Episode 9

Gift eyes were as cold as stone as she glared at the insolent child that was soundly sleeping on her kitchen floor.

A harsh slap landed across Nellie’s face, realizing she had fallen asleep on her duties again, she quickly jerked up from the cold kitchen floor to greet her stepmother.

“I'm so sorry Ma, I promise it won't happen again.” She squeaked and hastily tried standing on her feet while straightening her rumpled dress. When she was done, she looked up at her stepmother and that was when she noticed the eyes. Nellie gulped, a cold sweat suddenly broke down her spine as she stood completely frozen staring at the woman standing before her. There was no need to apologize after all because this was no ordinary look. It was the look she could never get accustomed to, the look that always promised it's receiver unimaginable pain and untold suffering, it was a look she all so dreaded and today, it looked scarier than ever before.

Taking a couple of steps away from her stepmother, Nellie tried to apologize again, even though she knew that there was no use trying.

“I—I—I’m so sorry Ma, I did—n’t mea—” She was quickly cut short as another hard slap landed across her face. Shortly, she felt the blood rush to her cheeks, her legs wobbled and before she knew it, she was on the floor.

“You didn’t mean to do what?! GET PREGNANT?” Gift yelled at the top of her lungs. Nellies big brown eyes widen at the sudden accusation as her mind wandered a thousand miles wondering if there was any truth to what her stepmother had just accused her off.

“Well? What do you have to say for yourself, you wayward child!” Gift barked again and the poor child found her already terrified body wither into nothingness.

While the child tried to gather her thoughts and clear the thick fog that had clouded her mind, Gift sneaked away and resurfaced a minute later with a long and thick tree branch which she intended to hit her stepdaughter with. When Nellie opened her eyes and realized what was soon going to take place, she quickly shut them again in anticipation as she already found herself resigning to the brutality that was soon to follow.

With every contact the tree branch made with her tender skin, Nellie could only pray to whosoever was listening, to let her live. This particular assault was worse than the ones they were ever made to endure; this time, it as though her stepmother had no intentions of letting her walk out of there alive and that thought scared her more than she could ever imagine. So, she swore to herself that if she ever made it out alive, she was going to run away, so very far away, never looking back and never returning.

*****

Distance was all that mattered, Nellie wasn't going to let herself stop for anything until she got to her destination —Sunny's house.

The little girl walked on the hard asphalt road as though her limbs belonged to someone else. Each step she took felt as if it was a negotiation rather than an order and every part of her body hurt.

She had done it, she had managed to run away. She recalled when her stepmother happily left her on the cold kitchen floor, all battered and bruised, thinking she was too weak to move, Nellie, had managed to find her strength somehow, and she forced her body to work even when it was completely sore. She took the opportunity she was given and packed her little bag —that was counted as a suitcase— then she left the house through the kitchen door when her stepmother wasn't watching. Nellie was thankful to God that Gift had made them sleep in the small storeroom that was located inside the kitchen because that action enabled her to get away easily without any problems—and now that she was out, there was no turning back for her.

Nellie felt pained that she couldn’t take her baby brother along with her, it hurt her the most that she wasn’t even able to say goodbye, but Nellie knew it was the right thing to do. She had nowhere to go-to for the time being and she had no money, she couldn’t let him starve to death or sleep on the cold street like she was planning on doing if Sunny still rejected her— after she visits again—So instead, she resulted to making a silent promise to Peter that she would surely come back for him once she found a good place to settle.

*****

“How many times have I warned you never to reveal your stupid face before me again?!” Sunny barked; she could literally see the fury that was boiling deep within his system as hot as lava, the hatred smouldering in the small narrow of his eyes and how he looked like he was seriously reflecting upon the pros and cons of the assorted and imaginative means that was accessible for him to hurt her.

Nellie wasn’t going to allow him to scare her off this time around, she was way too desperate for her to let that happen. This time around, she was determined to do whatsoever it took to convince Sunny that she was good for him. She cleared her throat and spoke up before he could say anything else.

“Sunny, please, you have to help me! Tell me what I did wrong to deserve this treatment from you, I promise to change and do better next time; but please don’t send me back home, things have gotten worse.” Tears trailed down her face as Sunny watched the girl in front of him crumble to her knees and begged for the person that once loved her to come back to normal for the sake of her grieving heart, but her action seemed to worsen his Irritation of her. He opened his mouth to speak but the little girl could read what was boldly written on his face and features. Right then, Nellie knew he was a lost cost and that she was domed.

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