1 Prologue

The young child gripped the pants of their father, anxious of what was to come. The child had a small afro, their curls similar to that of spring coils, a dark brown that shone gold in the sun with dark skin that others compared to the color of chocolate. The child stared up at their father and granted the sun a full view of their small face. They had light grey eyes with flecks of green and brown, a crooked nose that fit their face snuggly, full cheeks, thick dark brows that were furrowed, and full lips that were fixed into a slight pout.

"Nao."

The child's head snapped towards the use of their name, causing their face to light up with a smile, "Mummy!"

A tall dark woman with similar facial features was walking towards them, her arms outstretched for a hug from her child. Nao ran towards their mother, a wide grin on their face, arms outstretched as well, with laughter starting to slip from their lips.

"Mummy! Where were you!?" they demanded cheekily as they embraced, "Daddy was getting upset."

"Are you sure only daddy was upset?" their mother asked with a small laugh, her hands cupping the sides of their face, "My favorite cub didn't miss me?"

They shook their head no and crossed their arms with a huff and playfully glared at her, "Mummy, I told you I'm big now. Big kids don't miss their mummies."

"Of course not, my cub is getting all grown up and you'll be leaving me soon."

This caused Nao to shake their head frantically, "No mummy! I'll never leave you! I love you and we're going to be together forever and ever and ever."

Their mother laughed lovingly and Nao took the time to admire how beautiful she was. Her dark skin glistened in the sun, her afro pulled back into a ponytail, and warts that lingered at the edge of her grey eyes were all so beautiful. Their father cleared his throat and looked disapprovingly at his ex-wife, arms crossed and refusing to look at his child.

"Melanie, we need to talk about our son."

"I'm not a boy," Nao said automatically, glaring up at their father, "I told you that."

"This is what we need to talk about. This-This idea that he's a sissy or something."

"I'm not a girl either."

"Shut the fuck up Nao. I am speaking to your mother!"

A slap connected with the side of their father's cheek and Nao looked up to see that their mother was very angry, "Never speak to our s-child that way again. They are non-binary and go by they/them and you are to be respectful and a supportive father."

"I don't have to do shit. He's 7 Melanie. 7. He doesn't know what the hell he's talking about and you encouraging this shit reflects badly on you as a parent! I don't want him around my kids anymore, he's making them uncomfortable and I won't stand for this ridiculous bullshit."

By this time their mother had already covered their ears and told them to sing a few songs quietly. They couldn't hear the rest of the conversation, but they could see that their parents were still yelling. Their parents looked so angry and it was because of them. Nao sniffled and began to cry, overwhelmed and overstimulated by their environment. Their mother ended the fight with something about child support and a lawyer but Nao wasn't able to pay proper attention, they just wanted to be in their mother's arms and go home. Their mother carried them to the car and strapped them into their car seat, pressing a kiss to their cheek once they calmed down.

"I'm so sorry, cub. I promise you won't have to see that man again. I know you're not a boy or a girl and I still love and support you."

Something about the way she said it, so full of love, made the young child smile and their heart flutter in their chest. She loved them even if they were different, even when their father did not.

A teenager around the age of 16 typed away at their keyboard, grey eyes glued to the screen in front of them. Their large afro was flattened from sleep in the back and the front looked like the beginning of a bird's nest, hinting at the fact that it had not been properly done in days. A knock startled the teen and they turned toward their mother, who looked like she hadn't aged a day since she gave birth. She looked them up and down, giving a grunt of disapproval and dropping a hamper with clean clothes onto the floor in front of her.

"You look like shit Nao," she scoffed.

"Mom!" they groaned in defense, "I've been trying to get these essays and extra credit finished before we go back to school next week. You're not allowed to judge me until after I get the grades back."

She burst out laughing and Nao joined her, completely turning around to take in her attire, "Another date tonight?"

She smiled widely and did a small spin in the thigh-length blue dress she wore, "Do you like it?"

It was simple, with no designs or frills, just a simple blue dress that hugged her figure and black 2-inch heels to complete the look. They glanced up at her face, which had little to no makeup, just a smudge of highlight in the inner corner of her eyes and glossy lipstick. Her hair was straightened, half of the back portion pulled into a ponytail while the lower half rested against her shoulders. Nao smiled at her and stood so that she could sit in their chair.

"Let me do your eyeliner," they announced as they opened a drawer and pulled out some back eyeliner they bought from the store, "Come sit."

She obliged and sat down, leaning close so that their child was able to finish their look without complications. While they began with her left eye, she attempted some small talk so that it wasn't too silent.

"So, anyone at school that has caught your attention yet cub?"

Nao paused for a moment and stared at her, worrying her for she thought she had crossed a boundary but relaxed when they spoke, "Yes but they're off-limits."

"Non-binary as well?" she asked excitedly, getting a loving smile from them in return.

