CHECK

Chapter 3

The car halted and Iris peeled her eyes open the moment her mother put a warm hand on her lap, rubbing it ever so slowly in a comforting way, prompting the fourth round of Iris' sleep.

"C'mon, baby. Wake up, we're here already." Her mother's flowery voice rang and Iris snapped her eyes open.

"We're there?" She glanced outside her window, anticipating going around for sight seeing.

"Uh-huh," started her mother, zipping up her bag and applying some chaplet to her somewhat dry lips. "And your dad is already in the house."

With that, she dropped down from the car and gently closed the door to the expensive black Mercedes. Iris excitedly hopped down, banging the door shut–she pushed it a little too hard, causing her mother to wince.

"You don't want to scratch your father's car now to get him cranky." She held in a laugh, glancing at the window and they caught sight of their father, peering behind the thick blue curtains of the attic with lines of disapproval settled above his eyebrows. "Oops! Talk of the devil."

Iris and her mother shared a laugh. Iris' mother shoved her daughter playfully in front of her and Ris couldn't help, but roll her eyes at her mother's over protectiveness. Was she ever going to get out of the house with the way things were going?

There was a house just opposite them and she glanced at the building that towered over them for a second, before shrugging and walking in since she couldn't find anything interesting to feast her eyes on.

Their island house was built out of stones like those ones she saw in a Camelot movie she was coerced into watching by Amanda. Speaking of Amanda, this reminded Ris of the bucket list and a smile crawled up her face.

It quickly fell and was replaced with a scowl when her mother wrapped her arms around her and said, "What are you waiting for? Let's get in."

Iris swallowed a sigh, lips pinched into a grim line as she remembered her parents might not let her out of their sight, not even for a slight second.

She moved in and gasped, it was just like she remembered from when they used to spend vacations here, but more beautiful with a few changes like; New leather chairs which were her favorite color, black and a beautiful chandelier.

To the left was a mini wine bar stacked with different varieties of bottles, her heart sprang for joy. She could have a taste of every one of them even if her parents didn't know she drank. It was one of their rules she broke with confidence.

A flat screen TV about forty four inches was encased in a coffee brown shelf, just above a fire place and Iris could see her reflection from the black TV screen, big brown eyes with red scattered locks of hair around her face. Of course that was a lie because the screen was black! She couldn't see herself only her shape and colorful hoodie.

"Woah!" She grinned even wider when she saw a barbecue grill through the open window of the dinning area. She could already taste the juicy gracious that the grill could roast. "Mom, do I get to pick my room?"

"Sure, honey!" She sang, her slippers flapping and making loud noises as she walked past Iris with a big plastic in her hands. "I need to run to the stores to get something."

"Can I come with?" Iris asked, pouting at her mother.

"Nope, just get familiar with the house and you could accompany me to the next one."

Iris nodded then raced up the stairs.

"Careful, honey!" Her mother yelled from the living room and Iris let out a sigh of exasperation.

"I'm nineteen, mother. Nineteen!" She answered, glancing over her shoulder. "I wouldn't trip on my ow-"

Suddenly, she hit her foot on a black automatic floor cleaner and tripped, almost falling on her face, but she supported small of her weight on her two palms.

She winced and picked herself up, dusting her hands, glancing right then left before kicking the round thing away from her.

"Stupid," she muttered before standing in between the doors of the hallway, confused about the room to pick.

"This one is a yours, sweetie," her dad's voice rang out from behind her and she spun, twitching the corners of her lips into a smile as she swiftly glanced at the automatic floor cleaner to see if it was still working.

He walked two doors away from the staircase and pushed a brown door open.

"Dad!" She gasped, jaw scraping the floor at the sight of her queen sized bedroom.

It was painted in Royal blue and had lime green stars plastered all over the four walls.

It had everything, a television, a music box, a bedside fridge, and a mini bookshelf that made her squeal. She dashed into the room, pulling out the books one by one to sniff them.

"Ah, the smell of new books." She dropped them back and rushed to give her dad a warm hug. "I love you."

"I love you too." He chuckled. "I'll be busy in my room, call me if you need me."

He left and the first thing she did was to jump on the bouncy bed, back flat on it with her eyes plastered on the white ceiling with four circles on it.

Listening to the waves as they crashed onto the rocks on the island, her curiosity sprang up and she sat up itching to see what outside felt like.

Knowing her parents wouldn't like the idea of her going out, she slipped out of the house anyway. Glancing around, tall trees and beautiful blue sea welcomed her, drawing her to go farther from the house.

She moved gracefully with her skirt swaying around. She wandered off, looking at tall houses and flowers. Just when she she was about to take the route that had the symbol of the market, her heart jumped out of her throat when she bumped into her mother and sent some groceries, crashing on the floor.

"Mother, you scared me." She held her chest, bending to pick up the groceries and her mother's facial expression suddenly went cold.

"What are you doing out here?" She clutched Iris' arm and scanned the area as if she was a thief. "What if you got lost?"

"Mom, I'm fine." Iris replied raggedly as her mother drew her, increasing her grip on her arm.

"You're not. It's not safe here. No one in their right senses would want to leave such luxury just to be outside!" Her mother exclaimed, her face a little sun kissed or was it anger kissed?

"Mom-"

"Don't say a word." Her mother shushed her. "We told you not to go out, didn't we?"

"Mother, enough!" Iris snatched her arm from her, jaw ticked with lips primed. "What are you so scared of? I'm not a child anymore."

"But you're my child."

"We came here for a fun vacation, why am I only restricted to being inside the house when I can have all the fun they want outside like other teenagers?" Iris fumed, balling her palms into fists.

"You can have all the fun you want inside too. Do not talk back at me, young lady." Iris' mother pointed.

"I feel like a prisoner. I'm your child not a prisoner." Iris' eyes glowed with tears that pricked at her eye lids, threatening to burn a trail down her cheeks. "Just leave me alone."

Iris spun and pivoted away from her mother. The moment she reached the house, she pushed the heavy door open and ran up the stairs, soft sobs escaped from her lips by the time she banged her room door shut and slumped on the bed.

And in this very moment, she felt like one of those Disney princesses locked up in a dungeon.