Kuwentuhan

A Distress Call

*~~~~~ ~~~~~*

FLASHBACK, 11 YEARS AGO

A 6-year-old child was standing behind a firm post, her hands shaking as she bit her lip to hold back tears.

Two adults, a man and a woman, were arguing with each other quite loudly in front of her, their voices reaching the top of their lungs. Another woman, who was holding an infant in her arms, was noticeably hiding behind the said man, and this did not escape the young one’s eyes. 

After seeing the horrible scene, the child immediately collapsed on the floor, unable to engulf any of it much longer. She was intelligent and mature despite her age, and she understood these things quite well as a result.
     
The lady was fuming with anger, her hair disheveled and completely out of place, her eyes red and a bit swollen. She slapped the man hardly and wiped the tears trickling down her face, her expression hurt and very much disappointed.

The man did nothing to avoid the woman’s attacks, but frustration and regret were visible on his pale face and in his clear blue eyes.

They were fighting. 

Her parents were fighting.

“How—how c-could…you d-do this to u-us?” the child’s mother asked, shaking the man’s shoulders uncontrollably. “Aren’t Lorraine and I enough, Chris? Did…did I do something wrong? Why did you…c-cheat?” 

“I’m really sorry, Reena.” her father said, his head bent low. “I—I’m sure we can still fix this—"

“‘Fix’?” the lady let out a bitter laugh, pointing at the other woman and the infant before smirking emotionlessly. “With them around as well? There’s nothing left to fix, Chris. You’ve done too much damage already. If you haven’t forgotten, we’re also in a huge debt of money right now and this…" she showed him two fingers which were almost touching, “Close to bankruptcy.” 

“Then—" the man hesitated, biting his lip. “Then, what should I do instead?”

“Leave.” the woman said with finality, turning around and walking away from him. “Leave and bring your other family with you.” 

All went black as the child fainted on the floor. Since that day, she never saw her father again, not even in the form of a shadow. It was as if he had never existed in the first place. 

*~~~~~ ~~~~~*

“Good night, Jem! I’ll be seeing you again in the morning. Oh, and don’t even think about oversleeping again, lazy bones! The people and I will be thoroughly displeased!” a teasing voice could be heard from the radio, laughing. “Anyway, that’s a wrap, folks! Enjoy your evening and have a pleasant time!” 

The line went dead and the background music played, snapping the blonde teenager out of her reverie. Lorraine turned the radio off and went towards her bed, burying her face on one of the pillows and releasing a muffled shout.

Fresh, ugly scars surrounded both of her arms, each slightly bleeding and awful to look at. A sharp blade, which was covered with blood, was hastily placed by the drawer, its whole form threatening to fall to the ground. If truth be told, the 17-year-old didn’t even bat an eyelash towards its direction. The blade seemed useless to her now. 

She had just cut herself. 

“End this suffering—please, make it stop!” she begged, her tears pooling around the now wet pillow. “I’m not happy at all!”