"Raise your hands properly," si Daddy na titig na titig sa diyaryong hawak niya.
Inayos ko sa pagkakataas ang aking mga kamay. My knees are starting to hurt. I was even considered lucky that he didn't put salt on the floor. My sisters are looking at me, wincing, as if being treated like this is a disgrace.
My mind started wandering around. Ngumisi ako nang maalala ang ginawa ni Sahri kagabi. She held Casimir as if I were going to take him away from her.
"Hehe... stupid." Hagikhik ko ngunit agad ding napadaing nang hampasin ni Daddy ang bunbunan ko gamit ang diyaryo. "Aray!" I held my head where he hit me and glared at him.
"Who are you calling stupid, and why are you laughing like a lunatic during punishment?" Aniya, halos pandilatan na ako.
"What the hell? Aren't you being super mean right now, Dad—ouch!" I groaned when he hit me again with a newspaper.
"Who do you think you're talking to, brat? Kneel and raise your hands properly!"
"Yes, Sir!" Agap ko at sumeryoso ngunit agad ding nasundan ng hagikhik nang maalala ulit ang nangyari.
"You've got some loose screws in your head." Si Dad at tumayo. "Stand up after fifteen minutes!" At nilagpasan ako.
"Huh?!" Sinundan ko ng tingin si Daddy. "Daddy, this is child abuse!"
"Are you even a child?" Baling sa akin ni Daddy.
"But you told me I was behaving like a child," I reasoned out.
"Hindi gagana sa akin iyang pagiging pilosopo mo, Ludovica. Stand up after twenty minutes—"
"Woah. Kanina fifteen minutes lang, ah?!" I whined.
"If you keep talking, I'll add another five minutes." Dad said intently, turning his back on me.
Huh?
"What the hell? This is violence against women, Daddy! You can't do this to your precious child! Your princess!" I said dramatically.
"Will you please shut up? You're already looking pathetic right now; don't make it worse," nakasimangot na sambit ni Ate Bianca.
"Hey, stop talking like a superior. You had it worst. You kneeled in salt with books in your hands." Mayabang kong baling sa kaniya.
"Do you even know your situation right now? You were being punished with the same method, a lighter version. But at least, we experienced it when we were still kids. How old are you now?" balik sa akin ni Ate Bianca.
"She was even confident Dad wouldn't do this to her." Tawa ni Ate Reese.
"Puwede bang umalis kayo sa harapan ko? I feel like throwing up all of the drinks and food I had last night at the sight of your duck faces," sa nang-aasar kong tono.
"Ah, look at her, acting like a bitch just because she's being grilled." Ate Reese smirked.
"That's enough. Vic, I'll prepare your breakfast. It's almost six; you have your class at seven-thirty, right?" Si Mommy Liz at umahon na mula sa sofa.
"Yes..." I looked at her.
She smiled and nodded. Sinundan ko siya ng tingin nang magtungo siya sa kusina. I lowered my hands, but I raised them again properly when Dad went out of the kitchen and walked straight to the staircase.
"Hindi ako makahinga..." pagdadrama ko.
"Gamitin mo bibig mo," ani Ate Reese.
"Shut up," I hissed.
YOU ARE READING
Zephyr Strings
General Fiction(SPHEROID CHAMBERS #3) Ongoing Moving on from a traumatic episode in the past is never a cakewalk. Each of us encountered a lot of crusades in the past and it's up to us how we'll deal with it to outweigh them. He was pressured. He was devastated...
Kabanata 2
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