pretty flower | 강새벽

027

TW: Mentions of abuse and suicide.

( 𝗞𝗜𝗠 𝗦𝗨𝗡-𝗛𝗜 )

"What did I ever do to deserve such a beautiful girl?" my father asks as he cups a hand on my cheek, smiling. "My daughter, the most charming person on the planet." 

I giggle, hugging him with a gummy smile. My small arms barely wrapped around his neck as he holds me in his arms. "Papa! Don't be silly!" 

He smiles sweetly, kissing my forehead. "Run along and go play in your room, I have to talk to your mother." 

I nod as he places me on the ground, skipping off to my room with the small bunny plush in hand. I close the door behind me, talking to my toys, having wild and vivid conversations. 

"You bitch! Can't you do anything right?" I hear my father yell, causing me to jump at the quick tone change. I take a deep breath before grabbing my toys and hiding them in the closet, along with myself.

"It's okay. Papa is just upset." I reassure my toys, holding onto them protectively. 

"I can't do anything right? Have you looked in the mirror lately Jung-Ho?" my mother responds, calling my father by his first name "You sit here for days on end doing nothing! I have been forced into 4 jobs by you! I don't get to see my daughter and once I get home, you're always pissed off at me for something else!" 

"I'm pissed off because you're useless, you fucking twit!" my father yells before I hear the harsh sound of a slap before a thud on the ground. 

My father's heavy footsteps echo throughout the house as he slams the front door closed and pulls his car out of the driveway. 

After a while of silence, I slowly crept out of my closet, peaking in my room to make sure no one was there. "You all stay here, I'm gonna make sure mama's okay." 

I walk down the hallway slowly, tip-toeing as I get closer to the living room, where my father had been. As I get closer, I notice my mother on the floor. She laid there, the only thing moving being her chest that fell up and down with jagged breaths.

"Mama?" I ask as I step closer to her, sitting in front of her on my knees. 

My mother looks up at me, her eyes black and empty, but filling with joy quickly when she noticed who it was. "Hi baby." she smiles, tucking a few loose strands of hair behind my ears. "How was your day?" 

"It was okay. Papa and I went to the playground and he was talking to a really pretty lady," I admitted, not knowing what was wrong with what happened. 

"Pretty?" my mother asks as she sits up on the floor, crossing her legs and placing me in her lap. 

I nod "She had really pretty hair. It was a dark brown. And she had a small face, but not too small. Oh, and she wore a blue dress with white flowers on it. It looked very nice on her." 

My mother doesn't say anything about it, instead, she continues to play with my hair as she hums slightly and I continue speaking. 

"I don't think I've ever seen someone as pretty as her." I smile, picturing the tall lady once more "She was also very tall, mama."

My mother chuckles at my excitement "What do you think made her the prettiest?" 

"It has to be her laugh. It was calming to listen to, just like your singing mama." 

My mother nods, still playing with my black hair and humming. 

"Can I marry someone like her when I get bigger?" I ask with big, hopeful eyes.