The afternoon sun streamed through the dusty window of the small garage, casting long shadows over the scattered boxes and forgotten tools. Jesse lay beside me, his breath slow and steady as he slept. I watched him, my heart aching with the weight of the world I felt pressing down on us both. The events of the previous day replayed in my mind, each memory sharper and more painful than the last. It wasn’t just the physical pain Jesse endured, but the emotional lacerations left by the indifference and cruelty of those who should have protected him.
