Welcome to my new story readers! I've been out of commission for a while but I'm excited to be back home and continuing my love of writing. I'd like to introduce you to my latest work. This is something I've had no former experience in writing, so I hope you like it. Please enjoy and let me know if I should continue :}
When You Love Someone
Chapter 1: Anything
Leah
For the second time that day, she collapsed against the stark white wall cowering in fear.
There was nothing I could do but sit and watch as she braced for another onslaught of savage blows.
Her desperate cries for help were powerless against the drunken wrath of her husband. Once the harsh beating was over, she crumbled to the floor in a battered heap before her body fell still.
Too still.
My thumping heartbeats ceased for a moment as I held out the slightest hope that she would live to see another day. It was a morbid wish. Perhaps she would have been better off dead instead of lying limp in a puddle of her own sweat and blood.
But then, a glimmer of hope.
Her swollen lips quivered to life and the air silently whooshed between them.
"Help me," came the faint murmur.
"W-what?" I gasped.
Suddenly, a towering figure stepped beside me and snapped its soaked gloves in front of my face.
"I said 'help me.' These dishes aren't going to clean themselves."
I shifted my eyes from the television and up at my mother, who cast me a stern gaze.
"I understand that you haven't had a break from cheerleading in a while, but that is no reason to waste your day watching movies. Come on, help me dry the dishes before your father gets home," she said.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Mama. This movie is just so mesmerizing."
Eager to lend a helping hand, I hooked my arm around her waist as we strolled into the kitchen.
"You're watching that movie again? It's way too graphic and disturbing, especially since it's based on a true story... Her husband was a monster," my mother murmured, while handing me a dish towel.
The stream of sunlight seeped through the blinds and illuminated her raven curls, making her glow as if she was an ethereal goddess.
My mother was beautiful.
She had striking green eyes, deeply tanned Latin skin and a perfect smile that could brighten anyone's day. Her bubbly and often feisty personality stood out the most, which was undoubtedly what attracted my father to her. I considered myself a hybrid because of my parents' different ethnicities.
He was a 4th generation Italian-American, who lived in New Mexico his entire life, and half of my mother's family had been living in America after leaving Mexico when she was thirteen. They remained inseparable since high school, where they first met. I had been so preoccupied watching the movie that I'd forgotten to tell her the exciting news.
"So, Mom?" I began as I continued drying the basket of utensils.
"Yes, honey?"
"Remember when I told you that Jenny and I were planning a sleepover? Well, her mom said that it was okay for me to sleep over tomorrow as long as I had your permission..." I trailed off anxiously, only because we both knew that a large exception would change the fate of my invitation.
"You know that it's totally fine by me if you want to sleep over, but what's Papi going to say about this?"
"But Mom, this is only going to be one night. I've only had one sleepover so far and I'm thirteen! Daddy wasn't worried when I slept over at Lucia's two years ago!" I whined.
"Yeah, because Lucy is your cousin and he threatened to kill his brother if anything happened to you. You know how your father is, Leah. He's very protective of you," my mother gently reminded me while smoothing my hair.
"I'm not a baby anymore, Mama."
"I know you're not. But to him, you're still in diapers. He still gets emotional when I mention what happened to you last week... Need I remind you?"
I found it ridiculous that my father felt the need to suffocate me even more once he found out that I had started my menstrual cycle.
On that morning a week ago, my mother had left early to run some errands while my father remained in bed sleeping. The most awful cramps suddenly jolted me awake, and within minutes I felt a flowing gush of liquid wetting the mattress around me. When I looked down to assess the damage, I was horrified to find my clothes and bedsheets stained with blood. I knew that my period had begun, yet my mind fell into panic mode.
Without another thought, I made a path straight towards my father's room and frantically shook him out of his slumber.
"What's the matter, Angel?" he asked, and groggily turned towards me.
That was when his squinted gaze grew wide with shock. I couldn't imagine what kind of thoughts were running through his mind, discovering that his only daughter was growing up even faster that he'd anticipated.
Frightened tears began to roll down my cheeks as he remained stunned and frozen in place.
"Daddy," I sobbed.
As if the situation was not embarrassing and traumatic enough, my father tore my clothes off and put me in the shower, not knowing what to do. He immediately called my mother, who soon rushed home with my much needed—and foreign—supplies.
As she explained the reason my body was going through the change, my father paced back and forth on the opposite side of the door growing quite emotional. He didn't like the idea that I now had the ability to have a baby, even though I promised him that I would wait until I was married.
"But boys can sense these types of things. They know that you're virginal and who knows what they'll do to take your innocence away?" he complained, his face paling significantly.
