Adeline and the Ovunque's Key || Ongoing

001

"Don't you blame this on anyone else! You know as well as I do, this is your fault! " she said, with tears starting to fall down her cheeks.

Disappointment. It's not even an uncommon feeling to feel for me anymore. I know for a fact that I was born to disappoint everyone. You could say it's a natural talent.

From experience, I decided it was best to just remain silent and let my mother sink into her feelings. I watched as she slowly regained her composure. Her once frail figure and slumped shoulders raised as she cleared her throat. She wiped her tears and sat down on one of the chairs.

"Sit down. We'll talk when we get home."

I followed through, feeling reluctant to pursue a conversation that would end up going bad. I dug into my pockets and pulled out my earphones, plugging them into both of my ears, blocking the world out. She was right. It was no one's fault but mine.

Those were in fact her last words spoken to me, a few hours ago. She said nothing when we drove back home from the deputy's office. She insisted on saying nothing as we got home because the moment we arrived, she walked straight into her room, ignoring me completely.

I stared upon my mother's door, my hands frozen to my sides as my eyes never left the shiny silver knob. Hundreds of words formed in my head, but none would leave the tip of my tongue. With a heavy sigh, I turned away and walked straight to the living area.

I knelt next to the fire pit in the centre of the room. Swiftly, I added a small dry log to the dying embers. Looking at the fire calmed me down. It somehow soothed my eyes. I hadn't been home for a few months now.

I had been living in the dormitory since the semester started. I always wondered how mother would be when she was alone in the house. Letting my eyes wander around, nothing seemed out of place. I suppose she's adapting well without me.

I let my eyes roam around more until they stopped short on a photograph. It was a photograph of a happy family. It was a photo of my family. We were happy and whole once before. That was until dad decided he'd be better off without us and left us behind.

Mum had never been the same since.

I stared and stared until my face scrunched up in disgust towards my father. I walked up to the photograph and turned it down. Hearing the clock chime, I glanced at it and saw that it was exactly two in the morning. I walked to my room and lay down on my bed. Mum always forgives and forgets. I doubt her silent disappointment would even last a day. What difference would this one problem make?

I lay asleep in peace, thinking all would be forgiven by the time morning came, but I was wrong.

When the sun rose up high the next morning, I walked downstairs to attend breakfast with my mother. She wasn't quite as talkative, as she usually is. She was quiet. In fact, her face seemed to have lost its colour. Her blond hair was a mess. The dark circles under her eyes made it obvious that she didn't sleep at all last night. She looked terrible.

"Mum?"

"Yes, honey?"

"I'm sorry if you're still upset about last night. I didn't mean to disappoint you again. You have every right to be upset with me."

She fell silent, eyes unfocused and looked away into the distance. For once, time felt like torture. It's like everything is moving in slow motion. Slowly she brings her cup to her mouth and starts drinking her morning coffee.

"I'm glad you know you are wrong. I have something to tell you. It's a pressing matter. One of the reasons why I have to think of nothing about your behaviour last night."

I stared at her, almost unwilling to know her message. What could be so important and upsetting that the atmosphere in this room today is this horrible?

"What is it, Mum?"

"We're moving."

"What?" I widened my eyes and pushed my hands on the table as I rose from my seat. "You're joking, right? Why?"

"I know I made a promise that once we're here, we won't move anymore, but I don't think we can stay here anymore. They keep raising the price. We're getting evicted in a few more days."

"I don't want to move!"

"Adeline! Don't make this harder than it already is!" Mum barked, her hands slamming against the table so loud that I flinched. "It's those friends of yours. They are corrupting you. I told you to stay away from them. I told you they were trouble! Did you listen? No."

"Mum, my friends are no trouble. They are not corrupting me. If you need to know, it's you and dad. You guys changed me if you don't know that already. And those friends that you hated so much, they saved me. They saved your daughter."

Her gaze was as cold as steel, unwavering as her glare pierced me. Her teeth were gritted and suddenly, I could feel a force on my cheek, pushing me staggering at the impact.

She had hit me. Her own daughter. The one she's been neglecting after being apart from dad.

The shock was clear on my mother's face, but she quickly masked it with her anger. I touched my reddened cheek as the pain starts to sting me. Tears started to form in the brim of my eyes, threatening to fall down as I stared at her.

"You're an ungrateful brat. Pack your stuff now. We're leaving tomorrow."

After all these years, I finally had friends. I don't want to move. I despise the idea. After all the moves I've been through in my life, I thought this was the last time.

I sniffed and wiped my tears away. "It's not like you need my say in this. I'll just send the word to my friends. It'll be fine." I said before pushing my meal away. I turned away and walked up to my room.

Just as she said, the very next morning we set off for the countryside. I'm not sure what I should expect to find in such a rural area. I sure hope it's nice enough there. Maybe I can lock myself in my room and never comes out. That'll teach her.