Nihil
“L!”
The male was aware of a sharp voice calling his name - no, his special nickname - breaking him out of the haze that seemed to have knocked him out for however long. It took him a good few minutes to recognise the nickname, because nobody had called him that in twelve years, and he frowned lightly in his confusion; there was something dreadfully wrong, and he rolled his too-dry tongue about his mouth until he could mutter out a response, “Yeah?” It was weak, and he swallowed a few times to get his mouth wet whilst he pondered who’d called for him. His whole body felt tired, but his heart was hammering like crazy and he wondered why -- he felt as though he’d been running a marathon, and all the effects had come crashing down on him all at once. “Yeah, what’s up?” He managed to add, sounding a lot more strong in his tone, despite not knowing where he was as his eyes had yet to adjust to his surroundings. Underneath him, however, he could feel carpet tickling his feet from where he wasn’t wearing any shoes; he couldn't think of anywhere that had crème carpet, except for-
“You said we need to hurry and hide from daddy, so what are you stoppin’ for?”
--oh God.
Suddenly, everything around him came into focus and he recognised the upstairs landing. The crème carpet, the ugly 80′s wallpaper, and the wooden bannister for the stairwell that they had just ran up. He remembered what they were doing now. “I...I don’t know, sweetheart, sorry.” Adrenaline kicked in and he grabbed his little sister’s hand, causing her to make a noise of surprise, but they had to hurry. He would be here soon, and they needed to hide. Lochlan was sure that he was just sleeping in a hotel room, but he had better things to worry about right now, and that was to keep Sophia safe. “C’mon, quickly. I know the perfect hiding spot.” His voice wavered, despite his forced attempt to keep it steady for her, and he hurried them towards her bedroom where he knew her closet would keep them out of sight. “You gotta keep quiet though, okay? Hush-hush, so daddy doesn’t find us.”
“Okay, L!” The innocence in her voice broke Lochlan, and he squeezed her hand tightly as he led her into the closet, before settling down on the ground and placing her between his legs. Reaching forward, he slid the doors across and held Sophia close, holding onto her warmth and trying to dismiss the confusion that clouded his mind -- a dream, a nightmare, or something else entirely. This wasn’t right, this wasn’t real, this wasn’t true. But as he pressed a kiss against the top of Sophia’s head, he wanted desperately for her to remain as he stared across at the closet doors in front of them. Waiting.