"Well this time it's they for multiple people, " they paused for a moment, "They're both substitutes in their early 20s but I'm still a minor, and putting them in a legal situation wouldn't be right of me. On top of that, them seeing me in that way would lead me to think that they are both pedophiles and that's not right either."

Their mother listened proudly, happy their child was so responsible, "I'm proud of you cub, many would have lied to get in their pants and threaten them to get what they wanted."

"I had a mother that taught me well. Done."

She stood and admired herself in the mirror, "Thank you Nao. Don't tire yourself out on your school work, something I did not think I would have to say to my child."

With a kiss on the forehead, she exited their room and closed the door behind herself. After a moment, Nao heard the car start and leave the driveway, letting them know that their mother was gone. Sighing, Nao took a short break, swiping through their phone for a few minutes and deciding on putting a playlist on while they worked. They ended up working for a few hours, lost in their word document when the doorbell rang. Curious, they checked the time, frowning when the clock said 1:30 am.

"She didn't say she was going to be out so late.." they muttered, getting up to go see who was at the door so late.

They were blinded by red and blue lights when they opened their bedroom door and immediately they ran to the door swinging it open. Before either of the police officers could speak, they shook their heads, "NO NO NO NO! You can't be here. Tell me you're here because she needs a ride home, or she's in the hospital but she's ok. You can't be here! She can't be.."

The officers both exchanged a sad look and a sob left Nao's lips," I'm so sorry."

That was 5 days ago, now Nao was in the passenger seat of their father's car, who looked unhappy to see them. They felt the same but that's not something they were going to say out loud. Without any words exchanged between them, their father parked the car in the driveway of what they assumed was their father's house. Nao had barely managed to take care of themselves but each time they were about to sink into a depressive episode, all they could picture was their mother scolding them. It brought a small smile to their lips but that quickly got replaced by a frown once their father began to speak.

"Nao, I understand that your mother fed you some delusion about being gay and how it was ok but it's not. In this house we abide by god's rules and being gay is wrong. You are a boy and that's what you will be addressed as. Now, I want you to get along with your brothers and these beliefs you may have, are going to make them uncomfortable. Your step-mother will mostly be taking care of you since I do work all week or even two weeks at a time," he took a moment to pause and look at his son, "Look, I know it's a new environment but your mom and I are looking for the same respect we're going to give you. Ok?"

There was a pause as Nao ran through those words in their head. There was no respect in the little speech that was given to them. All their father did was misgender them and show just how homophobic he was, "Ok."

Everything after that fell apart. It was nice at first, everyone getting to know each other, Nao behaving themself and trying to get used to the new lifestyle, but not long after the abuse started. At first, it was just a small comment here and there, snarky but harmless, then they became jabs and pokes that stung, and soon they quickly became verbal abuse. The comments always brought up their mother, how much better their stepmother was than their mother, then it was comments about their sexuality, their gender identity, and how they portrayed themselves. They had to throw away thousands of dollars of makeup their mother bought for them because makeup wasn't for boys and they needed to learn that. The first time the physical abuse started, Nao wasn't expecting it. It was over something so easily fixable and yet instead of speaking she simply beat them until she wasn't angry with them anymore. Their father was never there for the abuse, but he always contributed emotionally, never failing to make Nao feel like they never belonged in a family like this one.

Their brothers simply made things worse, continuously pointing out their mistakes and making the abuse worse, helicopter parenting them until they felt suffocated. They were to clean the house and clean their parents' rooms whether or not they wanted and if it was not done, they were beaten as punishment. It was like they were a slave and a punching bag in their own home. By the age of 17, they had already attempted suicide twice and by their third attempt, they were admitted to a mental hospital for a week to be treated for mental illness caused by their parents. At school they were successful, bringing home As and Bs, never failing classes, and balancing dual enrollment and extracurriculars on top of it all and yet their parents were never proud, never satisfied with them.

They had managed to finish high school a semester early thanks to dual enrollment and were planning to become a full-time college student by the new year. Around this time, their brothers had already moved out and gotten an apartment, leaving Nao with their abusive parents, whose abuse had gotten worse since the others weren't here to bully anymore as well. Their father, at some point, had bought another house, this one much smaller than the one they currently lived in. Due to Nao's school schedule, they had allowed them to stay at their brothers' apartments so that they were able to finish school while everyone else moved into the new house and this was the turning point in Nao's life where they knew they had to make a decision.

Their parents had given them information that Nao would be living with them until they finished college, trapping them with their abusive stepmother, who had switched to part-time. This caused panic for Nao, who had managed to come up with a plan that allowed them to run away safely and skip town to live with a friend who would give them a room until they were able to move out on their own. This plan was successful and after ditching their phone, they were able to buy a new phone on their own plan, separating themselves from their abusive family and starting a new life. Without them. Without the abuse.