she could no longer tell them apart.