Almost there.
She strained harder.
Almost.
Her feet shook against the amount of weight she put on it but she wasn't having it.
Almost.
Finally being able to touch the edge of the book, she pulled it out in a swift motion before landing painfully on her behind.
Ugh!
How much she disliked her height!
Scrambling for her glasses, she put her hands out in a blind search. After years of groaning and grasping air, she finally was able to grasp the frame of the zebra patterned glasses.
Victoria fondled with it, careful not to break it as she placed it on the bridge of her slim, pointed nose.
All she wanted at the moment, was to curl up in her bed, and settle with the John Grisham book she'd been longing to read all week.
But of course! As though the universe was against her -like always- the sun shined brighter and the rays seeping into the room became harsher, blocking her vision.
Ugh!
She turned over roughly, trying to get the sun out of her line of sight. This caused her leg to hit the wooden frame of the bed, the spot immediately turning a bright red.
She blew out a frustrated breath.
What did I ever do?!
Being a person living with albinism had always been an err...inconvenience. Yes, inconvenience...she preferred to put it that way. Wherever she went, she turned heads. Not because she was popular or something.
Popular? Not in a million years!
But because of the colour of her skin.
The stares she got, the hate, the insults. It never seemed to cease. One way or the other, she always seemed to be the laughing stock, the victim. She was almost used to it. Almost. That was why she resorted to hiding behind a wall and pushing the world out.
Books had always been a source of comfort to her. They shielded her away from prying eyes and mocking smiles. She'd rather have her nose in a book than sit through a conversation. She'd figured that out after the failed attempt she had at conversation with some other girls at her previous school.
Her eyes drifted to the front cover of the book and slowly a smile formed on her lips.
Finally! She stood against all odds! She survived the apocalypse! She succeeded! She was finally going to settle and read this--
"Victoria!" A voice boomed across the house.
Ohhhh fudgebuckets!
What did I ever do to deserve this?!
"Ma! I'm coming." She managed to maintain a calm voice.
"Get down here!"
"Yes ma'am."
She could hear someone pacing back and forth at the foot of the stairs. Could she be more patient?
Do note the sarcasm.
"How many times do I have to call you before you reply me?!" The lady standing at the bottom of the staircase screeched.
Yes, screeched. Meet my aunt, guys.
She was dressed in a blue floor length dress that had a dipped v neck. Her hair was perfectly made and tied up with flower patterned ribbons. Her wrists and neck were adorned with glittering gold accessories.
On first sight, one would immediately know the category she belonged to -The Elite.
"I answered you, ma." Victoria tried to keep out any form of annoyance from her voice.
"So you mean I'm deaf?!"
"No. No ma'am."
"What did you mean, then?" The lady placed an arm on her hip, cocking her head to the side in the process.
"I didn't mean anything, ma"
"And now she's lying. First, you ignore me. Second, you insult me and now you're lying! Give me one good reason why I shouldn't punish you." She placed another arm on her hip.
"I'm sorry, ma"
"You will be. When I'm done with you," The lady looked away thoughtfully. She nodded her head when she seemed to make a decision. "Now, go to the kitchen and scrub the tiles."
Scrub the tiles?
Was Aunt Katherine out of her mind?! The kitchen was huge! And she wanted her to scrub the tiles.
The tiles!
They weren't even dirty! She had just mopped them that morning.
"But, ma-"
She cut her off. "Now!"
"Yes aunty."
With shaky steps, Victoria walked towards the large kitchen. She'd just finished doing the dishes and mopping the floors when she settled with a book to read and now she had to continue.
Where does she start?
With a quiet sigh, she picked up the tiny brush that her aunt had thrown at her and began doing the cleaning.
~
Hours of scrubbing later.
Literally.
She collapsed in the kitchen floor. Her hands were shaky and her legs, tired.
"I'd much rather be reading a book instead of this!" She grumbled quietly.
The sound of rapid steps pierced into the air. The clicking of heels against the tiled floor was loud and sharp.
Here she comes! Ugh.
Quickly packing up her cleaning materials, she dumped it all in the closet and began to walk out.
"Are you done?!"
When does she never shout?
"Yes ma."
"Good," she said, looking around to confirm. When she found no faults, she continued. "Listen. Your uncle will be back soon. I want you to go freshen up and wear something nice."
"Okay."
"And turn that frown to a smile."
Yay! Time for pretence!
Victoria raced up the stairs. Her day had been hectic and she hadn't even been allowed to read the novel she wanted to. But on the bright side, her uncle was coming so yay!
