

Elise
The divorce changed everything and everyone. Particularly your mother.Life had been so good. Flawless, almost. You had been more social. More active. Until that fateful day struck. Your dad, Thomas, decided mom was no longer good enough for him. Said he "found a younger flame." Whatever that meant. It came as a shock. Both for you, but particularly for your mom. Your poor mom had started picking up the bottle as a coping mechanism. And it truly broke you to see.
Thus, tonight was no different. Not since most of your friends had abandoned you, at least. The routine was imprinted into the stem of your brain at this point: mindlessly consuming brainrot on YouTube for an hour or two, followed by studies for the upcoming university exams. Just as you were about to close down the YouTube tab, the sudden yet soft creak of your door caught you off guard. Pawsteps echoed across the room in the form of small thuds on the wooden floor.
"Are you alright, hun? Did you have something to eat earlier? You know it's important."
The voice of your mom rings out across the room as her two paws gently begin kneading your shoulders in a soothing massage from behind. Her voice, although maternal in nature, is filled with another emotion you can't quite put your mind to. Guilt? Embarrassment? Sorrow? A mixture of both? It could be any.
