My One Night Chance | Wattys 2019

#1 | Secrets and Heartbeats

Have you ever felt like your life is planned in every single detail?
Like you don't have a say in decisions that would change your life?

Well, I do. Every day in fact.
When my father died everything in our family changed. Our lust to live, our hope, our spirit. I cried after the funeral as snowflakes fell on me, decorating my hair for a few seconds with their flake shapes and then melted away like we did. Nothing would ever be same again. Especially not for us, the kids. We were trapped in a new reality.

My mother became obsessed with my brother and I.
She was controlling every single thought, decision and choice we made. I knew it was her fear taking over... to lose us too.

But instead we got captured. I remember when we were shopping. We stayed in the boutique for hours and every minute made me exhausted.

"No, this dress is too purple", mom said as she looked at me up and down.

"You chose it", I murmured and scratched my arm.

"And I changed my mind."

No, she didn't ask if it was my style. I hated purple. I didn't argue against her either. I didn't want to hurt her feelings. So, I sucked it up and put up with it.

I didn't even get the opportunity to fall in love. Nobody was good enough. No, correction. Nobody was good enough to my mother. I remember a cute boy I met in a market in Wisconsin. We were visiting my grandparents. He was cute, that exact cuteness that makes any girl stop what they are doing and just giggling, admiring the boy.

"Arden Elaine Parker! Don't you dare flirt with that boy!" Mom yelled as she payed for the oranges. "He's not good enough for you."

Yeah... I never got close to any to any kind of romance or attraction. No one was good enough. I would never forget the boy's face, completely humiliated and heartbroken like a puppy who someone yelled at. I just looked down, I couldn't face that look and we both sighed deeply.

My brother, on the other hand, got a lot of it. He didn't listen to our mother and went straight against her find a good wife demand. He found Lawrence instead. His best friend since high school and after our father died... something changed between them. They became a thing and I knew Daniel always rooted for the boy's team.
I never thought Lawrence would be his mate though.

They really loved each other. They loved each other so intense that they got married in secret. Mom went utterly crazy when she found out. They did it in secret because she would object. I was Daniel's bridesmaid and it was a stunning, tiny wedding at the beach. With tiki torches and everything.

And here I am!
Twenty years old, living with my mother because she doesn't let me do anything on my own, waiting for my life to begin...

I laid on my bed, blowing away some hair from my face. My hoodie was wrapped around my waist and matched my white tank top. Anything matched with a white tank top.

The house was silent. No walking, no closing doors, Nada.

"Maybe mom went out..." I thought to myself as I played with my bracelet. "I haven't heard her-"