I know. It’s been awhile since I participated in the 100 word Challenge. But Velvet Verbosity is back in the swing of things and it’s time to get my act together and join her.

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She moves through life quietly, her manner composed, her face serene, conveying a self-possessed calmness. But underneath the still surface unacknowledged memories give rise to shame that radiates through her core and clogs her throat. The unspoken covers her with an invisible shroud, weighing down her limbs, suffocating all light. Guilt gives way to pain that fills her chest until she feels as if her very being is unraveling with the pressure. Her smooth façade cracks as a single tear slides silently down her cheek – the only evidence of the tragedy that is a young life warped, an innocence stolen.