BELLADONNA

Chp29: belladonna

You know, a human life is much like a bird in a cage. If you care for that bird, gently pat it, feed it well, and keep the cage door open, the bird will understand something profound. It will know that even if it flies away for a time, it can always return because it trusts its owner. It knows that the one who cares for it is trustworthy, someone who nurtures it and gives it the freedom to roam. In turn, the owner, with that same trust, opens the cage door each day, confident that the bird will return. This mutual trust is just like respect-it has to flow both ways, or it ceases to exist.

But imagine a different scenario: a bird with an owner who feeds it but doesn't appreciate it. The owner might pat the bird, offer it food, but never opens the cage door, believing that simply providing sustenance is enough. In reality, that owner isn't raising a healthy, happy bird; they're slowly wearing it down, confining it to the point where the bird loses its spirit. Day after day, the bird remains trapped, its wings unused, its spirit dampened. And even if, one day, the owner finally decides to open the cage door, it might be too late. The bird, now too tired, too broken, won't have the strength to leave. It has forgotten how to fly, how to embrace freedom.

This is the tragedy of a life lived without mutual trust, respect, and freedom. Just as a bird needs the open sky to thrive, a person needs the freedom to be themselves, to trust and be trusted, to respect and be respected. Without these, we risk losing our spirit, becoming caged not just in body but in mind and soul. The bond between the bird and its owner, just like the bonds we share in life, requires more than just basic care-it requires genuine understanding, appreciation, and the willingness to let each other fly.

In my world, I was that tired bird, and my parents were the ones who kept the cage closed. For so long, I felt trapped, unable to spread my wings or even imagine a life beyond the bars that held me. They fed me, sure, but they never truly understood what I needed-the freedom to explore, to discover who I am beyond their expectations. Over time, I grew weary, too exhausted to even hope for more. I was worn down by the constant need to listen, to obey, to fit into a mold that never felt like mine.

But something in me has shifted. I no longer fear the cage or the people who kept me there. I'm far beyond the point of just listening and obeying; that part of me is gone. Now, all I want is to explore my freedom, to see what's out there for me when I'm no longer bound by someone else's rules. I know that, to some, I might seem like a red flag-a warning sign that I'm not playing by the rules anymore. But that's okay. I know who I am, and I'm no longer willing to let anyone define that for me.

Trust me when I say this: I'm very, very close to breaking free, to finding that open sky I've been dreaming of for so long. It's within reach, and nothing is going to stop me now. I've spent too much time caged, too much time being what others wanted me to be. Now, it's time for me to live for myself, to embrace the freedom that I've been denied for so long. And when I finally spread my wings, I know I'll never look back.

It's time for all those people to suffer in the very cage they once built for me. They've trapped me, kept me confined, and now, I'm ready to turn the tables. They will feel every ounce of the pain, the exhaustion, the suffocating weight that they forced onto me-deep in their bones, where they can't escape it. I'm no longer that soft, compliant girl they once knew. That part of me is long gone, and what's left is something far colder, far stronger.

They used to call me heartless, tossing the word at me as if it could break me, as if it could mold me back into what they wanted. But now, I'll show them the true meaning of heartless. I'll become everything they feared, everything they tried to crush. They'll know the cost of their actions when the tables turn, and they find themselves locked in the very prison they created for me. No more softness, no more bending to their will. I'm done playing nice. It's my turn now.