Anything For You

Part 2

Growing up she always knew she was different. She didn't look like her mother or her father and certainly not her sister. It didn't bother her that she looked different to her family, what bothered her was the way she was treated.

Her mother treated her with contempt and never hugged her or even really touched her. No matter what she did to please her mother, it was not good enough. Whereas her father hugged her constantly, sat with her when she need help with her school work and brushed her hair in the morning. Compared to her sister, her life with her family was completely different.

At 8 years of age, Jenna fell out of her tree-house breaking her arm.

At 9 she punched a boy and broke his nose because he called her the green eyed monster.

At 10 brought home a snake that she found in the woods behind the house. She left it in the bath. Her mother had to be rushed to the hospital for nearly suffering a heart attack.

Between ages 11 and 16, her father enrolled her in Mauy Thai and swimming. It seemed to calm her rage, she became less aggressive but was still wild.

At 16 years of age, Jenna was statuesque, she was in one word, breathtaking. Her father dotted on her which fuelled her mother's dislike for Jenna.

"Why do you want to look as if you work at the circus Jenna? I bought those dresses for you for a reason. You're embarrassing the family." Her mother yelled at her.

"Mother, I don't like dresses and I feel comfortable with what I'm wearing. We're not going to social event that I would need to dress up for. We're going to the store!" Jenna would reply in a harsher tone than she would have liked.

"Well then at least put on some makeup"

"No, I don't need it", Jenna spat back at her.

"Harold!!" her mother would scream for her father. Mr Edwards was the only one that could control Jenna. Not really control, more like manage her. Jenna was always on edge and her father realized that she was trying to manage her rage on the surface but her mother stoked the beast until the rage could no longer be contained.

A few days after the scene in her room another argument ensued. It was become more and more frequent as Jenna became older.

"You will go to this event if I have to drag you there by your hair little girl" she screamed at Jenna.

"I will show you I won't go" Jenna screamed back.

Her mother stood up straight, narrowed her eyes and stepped toward Jenna.

"You listen to me very nicely little girl, you will do as you are told if you want to live here" her mother hissed through her teeth, inching closer to her.

Jenna opened her mouth to say something but the craze calm façade on her mother's face made her question it and she shut her mouth. Her mother gathered her composure, turned and left her room leaving Jenna shaking. She had never seen her mother so angry before.

Mrs Edwards found her husband in the drawing room. She closed the wooden double sliding doors behind her as she called for her husband. "Harold! We have to do something about that child", she exclaimed to her husband.

Mr Edwards was sitting on one of the two leather wingback chairs directly in the sun that filtered through the window behind him. He lowered his newspaper and tilted his head forward to look above his glasses at his wife who was pouring herself a glass of Scotch.

"What happened?" he huffed.

"She won't attend the banquet tonight. Does she not know how important it is for this family?" she yelled.