Little Liar

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death, rape, sexual violence, physical abuse, child abuse, bullying, mental illness, death by suicide, animal death, addiction, substance use, and sexual content.

The narrative begins in a past timeline, with four-year-old Malachi at the playground with his father. Malachi plays happily with his father, excited at the prospect of making cookies with his parents tonight. However, the roar of a passing truck forces Malachi to cover his ears. Loud noises hurt Malachi’s ears and cause a tightness in his chest. To distract Malachi, his father takes him to the merry-go-round, where they spot a spider. Malachi lets the spider crawl onto his hand but inadvertently crushes it when a crack of thunder startles him. He asks his father to save the spider. Though his father tells him that the creature is just sleeping, Malachi knows the spider is dead because of him.

Days pass. Malachi hasn’t seen his father in a while. His mother says that it is Malachi’s fault that his father has left. Malachi’s mother often leaves him alone at home, and he entertains himself by playing with the large cardboard boxes strewn around.