Returned to Sender - Scarlett Johansson

Part 25

Sawyer's POV

I don't know what work Mama was doing now, but it was different from what she does on set. There was a man who kept asking questions, mainly about me, and lots of other people just listened to them and laughed occasionally.

I don't like it. I could feel their eyes on me while Mama talked, making me feel angsty.

Although I think Mama could tell as she would cover my ears when the people got too loud, or she would hug me tighter when I started twitching uncomfortably. She was doing such an excellent job of keeping me calm that I was basically asleep, her words lulling me peacefully to sleep.

That was until the man spoke, making me jump. "Well, thank you for introducing us all to Sawyer, Scarlett; she seems like a real sweetheart." I tried really hard to think of happy thoughts, thinking back to a could of hours ago at the zoo with Uncle Hunt and Mama. It wasn't working, though; no matter how hard I tried, the world was blurring around me, and their faces were starting to circle around my mind.

"Come here darling," Daddy called as I cleaned the floor in the kitchen, Mommy turning to look at me worriedly as she cleaned the counters. "Go on, don't make him wait," she said softly, fear gripping at her features. "Coming, Daddy," I said before wabbling towards him, I was already three, but I was still unsteady on my feet due to my small size. As I walked into the room, I did a double take; in front of me were two versions of Daddy, the neat version I'm used to seeing and a dishevelled version with long matted hair and a scratchy-looking beard.

Looking up at the two, I flickered my eyes between them, trying to determine why there were two. "Darling, this is your Uncle Cooper; he's my twin. Cooper and you are going to go on an adventure today. You will be on your best behaviour for Cooper, or you'll spend your evening in the closet, and Mommy will pay for your behaviour. Do you understand, darling?" He asked in a harsh tone, making me flinch, knowing what punishment would await me, I had learnt a long time ago not to cry when he upset me, or it would end badly.

I nodded, not wanting Mommy to get hurt because of me. I hate it when Daddy makes Mommy cry; he always says it's my fault she gets hurt, that if I weren't born, he and Mommy would be happy; I am just a waste of space and time.

Looking up at the man Daddy called Cooper, I stayed silent, knowing better than to talk unless spoken to. Daddy says girls are to be seen and not heard; if I'm heard, Mommy gets in trouble. Sometimes if I do something terrible, or if Daddy is really mad, he'll hurt me instead. "Let's go, sweetheart; I have all sorts of plans for you," the Cooper man said before picking me up.

His hands grabbed me harshly; I was sure that my skin would be purple later. He chucked me in the back seat, making me smack my head against the opposite window before slamming the door and getting in, there was no car seat, and I couldn't pull the belt enough to get it to move, so I just sat there waiting to see what would happen. Cooper didn't care for the lack of safety; Mommy had taught me that I needed to sit in a particular seat and wear a seat belt when in the car. Cooper gave me neither and just drove off, taking us somewhere unknown.

When we got there, he left. He didn't say anything, just left the car.

I just sat in the back seat as the car started to get warm. It was the middle of summer, and this Cooper guy hadn't opened any of the windows, so the car was heating up under the hot midday sun. I don't know how long I had been left in the car, but I knew I was dizzy, the type of pain in my head that I get when Daddy slaps me into the wall too hard.

I felt sticky, and the air felt heavy as I wheezed desperately, trying to get the warm air into my lungs. I don't know what happened next, but when I came to, I was in an unknown room, it was hot, just like the car, but the air was light enough that I could at least breathe this time. I was used to being moved in my sleep after passing out, so I knew better than to yell out, so I just sat there.