Rosewood Institute

Father's Rage

I quietly walk into the house as Iris stays outside to read her book some more, she's so smart. She's always loved reading The Narnia books and the Sherlock Holmes ones. She would always say it's good practice for reading people, when one day we got out of here.

I find our father in the small living room, drinking whiskey and reading a newspaper. It was the only thing he read and one of the only things he'd bring in from the outside world other than a few food items.

He looked up from his newspaper when I walked into the room, and instantly gave me a disgusted look, it has something to do with my hair color and eyes. Maybe I look like mom? I always wondered what she looked like and how she is as a person, I refused to believe she's dead like father says but we don't really know.

"Speak child, what do you want?" Father says in a harsh tone that has me shrinking back from him.

He always scared me, but I knew I had to be strong, to tell him I'm not gonna have a wife one day like he keeps on going on about.

That I want a husband, or something like that. I'll have to get classified after I'm safely away from here, maybe the government could help me? No, father says the government is full of liars and cheats and that we don't need them.

"I... I don't think I'll have a wife one day... that doesn't... I think I want a husband. Iris says it means I'm gay, but that's okay, right?" I say with nervous energy and fear coming off of me in waves.

My father tosses the newspaper away from him and looks at me with an angry expression as he downs the rest of his whisky that was in his glass.

He stalks towards me with angry loud steps and picks me up by the color of my shirt, and says to me, in an almost growl like voice, "I sure as hell hope you're not gay! Because if you are, I'm gonna make you wish you were never born, boy! I'm gonna teach you who is really in charge around here!"

I shrink away from him as his spit flys on my face as I smells his stinky alcohol breath mixed with bad body odor. He always smelled terrible, even when he'd go away for a few days and came back smelling like stinky rotten flowers.

I suddenly feel a burning sensation across my cheek, finding out a few seconds later, and utter shock that he had slapped me across my face. This will be the first time that he hit me, but it will not be my last.

I start feeling the dampness of my tears, realizing the pain I'm feeling is it just physical it's emotional as well, I hope Iris never has to feel this pain.

I'm knocked to the floor when he drops me suddenly, and suddenly I feel burning pain across my ribs as he kicks me repeatedly. I can feel the pain of his punches across my ribs, face, and even my legs I'm not feeling this pain in the moment, all I'm feeling is emotional pain from my own father hitting me.

My hands start to shake uncontrollably in fear as I start to think he's going to kill me. I think about all the things I won't be able to do or see, and the experiences I'll never have.

I cry as I think about how pathetic my life has been, how much pain I've endured.

I'm knocked out of my thoughts when my father starts rapidly punching my ribs with his fists.

"You will learn to obey me! From now on, you have no rights! You will learn to regret the day your whore of a mother ever birthed you imbeciles!"
Father yelled at me in fury as he drove the final punch home with a kick in the head.

He smirked at me and turned me onto my stomach, as he removed his belt. I could hear the leather moving through the air and then a hard smack landed against my back.

That's how Iris found us, an hour later me with a bruised body and bleeding back and father slumped back into his armchair with his whiskey.

The punishment wasn't terrible in physical pain, but it was mainly the emotional pain of losing any sort of connection to my father.

He gave me a disgusted look and said, "Take the brat away, I can't bother looking at it anymore. Dump it for all I care." As he drained his glass and started to pour another.

Iris had a shocked, angry and completely outraged emotions cross her face. "I can't believe you'd say that about your own son! Even after everything you've done to us, he still loves you! How could you do this to him!" She yelled and took a step towards me.

Father had an angry almost rageful look cross his face as he said, "Listen here, little girl, I'm in charge here! You do as I say, when I say it or you'll take his place! Got that? Or would you like your own lesson in respect?"

Iris stepped back and quickly shook her head No and bowed her head in fear.

And that was the first moment, when Iris looked down in fear and did as father asked. That moment broke me to pieces on the inside, her not fighting harder for me.

"Good," Father said, "Now take him away and then go make my dinner."

Iris nodded at him and dragged me away from him and deposited me into our room in the basement. I was mad at her for so easily agreeing with him, But I was to broken to care. And with that thought I descended into the darkness of sleep.