Shaking her long brown hair out of a bike helmet, a petite woman makes her way into a large house. Despite the unfortunate times she has experienced within its walls, she smiles at the towering building.
The delighted screams of the children outside fills her ears and her heart squeezes, being reminded of bittersweet moments lost to the past. Every memory flashes before her eyes with the stillness of a black and white photo.
The smell of a mother's cooking reaches her nose, the accompanying sound of a baby's infectious giggle causing the ends of her lips to droop ever so slightly.
And suddenly, she's a 7 year old again.
"Ji Ah, I'm signing you up for violin lessons. You already have the piano under your belt, now it's time for another classical instrument. No whining or carrying on like your eldest brother, understood?" her mother asks, quickly skimming through a copy of War and Peace.
Bouncing her knee unconsciously, Ji Ah nods, her gaze fixed outside of her mother's limousine.
She had always wondered what it would be like to play with other kids her age.
A loud smack resonates throughout the car, the car giving a slight start of surprise alongside Ji Ah. Tears building up behind her eyes, she swivels her head to look at her mother who is still skimming through her book.
"How many times have I told you not to do that, hm? How many, Song Ji Ah?" Her sugary sweet tone caused Ji Ah's head to pound with anxiety.
"Once," she replies in a hoarse whisper.
Once was enough for her mother.
Tears were never tolerated.
"That's right. That warning is your first and final strike. And you knew that; I told you that fidgeting doesn't make for a proper young lady." The faux caring tone became more clipped as she spoke. "All that aside, though, I don't blame you for a thing. You're a child, you don't know any better."
Ignoring her first instinct to sigh and cry in relief, Ji Ah focuses on the large reddening spot of skin on her knee in anticipation. Her mother wasn't the type to let go of something without giving a consequence.
She always had a 'however. . .' in store.
"However, I noticed that Jung-Hwa has recently started doing the same thing. So, of course, you got it from him. Should I reprimand him instead?"
Eyes widening, Ji Ah quickly shakes her head. "No, eomma, please—"
"Raise your head when you speak to me, Ji Ah. And you know better than to speak half English and half Korean with me. Choose one and stick with it." she tuts lovingly.
Ji Ah obediently raises her head and chooses to speak in Korean. "Eomma, please. Jung-Hwa oppa did nothing wrong, please don't hurt him. If," she pauses, wondering whether or not she should seal her fate like this. ". . .if you choose to not reprimand him, I'll be your heiress."
Turning her stare from the copy of War and Peace to her daughter, she smiles at Ji Ah. The expression scares Ji Ah, but she's careful to maintain a poker face.
No 7 year old should be manipulated like this.
"Well, daughter, since you asked for it, now I have to give it you. You truly are the best child I could ever ask for."
Shaking her head with a sharp laugh, Ji Ah walks inside the house.
She's been protecting her brothers from their mother since the damn beginning.
YOU ARE READING
The Heir
Teen Fiction"I put my family before everything in my life. If you can't understand that, then you can't be with me." ~~~~~~~~~~~~ Ji Ah Song - or as she's known by her classmates, Song Ji Ah - is the third eldest child in her family. She cares for her two young...
