Prodigy

Chapter 6

Everybody was running out of the building, I saw Steve chase after a man who I believed was behind the attack. My father gripped me by my arm and dragged me into a separate room alone. The ringing slowly stopped and I wiped the blood from my nose as he tossed me forward.

"Dad, wait-" I began begging as he quickly smacked me harshly across my face, leaving a stinging ghost of his hand.

"Who did you tell?" He sternly asked. He then yanked my wrist towards him in anger as his voice got louder. "Dammit Y/n! Answer me! Who did you talk to?! Who knows you're my sorry excuse of a daughter?! Answer me!"

"I didn't say anything, father, I swear!" I yelped in response. He dropped my hand and let out an angry sigh. I quickly backed away from him. "I -I -I think this attack wasn't related to me father, I think somebody knew about the serum somehow."

"Fine. I'll believe you this time." He huffed as he walked back towards the door. "I better not see a single slip up from you on our trip, and I expect extra training tonight."

We left the building and headed home in silence. Immediately when we got back to the house I went to the basement and began some basic training again.

I kept missing my targets and stumbling a lot more than usual. My mind was so flustered I just couldn't keep my focus. I didn't understand why my father immediately blamed me for that incident. He knew that I was smart enough to keep my word about me being his daughter remaining a secret. I know he thinks very little of me but even still I never make mistakes that big.

After a few hours of training, I returned to my room and opened my notes to review how the serum worked on Steve. I still was amazed. Just two minutes of pain while I endured over an hour of it at just 5 years old. I wish I never got that serum in the first place. I never wanted to be stronger, and I never wanted to fight. All I ever wanted was to make my father proud.

My father was all I had growing up, mom died during labor so I never even met her. It would've helped to not feel so alone and empty if I could've grown up like a normal child and been allowed at school and outside. The only person I ever had in my life was my father and he never cared. He didn't see me as his daughter and that's just becoming clearer the more I grow up. I shouldn't have been so naive as a child to believe he wanted my help on an experiment, I should've known I was the experiment.

The fact my father has that file still opened and ongoing disgusts me. Project prodigy. It's dehumanizing that he still updates that thing. He still pokes and pries at me. Still tests my abilities. Still points out each and every mistake I make. I can never truly make him happy, nothing I say or do will make him proud.