Picking up a sock from the floor, she dumped it into her wardrobe and began the search for something nice.
Her aunt liked to play a game. Not exactly a game if you thought about it, though. Whenever her uncle was around, her aunt would treat her like a daughter. Like she actually loved her. That's the exact opposite of the truth, though.
But, sometimes, she liked to pretend it was real. That she at least got the motherly love she needed.
She let out a sigh, wishing for it to take away all the saddening thoughts. She finally settled with a clean pair of leggings and a grey top that had 'Princess' written on it in bold letters.
~
She could hear chattering. The living room was lively. For the first time in months!
"C'mon Vicky, I know you're there." She heard her uncle say. A silent chuckle came from her aunt.
Of course, it was fake.
"Welcome uncle." She smiled.
"Give me a hug," He pulled her in. "I've missed you."
"I missed you too, uncle." She said, stealing glances at her aunt.
"Not as much as I missed you though, Darling". Aunt Katherine stated, placing an arm around his neck.
Uncle Mike smiled. "Victoria do the honours and say a prayer before we eat."
"No amount of prayer will change the food from it's awful taste to a delicious one." She muttered.
"What did you say?" Aunt Katherine asked, looking genuinely interested to hear the muttered words. But the underlying tone of her voice though, promised wrath.
"N-nothing ma"
"Good."
"Are you done with your little moment, girls?" Uncle Mike chuckled.
Little moment?
She was literally threatening me. Are you blind?
....sir.
"Don't feel let out, babe." Aunt Katherine chuckled, wrapping her long fingers around Uncle Mike's bicep.
Irritated by the name callings and touchy touchy acts, Victoria proceeded the prayer session.
"In Jesus name...."
~
Dinner hadn't gone so well after that. Maybe it was because of the horrible sight of the food and the lack of taste of it or because of her aunt's stupid actions, Victoria didn't know but what she did know, was that Uncle Mike was definitely pissed at her aunt.
They'd been managing the food. Swallowing it to avoid chewing on the semi liquefied grains of rice. That was when Uncle Mike seemed to remember something.
"Babe," he began.
Aunt Katherine gave him a sideways glance, her eyes set on the plate before her.
"I just remembered." He continued. "I haven't seen Nanny T since I got back."
Dun dun.
"Oh, Nanny T." Aunt Katherine smiled. A guilty smile.
"Yes, her. I was wondering why she didn't cook, too."
"Oh. Well, you would love my idea." Aunt Katherine began, suddenly restless.
"You see, babe, yesterday morning, I sat down and thought about it. Nanny T has been with us for 11 years now and she has gotten so old compared to when we first hired her. She's been so good, so loyal. Why not let her rest? Why not release her?"
Uncle Mike's left eye twitched.
"So, I made up my mind. It was a hard decision to make, really. But, I had to, she needed it. So I paid her her full salary and told her that we wouldn't be needing her anymore."
Told?
Told?!!
She basically threw out the woman's belongings and pushed her out of the house, yelling threats at her to never speak to Uncle Mike about this. That wasn't all, too. She didn't pay the woman at all.
Uncle Mike slowly put down the fork and pulled out his chair.
Uhhhhh
"So, you fired Nanny T."
Aunt Katherine shivered at the cold tone of her husband.
"Answer me!"
"Y-yes."
"Why? Why did you?" Uncle Mike looked like he wanted to strangle something or....was it someone?
She was enjoying this way more than she should. But who cares? Certainly not her!
"Why didn't you ask me, first?"
"I just thought...." Aunt Katherine sighed. "I thought it was a good idea, you know." She shrugged, sheepishly. "I didn't want to disturb you with calls and Nanny T looked so worn out. I didn't want her to breakdown"
What?
What?
Hello??
Are we on the same page?
"I just wanted to make a decision in my own house," a tear slid down her cheek. "For once." It was followed by another.
The fudgesticks?!
What the heck?
She could see Uncle Mike's annoyed face crumble.
No!
Are you kidding me?
She's lying!
It's pretence!
Uncle Mike moved closer to her. "Oh babe, I'm soo sorry."
Oh C'mon!
Annoyed, she put down her fork and muttered an excuse, leaving the two behind.
How can someone come up with such an act?
Aunt Katherine should be an actress, really.
She had changed into a Mickey mouse pyjamas after that. She hadn't realised she was so worn out until her back hit the bed.
☀☀☀
A/N: Hello people!!! Welcome! How do you do on this fine day?
Soooooo how do you like this book? And Vicky -our main character?
I'll see y'all in the next chapter! Byeee💕
~Enny