╔═══ Author's note ════╗
Edited by Psycho S
Proofreaded by P.D Webb.
╚═════════════════╝
After two years, her parents got Bing Shi a second brother. Having more money now, they sent both of her brothers to the nanny. Bing Shi could finally be free at her home.
She got her first PC and a mobile phone when she was ten.
Let's not talk about her loving father who was becoming less loving as the years rolled by. He would become best friends with the beers and so, he would treat her mother with less and less respect, like a real man.
When Bing Shi was pulled aside by her bitter mother, and forced to listen to the woes her mother spilt (he wasn't like this before; he was kind, he was loving... he wasn't like this before), she would add another note mentally.
'~ Men will get worse after a while.'
When Bing Shi got home from school, she would help her parents in their shop for a while. After that, she had to take care of her brothers, who didn't need a nanny anymore, according to her parents.
That's when Bing Shi started to hate children and her parents. Why were they giving her new brothers? She hated them! She wanted to be alone and play on her computer all day!
'Why are they so loud?'
'Why are they so messy?!'
Those two brats were walking trash bins! She had to clean up after her brothers every time!
Her calmness and patience disappeared. One time she had enough and shoved her brother away. Her brother fell on his buttock and started to bawl his lungs out. The shocked Bing Shi regretted her action. She immediately apologized, begging him not to tell her parents.
Due to her long persuasion, her brother didn't tell anybody. At this point, he probably forgot what happened...
Having enough of how dependent her brothers were, Bing Shi learned how to trick them. Starting small, she would take a photo of a messy living room room and show them the picture.
"You see how messy the room is? Can you turn it clean again? I'll take a before and after picture. Later, I'll show it to our parents and tell them how you could clean the house, all by yourself! They would be so proud to have such good boys as their sons!" She encouraged them with a wide smile.
Her brothers agreed happily. The before and after result of their hard work gave them a sense of achievement. Not often was it for their sister to praise them.
When she showed off the pictures to her parents, they praised their sons. And they were even prouder of their daughter for teaching her brothers how to do housework!
Her parents never saw how Bing Shi took care of her brothers, never saw how she shouted at them, and how many times she made them cry. They always saw a finished product of two obedient boys.
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Bing Shi enjoyed playing games, the only place she could have real fun and feel safe at the same time. Nobody could hurt her. She felt really happy and wanted to spend most of her time there. Listening to her desires, to play more games, she studied less. But her grades were still the same. How? Because she was smart? No, because she was cheating. And she got caught. Her parents got a call from her teacher.
When Bing Shi came back home, her parents were waiting for her in the living room.
Her father cornered her into a corner of a room. Raising his hand, which was holding a broom; he started to hit her plump body.
Bing Shi's face was full of terror, she shouted at him to stop, she pleaded him to stop, begging for forgiveness, but he never listened to her.
Her father was so occupied by disappointment that he ignored her pleas, "You were such a good girl! When did you become a cheater?!"
He had to teach her a lesson so it won't happen again!
"... No, please... I'm sorry... I...ugh..." Bing Shi crouched in the corner and continued to sob; she gave up. Her emotions were full of hatred. She started to hate everyone. She started to hate this world.
'I hate you.'
'Stop hurting me.'
'~See? That's what happens when you listen to your desires and your heart; bad things happen. You should have listened to me and studied well so you could play games with a clear mind.'
'~You have to think before you act.'
'~ Violence hurts, avoid it.'
"This is how we taught you?! To be a cheater?! This family doesn't need a cheater! We would rather have a daughter with bad grades than a cheater!" He continued with his beating. Until when? Until he had enough and furiously broke the broom by himself with his hands over his knees and threw the broken broom at the trembling girl.
Bing Shi lifted her head, and with her terrified eyes, she looked at her mother for the last time, looking for hope.
'Hey, why are you looking at me with that gaze?'
'When he hurt you, I would always come to your rescue.'
'But when it's your turn to protect me, you just watch and cry?'
'Seems like you are disappointed in me too.'
'Do you just want a perfect daughter who doesn't make mistakes? I'll give you a daughter who doesn't make mistakes.'
But who didn't make mistakes?
From that day onwards, Bing Shi stopped caring about her parents; she cared only about herself.
Bing Shi's grades went up, but her parents ended up always looking at her with eyes full of regret. Other children had it worse; they worked so hard for her wellbeing, so why couldn't she forgive them?
Bing Shi started to treasure herself far more than anybody else. She would never take the initiative to touch anyone and not once, since that horrible day, has she hugged anyone —except for him. He was the only exception — the only person who was worthy of her.
Their first meeting was in an online game. He was 11; she was 13.
Their second meeting was in the same game. He was 13, she was 15.
Their third meeting was also in the same game. He was 15, and she was 17. They never parted from then on.
They started online dating when he was 16, and she was 18.
Their first real-life meeting was when he was 17, and she was 19.
He couldn't even touch her hand until he turned 22, and she 24.