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    It wasn't unusual for the rain to wake me up.
    It also wan't unusual how I would stare at the ceiling for hours. It was hot in my room, and I was uncomfortable. Though, one thing I didn't understand.
    Why couldn't I close my eyes?
    I had been awake since I tried to go to bed, nearly six hours ago, and now all I could do was try to tune everything else out for the sound of the rain beating against the roof. Besides, it was the only soothing thing I had.
    Father had come home drunk again. All there was now, was his loud, obnoxious voice trying to cover my mother's sobs and screams. I was used to it, though, so I had trained myself to just block it. It also helped when I had the rain, so living in the rainiest state of America came in handy.
    But, tonight, was different.
    I can't exactly explain why, and I didn't know what was causing my heart to beat so fast. Then, I realized it.
    My parents had gone quiet.
    I tried to call back through my tuning out on what I had heard last. I thought hard, searching through everything in the back of my mind. It frusterated me, this time I was having to tune out the rain to think. I tapped my fingers against my forhead. Then, it came.
    Mother had shrieked, followed by a thump from above my head.
    Heavy footsteps came running down the stairs just then, making me jump. My mother was crying, and also, doing something else I couldn't find the word for. I bit my lip, I knew the word. I thought harder, ignoring the heavy footsteps getting closer my small doorway.
    Mother was choking. That was the sound. I had never heard her do that before. I expected to be frightend, but, I wasn't. I was confused.
    And as my door knob began to jiggle with force, my eyes finally closed.
    There were stings along my arms as I was forced to the ground. My mother was silent, but I could hear the faint cries for father to stop. He was grunting. He was striking me. I didn't dare open my eyes, though, I didn't even allow myself to breathe. The stings along my arms began to spread through my chest, through my stomach, through my legs, everywhere. It hurt, and I could feel the tears building up in my eyes. I squeezed them closed tighter. I prayed silently under my breath, for God, for anyone to come save mother and I. I didn't want to be hurt, and I didn't want her to be hurt. I loved her. Father wouldn't stop, though. I could feel something trailing along the skin of my neck, but I couldn't put my tongue on the word for it. I tried to focus on it, I tried to get away from everything, the havoc, that was happening. The words, all the words flooded through my mind, like a playlist of some sort. I tried to define every word until I got to the right one. Blood. The liquid that was falling from my neck was blood.
    I don't know how long it was, but sometime father finally left. Mother was gone, too. I was too exhausted to try and figure out where they had went. Well, to be honest, I didn't really care.
    I couldn't move, it hurt too much. I was... Well, I can't exactly put, in words, how I felt. So many emotions were buzzing around in my stomach, so many words to choose through my list.
    The rain still beated away. I lay there on the floor, not moving, not crying, doing nothing. My mind began to get blank and my breathing finally went from jagged to slow. Sleep had finally come.
    It wasn't unusual for the rain to drive me to sleep, either.