𝐃é𝐟𝐢 𝐌𝐨𝐢

𝟔 | 𝐃𝐚𝐝𝐝𝐲 𝐈𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐞𝐬

My teeth grit against each other, and I take a deep inhale of air before speaking. "But dad..."

"I said what my decision is, Rachel." His palm comes in front of his face as he stops me from speaking further. "I would still need someone to look after the house after her, and you are the eldest. Be responsible for once rather than only thinking about yourself."

That was the last thing that I wanted to hear right now.

The patience that I had been gathering up for so long finally shattered like a glass, and before he could leave, I mustered the courage and spoke again. "I was not asking, dad."

It was too late to regret it now, as he turns around and glares.

"What did you say?" He points his finger at me. "Are you talking back to me right now, your own father?"

The shock was evident on his face, and the same was evidence inside my head, as this was the first time that I was arguing back with something that he decided for me.

This time, I wanted to be in control of my future.

It can be the wrong timing, but it's better to be late.

Gulping back my second choice and almost giving up, I stand up from my spot and match his gaze. "I am not talking back, dad." My voice becomes strained as I continue further. "But if it has to be this way for you to let me go, then I won't explain myself any further."

A second later, the vein in his forehead was visibly pulsating, and his eyes had a rage that would have burned me alive if it could.

The next thing I felt was the sharp sting on the right side of my face and the pain in my neck due to the force that jerked to the opposite side after that sting that still echoed in the space and in my heart.

Tears stained my cheek, and my sobs choked the air in my lungs.

He was screaming at me, yelling my name aloud.

Slowly, his screams started to get muffled, like they were sucked into a hollow, and his voice was replacing them with much softer and more familiar ones.

"Rachel?" The soft voice called my name again, but my eyes and ears were too blurry to sense it.

"Rachel?"

This time, the voice sounds crystal clear, and my body jerks when I feel someone slightly grabbing my shoulder and giving it a shake, letting me open my eyes instantly.

The sleepy blur soon turns into irritation when the sunrays peeking from my window hit my eyes, and I squint them shut again.

"Are you okay, honey?" Emma's voice makes me slowly open my eyes again, adjusting my vision to the brightness before she comes into my sight properly.

A groan leaves my lips as I straighten myself before getting up and sitting against the headboard. "What time is it?"

"For you to get ready before you get late for your first day at work." She rubs the pad of her thumb on my cheeks, and I feel the moisture dampening my eyes and skin.

The realisation hits me in the gut. "I was crying..."

Emma places her palm on the top of my head, gently ruffling my hair. "It's okay, sweetie. I have seen you often cry in your sleep after Mrs. Meiling passed away. You don't have to hide it from me."

My eyes travel to her face, and she smiles as soon as I look at her. There were no lies in the genuine love and support that she always gave me and my sister after our mom, but somehow, I was never able to convince myself to address her as my mom.