Oh Zoe

00 | INTRODUCTIONS

Once, on a tiny ramshackle farmland, lived the Taylors. They were a wild family of ten, all whom were confident and ambitious and successful. Well, all except one.

Rodney and Mari Taylor were bound by an impenetrable bond of love. They had both desired a well-numbered family from a young age and made it their objective to raise a family encompassed by love. And they did.

Rodney Taylor was employed at the local hospital in their small, crazy town. After suffering through asthmatic fits his whole life, Rodney was determined to prevent others facing the same fate. He was known and treasured by many due to his job, encountering most of the town during monthly check-ups. But, while Rodney became a legend in his small town, his family was always valued higher.

Mari Taylor was a gorgeous, tall woman who was just as well-known as her husband. She worked briefly as a veterinarian, but was so overcome by her many young children that she became a stay-at-home mum not long after her fifth child.

When the couple were still young and naïve, baby Elliot Taylor was born. He was the first and oldest of their growing family and would always have a special place in his mother's heart.

Elliot was a driven boy; his only whish was to follow in his father's footsteps. However, after completing his school life with a dreadfully low score, Elliot found it was not his strong suit to be smart. Instead he devoted himself to athletics and became a personal trainer who helped keep the town fit and lively.

Elliot was currently 27 and living with his long-term girlfriend, Bea Willems, in a house only five minutes away from his family. His mother would not have her children moving away without her seeing any grandchildren first.

Only a year after Elliot's birth came Hollie Taylor. She was a beautiful child, obedient and bubbly. She was as tall as her mother at only age fourteen and was constantly outgrowing her clothes.

At 26, Hollie had only recently broken up with her boyfriend. She was practically living at her parents' house to try and restore some of the comfort she had lost so dreadfully.

Ava Taylor was the third child to the couples stretching family. She was much like her mother in appearances, but took after her father's personality. Ava was 24 now, and lived with her sister, Hollie, in a nearby apartment block. However, lately, it was vacant of company.

Then Pete Taylor came along. He was a troubled individual and found it hard to control his raging anger. He was a heavy drinker, but when he was at home around his family, he was forced by his parents to be sober. After a horrific incident with his little sister, he never picked up a bottle again. He was 21.

Leon and Luca were as close as twins, but were in fact a year apart. Leon was 19, and Luca 18, yet both still acted like five-year-olds. They were energetic people like their brother, Elliot, but were currently only indulged in collage sport and had no interest in future ambitions.

And lastly came the 'trouble twins'. Bella and Zoe Taylor couldn't be more different and fought on a daily basis. At the peak of 11, both girls felt like they were on top of the world. Bella was loud and demanding and a popular student at her school. She had an athletic upbringing – much unlike her twin – and was enrolled in many sports at her school. The family often gathered for Bella's games multiple times a week to support her.

Zoe Taylor was the youngest of eight children. She struggled under the burden, always finding it hard to compete with the one who was supposed to be her equal. Zoe was shorter, thinner, weaker than her twin, and she hated it.

At the mere age of two, Zoe Taylor was diagnosed with asthma. The doctors had said it way caused by hereditary factors, which meant she had inherited it from her father. Zoe's asthma had always limited her from doing the things that her sister did. She couldn't join the swim team, she couldn't go to school, she couldn't even participate in their family games of soccer. She often found it hard to sleep, sometimes she wouldn't eat. It became so intense that every member of her family had to carry with them an inhaler.

But on the bright side, Zoe was a joyful kid. She was often sad about the experiences she would never get to do but was even more ecstatic about the ones she could. She had the disease of 'early riser syndrome' – as her siblings said – waking as soon as she sensed the sun had come out to play. And though Zoe was young, she was an inspiring little girl.