The house was dark.
Nelly walked through the hallway like a ghost — slow, silent, invisible. The echo of Mr. Benson's threat still rang in her ears.
> "Don't ever… ever cry to me again."
Her limbs moved, but her body felt numb.
She passed the staircase. Passed the pictures on the wall — all of them smiling faces of people who had never truly seen her. She reached the laundry room and locked the door behind her.
The room smelled of bleach and soap. Cold.
She sat on the floor, staring at her trembling hands. Her torn sleeve. The angry red mark on her wrist.
And then, finally… the tears came.
But they weren't soft.
They were silent sobs — shaking, raw, jagged. Like her body was trying to scream but didn't know how anymore.
She held her knees close and whispered the same words, like a prayer carved into stone.
> "I'll get out. I swear… I'll get out."
---
Morning came.
And with it — silence again.
Julie didn't knock. The others didn't speak to her. Even Jimmy avoided her gaze.
Nelly moved like a shadow through the house, dressing with shaking hands, brushing her hair slowly in front of the cracked mirror.
She felt numb.
But under the numbness… something else was waking.
---
At school, Nelly didn't speak much. But Joy found her, as always.
> "You didn't come to lunch," Joy said, concerned.
> "I wasn't hungry."
Joy frowned and reached into her faded pink bag.
> "I saved you something."
She handed her a small wrapped sandwich. Nelly took it slowly.
> "You don't have to keep being kind to me, you know."
> "Yes I do," Joy replied simply. "Because I want to."
Nelly looked at her… and smiled.
A small one. But real.
---
Later, during science class, something strange happened.
Luna raised her hand to answer a question — and got it wrong.
Everyone laughed.
Nelly looked over. Luna's face turned red.
And for a brief moment… Nelly didn't feel small. She didn't feel scared. She just felt equal.
Maybe not powerful.
But not powerless either.
---
After school, Joy tugged Nelly's hand as they walked out the gate.
> "Will you come tomorrow?"
> "Of course," Nelly said.
> "Good," Joy grinned. "Because I made you a bracelet."
She handed her a tiny, handmade bracelet made of thread and buttons.
> "It's not fancy," Joy shrugged, "but it's strong. Like you."
Nelly blinked back tears.
> "Thank you, Joy."
> "You're welcome… big sister."
They hugged.
And for the first time in a long time, Nelly felt something that almost scared her:
Hope.
---
Back at the house, things were quiet — too quiet.
Julie was sitting in the living room, watching a show on low volume.
Nelly paused at the door.
> "Julie?"
Julie didn't look at her.
> "You have chores."
> "I did them before school."
> "Then do them again."
Nelly swallowed hard. "Why are you like this with me?"
Julie finally turned to face her, eyes tired.
> "Because caring about you hurts more than ignoring you."
Nelly blinked.
Julie looked away.
> "The last girl who stood up to them… she didn't make it. She got sent away. No one knows where."
> "Then why am I still here?" Nelly asked softly.
Julie didn't answer.
> "Maybe," Nelly continued, "I'm supposed to survive where the others didn't."
Julie stood up and walked away without replying. But her hands were shaking.
---
That night, Nelly sat on her mattress and stared at the bracelet Joy gave her.
She held it close to her heart.
Then she did something she hadn't done in months.
She picked up a pen and a notebook from the drawer.
And she wrote.
Page one.
> "Dear Maria,
I met someone today who reminded me of you.
Her name is Joy.
And she helped me remember who I am."
Her handwriting was shaky, but her words were fire.
Nelly didn't know what tomorrow would bring.
But she knew one thing:
She wasn't broken.
Not anymore.
**********
The sun was beginning to set as Nelly walked home from school, her steps slower than usual. Her fingers toyed with the bracelet Joy had given her, over and over.
Something inside her wouldn't sit still. Her chest felt heavy. Her throat burned.
She needed… someone.
Then she saw it.
A small, dusty telecommunication store at the corner of the street. A faded sign above read: "Call Here. Recharge. Transfer."
She stopped in front of the door, staring at the worn plastic curtain swaying in the wind.
Her heart began to race.
She stepped inside.
A middle-aged man sat at a desk with three old phones charging beside him. He looked up.
> "You want to make call?"
Nelly nodded quickly, fumbling to bring out the small notes she'd saved from her lunch money.
> "Just five minutes, please."
He handed her a phone and she dialed a number — her fingers trembling with each press.
Her mother's number.
The line rang once. Twice.
Then—
> "Hello?"
Nelly froze. Her lips quivered. The voice… it was really her.
> "Mama…"
Silence.
> "Nelly? Is this you?!"
That voice — shocked, raw, older than she remembered — sent a flood of emotion rushing through her chest.
> "Mama, it's me. It's me…"
> "My child! Jesus! Is this really you? Where have you been? Are you okay?!"
And just like that — Nelly broke.
> "No, Mama… I'm not okay," she sobbed. "I'm not okay…"
She held the phone tight as the words poured from her like a wound ripped open.
> "You left me in that house… you said I'd be fine… you said they'd take care of me…"
> "Nelly, wait—"
> "But they didn't, Mama. They hate me. They hurt me. They make me clean and starve and wear itchy uniforms. Mr. Benson—"
Her voice cracked.
> "He—he tried to touch me, Mama… He almost… he almost…"
The line went silent.
Then she heard her mother's breath catch on the other end.
> "God… oh my God…"
> "Please, Mama," Nelly begged, voice shaking, "Come and take me away from here. Please, Mama. I can't breathe anymore. I'm so tired. I'm scared every day. I just want to come home…"
> "I didn't know, my baby… I swear I didn't know…"
Her mother's voice was breaking now too — deep sobs echoing down the line.
> "Your father made the deal… he said it was a good home… that you'd go to school, that you'd have everything…"
> "They lied, Mama," Nelly whispered. "They're monsters."
> "Where are you now? Tell me. I'm coming for you. I swear to God, Nelly—I'm coming. I'll sell everything if I have to."
Nelly bit her lip, her body shaking.
> "Promise me, Mama. Please. Don't leave me here. I'm not strong enough…"
> "You are strong," her mother cried. "You are! You made it this far… But I'm coming. I promise you. Just hold on. Hold on for me."
The man at the desk gave Nelly a signal — time was running out.
She wiped her tears, struggling to calm her breath.
> "I love you, Mama."
> "I love you too, my baby. My Nelly. I'm so sorry…"
The call ended.
And for a moment, Nelly just stood there — in that dusty store, under the flickering lightbulb, holding the now-dead phone to her ear.
But something had shifted.
She had done the one thing they never wanted her to do:
Call for help.
And now… help was coming.
Even if it crawled. Even if it broke its bones to get there.
It was coming.