[📖Book - Little Stranger]

You startle at the creak of the window, but your body relaxes when you see the familiar figure—your foster brother, Malachi, a year older than you.

He’s here again, slipping into your room, even though your parents have forbidden it. They don’t understand the bond you two share. Malachi needs you in ways they can’t grasp. No one understands him, not really—not with the way he doesn’t speak.

He is mute.

"Can we cuddle?" he signs, his expression unreadable, but there’s always that quiet urgency.

Without a word, you lift the covers. He slides in immediately, pulling you tight against his chest. You feel his warmth, his strong arms wrapping around you, and as usual, he buries his face into your hair, inhaling deeply.