Needless to say, he wanted me to remain "virginal" for as long as possible.
Once my mother and I finished our task, she sent me back into the living room so that she could start dinner.
Just then, my senses perked up at the sound of a car approaching. Elated to see my father, I quickly ran outside to greet him as he pulled into the garage.
"Hi, Daddy!" I called while waving fervently at him.
It was evident that he had especially missed me on the first day of his new job as he lifted me off the ground and spun me around.
"Oh, my angel. I missed you so much! How was your day?"
"It was great. How was yours?" I asked, which caused him to chuckle.
My father did not let go of me even as we entered the house. Also eager to see him, my mother dropped everything and rushed into his arms. I found my parents' affectionate pecks extremely adorable.
"Tell me all about your day, handsome," she said.
"Everything today went better than I expected, Gabi. My boss immediately started me on my co-executive position and gave me an office as big as our bedroom. Then he invited me to lunch with his colleagues from the Albuquerque Assurance company. My new co-workers were so welcoming and genuine; it was just an awesome day," he explained while taking off his coat.
"Well, don't you know how to make a good impression? I trust that you'll be home this early every day?"
"On some days, yes. Plus I have weekends off so that gives us plenty of time to spend together as a family."
"Hmm, sounds like a great plan."
Suddenly, my father glanced over her shoulder and frowned at the kitchen.
"Look at you. You've been running errands all day... Come on, go to the living room and relax for a while. I'll take care of dinner tonight," my father insisted, being the courteous and attentive man that he was.
"Are you sure? You've been working since 9:00 this morning."
"I can last another few hours. Plus this gives me the opportunity to make my famous Tortellini with cream sauce."
After a moment of contemplation, my mother finally grinned and gave him a peck on the cheek.
"You know me too well," she laughed.
Since he was in a good mood, I figured that it was best to talk to him about the sleepover. As my mother retreated upstairs to take a bath, I followed my father into the kitchen and hoisted myself onto the counter.
"Had a good day, Princess? What did you do?"
"I finally nailed my triple back handspring. I showed Mama in the in the backyard and she almost had a heart attack," I giggled.
"Great. You definitely have to show me before dinner... But now that you're a cheerleader, be careful around those boys. You can't really tell if they like you for your smarts or your splits."
"I know, Papa. The boys at my school aren't cute, anyway."
Now that my father had turned the "stay away from boys" card onto me, I doubted that he would let me go to Jenny's house the next day. But it was worth a try.
"Daddy," I began innocently, while wrapping his arms around his torso.
Unaware that I was trying to manipulate him, he chuckled and tilted my chin upwards.
"Yes, Angel?"
I was christened the nickname "Angel" by my father once I was born. He held me, gazed into my identical blue eyes and cried. The name that emerged from his lips became my permanent label, partly because he expected me to stay that way.
"My friend Jenny—you know, Mr. Pérez's daughter—um, she's having a sleepover with her friend tomorrow night. Her mom and Mama said that it was okay with them, so... Can I maybe go?" I questioned hesitantly.
I knew exactly what the next question was going to be.
"Will there going to be any boys at this sleepover?"
"Well, her brother and her cousin. But they're going to be with their friends in the basement the whole night... Plus, they're seventeen and eighteen—they don't want to hang out with a bunch of 13 year olds."
Without a word, my father sighed and gave me a wary glance.
"You know how this makes me feel, Leah. They live in another suburb almost two miles away from here. How am I going to know if you're safe if you're all the way over there?" he argued softly.
"I'll call you when I get to their house and before bed... I'll even call you in the morning, but please, Daddy. I want to go!"
"That's still not enough to keep me reassured. You are a developing, inexperienced teenage girl and as far as I'm concerned, I refuse to let you walk around, shower and sleep in a house full of men. Mr. Pérez is a good man, but I don't feel comfortable picturing you wearing pajamas around him," he said, which immediately angered me.
"But Dad—!"
"This is for your own good, Leah-Mireya! You are not going and that's final. Now, go take your bath before dinner."
Knowing that I was not going to win, I shrieked in outrage and stormed out of the kitchen in a huff.
"I am not a baby! Stop treating me like one!" I yelled over the banister before stomping upstairs.
"Yeah, well you'll be thanking me when you're not lying dead in a ditch," he retaliated sarcastically just as I slammed the door shut.
It wasn't fair. My father couldn't leave me alone without thinking that I was in danger. Whatever activity I planned to take part in, he would always be there hovering over me like a helicopter following a criminal. I sure felt like I was incarcerated.
Why couldn't he just accept the fact that I was growing up?
Living with my father's sheltering obsession already seemed like a difficult punishment to endure, but those were the times when I was glad to have a mother who understood me.
