for the sins of her mother

Mother

Mei ran her fingers over the rough fabric of the chair. It was the only sensation she could handle. Vision and hearing were too much.

"Mei? Mei, I know you're scared, but I need you to talk to me." Soft but insistent, water eroding a cliff face. Not that Mei was a cliff face. Water eroding a clumsy wall of sand. "Can you open your eyes?" She couldn't. "We've called your mum, she's on her way." Unlikely. She'd been away for ages. "Mei, please." The woman sounded so upset that Mei opened her eyes. She didn't want her mother to show up and think she was being petulant. The room was bleak, decorated in various exciting shades including steel, slate and graphite. Her chair was the softest thing in there. Mei focused on the woman. She was young; she couldn't have been older than thirty. She had big dark eyes that implored Mei to trust her and hair scraped back in a ponytail. Her smile was soft and reassuring.

"I'm Mandy, I'm with the police. I want to ask you a few questions, but not until your mum gets here. Do you need anything to eat or drink?" Mei made her eyes focus and repeated the question in her head until the sounds became recognisable. Eating and drinking. Fundamental parts of being human. Did she want them? She felt the bile at the back of her throat and the heaviness of her tongue.

"Water," she requested, her voice hoarse. "Please." Mandy talked to someone, unimportant words that were easy to block out. Mandy placed the cup in front of her. Mei squeezed the glass, trying to shatter it. If she threw it at a wall and it bounced back, she'd know it was a dream. If it smashed, she would wake up from the dream. Mandy's face was creased with worry so Mei sipped the water. It took all her strength not to gag. She peered at her reflection in the water and then realised she didn't want to know. She would stay inside, mirrors shrouded, forever. Her hair would become one huge matt and her skin would fall off her face. She'd drink from opaque containers and never open the curtains. It seemed to be a viable plan.

"Do you want a blanket or something? You're shivering." She was. Well, no shit Sherlock. It was cold, she was terrified, and she didn't have her jacket. And oh shit. Her jacket. Her blood-stained jacket, stuffed behind a bulletin board. The second part of the nightmare had been so all-consuming that she had forgotten how it started. She began to formulate some thoughts but they were all too chilling. Better not to think at all. "Mei?" Mei shook her head. She wanted to be warm, but she couldn't handle anyone moving around her.

"I'm fine," she lied. "I'm not cold." She was freezing. She gritted her teeth, determined to stop shivering through sheer willpower. Mandy nodded.
"If you're sure."
"Can I shut my eyes again now?" A grimace flashed across Mandy's face but she replaced it with a smile.

"Of course you can, sweetheart." Mei ran her fingers over the rough fabric of the chair.

"Hello?" Cold, imperious and commanding. Mei had never been so happy to hear her mother's voice. She opened her eyes. In the middle of the night at a police station her mother was still making an entrance. She stood in the doorway wearing a suit tailored along lines severe enough to cut glass. The diamonds hanging from her ears and ringing her neck looked too big to be real. Her lips were crimson and Mei looked away because they were too reminiscent of blood and she could not think about that now. Her face betrayed a second of emotion looking down at her wreck of a daughter and then returned to its mask. A man stood behind her, far less impressive. His suit had patches at the elbows and her mother had a good six inches of height on him. Mandy smiled and Mei pitied her.
"Mrs Ito, hello. I-"
"Is my daughter being charged with a crime?"

"Mrs Ito-"
"Is she? Because you have no right to keep her here if not." Mandy stood her ground against the intimidation.
"A girl is dead. We want to ask her a few questions."
"Your questions can wait until she's slept and eaten and has a lawyer present." Most of the words went over Mei's head; following the conversation took too much effort.