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Tommy liked the forest.
It was the one place that he could always go to when things became too much at his home.
Living with Dream had seemed like a blessing in the beginning. He always wanted to be adopted and when Dream picked him, everything felt perfect. Then Dream would start scolding him, yelling at him, hitting him for every little mistake he made. It was fine though; he was the one that made mistakes. Dream always said that punishments weren’t given without a reason.
Tommy breathed in the forest air surrounding him. It had rained last night, and the air smelled of dirt, rain, and the foliage that was scattered everywhere on the forest ground. He could feel the forest, feel its heart beating underneath the ground. The other kids at the orphanage always thought he was weird for his affinity for nature, but it was natural for him to be drawn to it. He looked at his wristwatch to check the time, it was 5:20. That gave him ten more minutes in the forest before he had to go back home, back to Dream. He stood up and patted the tree that allowed him to sit on its roots. He began to make his way on the trail leading to his home when he heard sudden rustling behind some bushes. He quickly turned his attention to it, hoping it wasn’t a bear or coyote. From the bush, a deer made itself known, with dark brown eyes and a never-ending stare that met with Tommy’s bright blue eyes. It had felt like time itself stopped in that one moment, and Tommy never wanted it to end. As soon as it started, the stare was broken by the deer being startled by the sound of a twig breaking off in the distance. Tommy shook himself out of the daze and took a deep breath, he didn’t realize he was holding in. Checking his watch, he became paralyzed with fear and dread, it was 5:45. Tommy remembered when he came back from the forest five minutes late once and Dream beat him until his face was black and blue. It took weeks to heal from the beating, even more, to be let free from his room. Dream also took away his food during that time, saying that bad boys didn’t deserve to eat.
He rushed home, running as fast as he could, tears already falling from his face. He was 15 minutes late and that terrified him to death. Breathless, he reached the house, warm lights betraying the safe aura they gave off. He slowly made his way to the back door, tears rushing down even faster than he thought was possible.
He knocked on the door.
It was pulled open harshly, and there stood Dream in all of his glory. The light from the house framed his head as if he had a halo on his head and a stare that made his heart stop beating.
“You’re late.” Dream stepped closer and grabbed Tommy by the back portion of his collar, stretching his red and white shirt. Tommy grasped at his collar with both hands, it was choking him. Dream pulled him up to his face, he reiterated with a growl, “You’re late.”
“I-I’m sorry Dream! I lost track of time, I swear!” Tommy was gasping as he felt more and more air leave his lungs. Dream threw him into the house causing old bruises to flare up in pain. He curled up into himself, a desperate attempt to shield himself from Dream. He knew it was an useless attempt the moment Dream’s foot connected with his back. Tommy cried out in pain, today was supposed to be a good day.
Dream drags him by the shirt once more back to the outside, and Tommy begins to hyperventilate. Not the shed, he thinks, God knows he can’t deal with the shed anymore. “I fed you, clothed you, took you into my house, and this is the thanks I get!” He pulls on the collar causing a choking yell to escape Tommy. “I give you such simple rules and you still manage to break them somehow!” Keys jiggle like an omen and finally, the door is opened, revealing the darkness inside. The wood feels rough against his legs as Dream hurls in the worn-down shed. He feels his head hit the floor, dazing him as he tries to get up. A foot connects with his neck, and he can’t breathe, he can't breathe.
Dream turns to the door and goes to close. Tommy looks at the door before it shuts fully.
“Drea-”
Dream left hours ago, locking the shed when he left. He left the keys just out of Tommy’s reach. Not like he can use his arms anymore anyways, they felt and probably were shattered. Each breath Tommy took felt like torture, Dream broke some of his ribs with his kicks. He couldn’t see out of his left eye, it had swollen up after the third punch to his eye. He could barely see the time on his watch, it was almost time for the sun to rise. He almost lost all sense of time with how often he faded in and out of unconsciousness. His head was bleeding, he didn’t know that a person could bleed this much. With each breath, he felt himself get weaker and weaker. The sun peeks through the boarded window, touching Tommy’s face. Tears welled up and spilled from his eyes. He wanted to see the forest once more, just to see the swaying trees. From the roots to the top of the trees, even the moss and mushrooms that grow on the forest floor. He heard the floorboard in front of him creak and to his surprise, he saw a tree root growth. It curled and grew until it reached his finger, then wrapped itself around his hand.
He smiled and took his last breath.
They say that a house deep within the forest is haunted. A creature said to roam the woods and kill anyone who dares to enter. People say that a child and their guardian were killed, others say that the guardian killed the child. No one knows for sure but sometimes people say that they can see a figure in the distant tree line resting underneath the trees.