"Mummy, mummy!" Eden says, running into the study.
"What?" Marcia replies, remaining focused on the computer.
"Look!" Eden exclaims as she stretches the piece of paper out to her, "I drew a picture of us."
"Hmm," Marcia says, her eyes having not parted from the screen.
"Do you like it?" Eden questions, continuing to hold up her piece of paper. Eden hopes her mother notices the red dress she has put her in. Her mother's favourite colour.
"I'm busy."
Mummy's always busy when she's dragging cards across the computer screen, Eden thinks.
"I'm hungry," Eden says.
No words from her mother's mouth.
"I'm hungry," Eden repeats.
Marcia smacks her hand on the desk – thwack. Eden drops her drawing and takes some steps back. "You want to become fat like me?" Marcia retorts, face close. The same set of wide blue eyes opposite one another, although they do not clone in emotion.
"No," Eden says. The answer Mummy wants to hear.
"You've already had an apple this afternoon," Marcia says, her eyes returning to position, "You do not need anymore food."
Eden feels hungry inside but she understands one snack is enough. Eden picks up her picture and looks at the smile she drew on her mummy. One side of the smile is longer in length than the other. It annoys Eden. "I love you," Eden decides to say, looking back at her mother.
"I won't get told that when you're a teenager," Marcia says to her computer screen.
"I won't ever become a teenager," Eden says.
This must make mummy happy, Eden thinks. Because her mother not only looks at her but smiles.
Eden beams.
YOU ARE READING
𝙾𝚌𝚎𝚊𝚗 𝚘𝚏 𝙴𝚖𝚘𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗𝚜
Teen FictionIn a southwest Australian beach town, not all is well in paradise... Eden's struggle with perfectionism peaks in her final year of high school. Already a competitive athlete and aspiring marine biologist, she's now striving to be 'beautiful' too. Or...
