The One Thing A Child Fears

I don't know what I saw, but I never should've seen it.

What I had seen was something so terrible that I didn't think would ever happen. Just a day before my parents seemed happy as can be around each other. They had recently celebrated their 10th anniversary. But I later figured out that it wasn't their love for each other that separated them; it was money.

We were almost completely broke. This meant that my parents had to practically count every penny. I never got to have a Christmas full of toys and candy or a birthday with all of my many friends. This must've been taking a toll on them. It had to have been their biggest struggle.

I always thought their bond with each other would last a lifetime and beyond. They hardly ever got in fights.

But this time was different.

This time it lasted for hours. I could hear them yelling back and forth. I could hear the plates smash against the walls. I could hear the sobs. And I could hear their hatred. I didn't know what to do. Should I stay? Should I go? Really, the answer was simple.

I would run. I would go past the homes, into the streets, past the stores, and over that big hill. I never once looked back for I hadn't the strength and courage to do so. I didn't know if I was making the right decision.

I wasn't the problem, though. They were. I hadn't betrayed them. They betrayed me.

What hurt the most was that I knew it. I knew that this would become a divorce.

And it was happening to me. The one thing a child fears the most.