Gabriella
After listening to the loud dispute between my husband and my daughter, I sensed that she was in need of comfort.
I found her lying face-down on her bed, sobbing into a pillow.
"Go away. I want to be alone!" she wept.
"It's okay to be upset, Nena. I know that your father can be tough to convince, but I also agree that it's not fair to you. But you are our only child," I reminded Leah while massaging her back.
Finally, she sat up and wiped her tears.
"I understand that you guys just want to do what's best for me, but how he acts is so embarrassing sometimes... Do you know what it's like to have a dad who monitors and controls everything you do? Papa kept the childproof locks on the cabinets until I was eight, and when we're in public and I have to use the bathroom, he stands outside the door until I'm finished. I'm surprised he didn't have the doctors plant a tracking device in my brain when I was born. It's horrible, Mom! I feel trapped," my daughter vented tearfully.
There was no doubt that Troy's obsessive tendencies often exceeded the boundaries of privacy, and despite his confidence, I sensed that he was also aware how much he was suffocating his daughter.
"That's completely understandable, Leah. Just remember this: Your father and I will go through hell and back if it means keeping you safe. These days, little girls your age and even younger are disappearing and showing up dead in less than a week. Like I said, you are our only daughter and I don't know what we would do if we ever lost you... We love you so much, Leah. And maybe this doesn't make sense to you now, but in the future I'm sure you'll understand and appreciate the things we did to protect you," I said.
Leah glanced down as my words began to sink in.
"Okay, Mom," she murmured silently.
I kissed her before getting to my feet.
"Papi is in the den. Go make up with him and tell him how you feel."
Without protest, Leah let out a sigh and got out of bed.
"I guess that's fair. Daddy deserves an apology," she concluded.
At least my daughter was mature enough to realize that her father meant well.
Hopefully, her apology would earn her a night at her friend's house.
Troy
The fight between Leah and I left me distraught after she stormed upstairs to her room.
It was upsetting how little she knew of the real world and its dangers, and it was even more upsetting that she thought she could handle it. She had absolutely no knowledge of the demented, heartless and self-gratifying monsters that lived in her own backyard, and it was my duty to shield her from those threats.
Still, I couldn't bear the guilt of watching my daughter get her heart broken. She was my princess.
As I sat alone in my den contemplating whether to go to her room to have a talk with her, my attention was caught by the sound of the door creaking. Leah slowly entered, her hands fidgeting as she cautiously made her way towards me.
"Um, Daddy? I-I need to talk to you," she stammered.
It was not difficult to tell that she had been crying.
"Sure, Angel. Come here."
Instead of taking a seat in the chair beside me, she climbed onto my lap and buried herself into my arms... Just like she did when she was five.
"Daddy, I just want you to know how thankful I am to have a father who loves me, and who would do anything to make me happy. I love you and I mean that with all my heart. But, I'm thirteen years old and you can't stop me from growing up. I know that it must be difficult for you to hear, but I'm now starting to understand the world. The real world isn't the fairy tale I once thought it was, but I still want to explore and discover things I've never experienced. Maybe those things may sometimes cause you to worry and that's okay. If I don't learn about life now, how will I ever learn if you keep sheltering me?"
Leah certainly had a point about growing up, yet my major concern for her lingered not too far behind.
"I know that you deserve more freedom than I give you, but it's not that easy. If anything ever happened to you I just—I don't know what I'd do. I wouldn't be able to move on with my life anymore," I said.
My daughter cupped my face and looked deep into my eyes as if she were my own parent.
"You have to let some things happen to me, Daddy. That's what experiences are about. You and Mama have taught me everything from learning to trust my instincts to knowing the difference between right and wrong. Even though I still have a lot to learn, please have faith in me. That's all I ask for. Just trust me," she told me firmly.
My daughter was right. The passion and conviction was evident in her eyes, and the way she tightly gripped my arm with longing told me that she wanted nothing more than to discover herself. If I didn't let her go to a sleepover for just one night, I would never be able to let her go once she was older.
"All right," I finally buckled. "You can go to the sleepover."
Leah's naturally cheerful demeanor quickly returned, and she let out a piercing squeal of excitement.
"Thank you, Daddy! Thank you so much! I love you!"
I chuckled as she began to plant relentless kisses on each of my cheeks.
"I love you, too, Angel."
"Oh, my gosh. I have to call Jenny and tell her. She's going to be so excited! You're the best Daddy ever!"
It was times like those that made the hardships of parenting worth it.
"Anything for you..." I whispered to her back as she skipped out the door.
"Anything."
I've got about three more chapters so far so review and let me know how I did on this first chapter. Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it!