"Mom…" The voice was small, almost timid, but it soon grew louder, almost deafening. With the screams came rushed footsteps and heavy breathing that seemed to get closer and closer.

Then, someone opened the door, slamming it against the wall.

"Mom!"

"Sweetheart? What's wrong–"

Mrs. Brown was unable to finish her sentence, her words stuck in her throat. She couldn't help but cover her mouth with trembling fingers, forgetting she was holding a glass of water; it crashed onto the ground, shattering to pieces.

The boys, who were in their bedroom preparing their backpacks, were startled by the noise, making them drop what they were doing. After glancing at each other, they sneaked out half a head to peek into the living room. The moment their eyes landed on Masha, it felt like the whole world broke apart. Gabriel bolted to her side while Misha froze, unable to take a step forward.

Standing in the doorframe was Masha, who was holding her bloody wrist against her c.h.e.s.t, staining her white T-shirt with red. The blood was dripping onto the floor, slowly forming a tiny puddle at her feet. Her face was deadly pale, and she seemed at a loss as to what to do, her eyes darting everywhere.

Once by her side, Gabriel didn't think much, immediately lifting her arm above her head to decrease blood flow and slow the bleeding. At the same time, he applied some pressure on the injury with his fingers, asking, "What happened?"

"A raccoon bit me," mumbled Masha, a wry smile on her lips.

The animal didn't react to her approaching arms, only looking at her with curious eyes, so she hadn't realized that it was wary of her. The moment she touched it, the raccoon snarled and attacked, its teeth sinking into her flesh as it violently shook its head. She had never thought that a raccoon bite would hurt so much, giving her the impression that it had crushed her bones.

After hearing her words, Gabriel furrowed his brows, carefully examining the injury. The most striking thing was the two identical holes, which were oozing blood; the raccoon's teeth had almost pierced through her thin wrist, probably severing an artery at the same time. There were also scratches scattered here and there on her forearm. Some were quite deep, while others were shallow, but the skin around every cut had already begun to swell.

Although the wound looked a little gruesome, it wasn't life-threatening. From what Gabriel knew, Masha didn't have a blood clotting disorder, and she wasn't sitting in a bath, immersed in water (which would keep the blood flowing). Therefore, once handled correctly, the bleeding would soon stop. The sight was only frightening.

However, she still needed stitches, and most importantly, what had bitten her was a raccoon. Those scavengers carried many diseases, their mouth full of bacteria, and it wouldn't be surprising if the injury got infected in the next few days. Moreover, raccoons were a well-known primary carrier of rabies, a deadly infection. Such a wound had to be treated with the utmost care as it could quickly develop into something more serious.

Also, he didn't know if her bones had been touched, and only an x-Ray could clarify the extent of the damage done by the raccoon's teeth.

"Mrs. Brown," called Gabriel without taking his eyes off of Masha. When he didn't receive any answer after waiting for a few seconds, he restrained a curse, and his voice grew louder, "Mrs. Brown! Gulnas!"

"Y-yes?" The teenager's voice snapped her out of her stupor, and Mrs. Brown ran to her daughter's side, panic and worry showing on her face.

"Call 911 and ask for an ambulance."

They had no car and couldn't go to the hospital on foot, but at least, there was a road that connected the chalet to the entrance of the park. Although it was bumpy and narrow, it was still practicable. When walking, it was faster to use the trails in the wood as it was a direct path. However, with a vehicle, it was quicker to use the road.

A taxi would cost an arm and a leg, and even though the ambulance wasn't free, it would be less expensive in the end. Moreover, the paramedics could treat Masha's wound better than Gabriel and prevent complications.

After taking a deep breath, Mrs. Brown made the call and explained the situation to the operator. Her voice was trembling, and Gabriel had to help her find her words from time to time, but she was able to convey what was important to known.

Scared silly by Masha's wound, they all forgot about Misha, who was still standing in the doorframe of the bedroom. He hadn't moved an inch, frozen like an ice statue.

Upon seeing his sister, the child felt like the time suddenly slowed, making everything seem clearer and vivid before his eyes. However, all he could see was the blood that covered her wrist, dripping and splashing onto the floor. It was as if he could hear the sound of the drops hitting the wood planks again and again.

Soon, the corpse of his sister overlapped with the teenage girl before him, plunging him into a waking nightmare.

The memories flashed before his eyes: a bloody bath and a thin arm hanging in the air, a few centimeters above the tiled floor. He remembered the puddle of blood, which was almost dried, and his sister's pale face. Her eyes were closed, but there were still traces of tears on her cheeks. The necklace Gabriel had given her shone under the light as if mocking him, and her blue dress gently floating on the water.

His sister was a decisive person. She had cut both wrists, not straight across, but longways from the hand to the crook of her elbow. The cuts were deep, and she did more than one on each arm. Back then, she wanted to die and made sure she had no way out. She even broke her phone in half, making it impossible to call the ambulance if she had a change of heart at the last moment.

Misha didn't know why she had chosen such a death, but it had always haunted him. Still, he had come to believe that he had surmounted his trauma lately, yet it only took a bit of blood to shake him to the core. Even when the ambulance arrived, he didn't react, prisoner of his gruesome memories.

Mrs. Brown left with her daughter, asking the teenage boy to take care of her son while they were at the hospital. She promised to keep him updated on Masha's situation and left.

Only then did Gabriel heave a sigh of relief, thinking that Masha was now in good hands. He turned back and entered the chalet, closing the door behind him. Then, his attention fell on the boy whose face was as white as a sheet. He soon realized that something was off and walked up to the child, crouching before him as he gently asked, "Misha? Are you alright?"

There was no reaction. The boy's eyes seemed dead, unnaturally dull. His breathing was heavy, maybe even more than Masha's when she came in. Slowly, Gabriel raised his hand, wanting to shake his shoulder to incite some reaction from the child. But even before he could touch him, Misha violently slapped his wrist, screaming, "Don't touch me!"

The child pushed Gabriel, who then lost balance and fell on his behind. As he looked at the clueless teenager, Misha felt his insides burn with anger, and his face became twisted; hatred raged in his eyes, making it seem like he was about to tear someone into pieces. "Stay away from me!"

Before Gabriel could say anything, the boy stormed out. Cursing under his breath, Gabriel leaped on his feet and gave chase, running after the child while calling his name. He jumped down the front staircase, following the kid into the forest. After a few meters, the teenager finally caught up with the boy. He stretched a hand, trying to grab his arm, "Misha! What are you doing? It's dangerous!"

The child, who was panting hard, veered to face him, slapping his wrist for the second time. "Are you deaf? I told you not to touch me!"

As the words fell from his mouth, Misha took a step back without looking behind him, wanting to put some distance between them. He tripped over a root and lost his footing, falling backward.

"Huh?" was all he could say, staring at Gabriel, whose eyes suddenly widened, almost as if they were about to fell off their sockets. In a way, it was comical, and Misha couldn't help but wonder, 'Why are you making that face for?'

The fleeting thought left, and he finally remembered that what was behind him wasn't a flat ground. No, it was a steep slope, one of those with large, sharp-edged rocks and boulders.

'Oh f*ck, that's going to hurt like a bitch.'