From the minute that she was born… I loved this girl. My baby girl… all mine. It was an accident. Her father… her father hated her. It was never official.

"A burden! She's a f*cking burden. I knew we should've had an abortion. Look what you've done!" He spits at me, hatred flaring in his eyes.

"Look at her! She's beautiful…" I whisper, hoping for the best. He clenches his fists so tightly that I'm worried his skin will rip.

"Beautiful! Ha!" He snorts and storms out of the hospital room, leaving me alone with his one and only child.

-Five Years Later-

Sometimes I feel that if I let him leave it would be so much easier. But we both know that I would never survive without him. He loves me more than he will ever love her… But she is everything to me, and so is he. Because of him, she has had to grow up so fast. Hotaru already has said goodbye to her childhood. At five years old. Five years old! Five years old…

"Mom! He's coming home." Hotaru looks around nervously. She depends so much on me.

The door opens then shuts with a slam. A ragged, unshaven man glares at Hotaru and I, while setting his bag on the table so hard the table collapses.

"Damn girl! Why can't you do anything good in this house?" He scoffs.

"She's only five years old!"

"When I was five, I was doing most of the work in my house!" He bellowed,punching a hole through the wall. "Stupid, horrible girl! You cost so much money and time! I hate you! Go to hell!"

Tears fall from Hotaru's eyes. She lets out a small snuffle.

"Cry all you want, little shit! It won't do a f*cking damn thing!" He picked up a lamp and clutched it tightly. "You ruined my life! Both of you!"

He doesn't know what to do in life. That's all. That's it.

"Get out! GET OUT! GET OUT!"

It doesn't matter that he's been beating us for the past five years. It doesn't matter. He still loves me. He loves her too. He loves us. He always did.

"Didn't you hear me?! GET OUT! I don't want to see you anymore."

I'm frozen. What… what..?

"OUT!" I could feel his patience snapping. His face turned red. I know that look. The lamp in his hands flies in the air toward me. Toward me…

The last thing I see was Hotaru screaming and then red and red and red, until it all turned to black.

The lamp crashes into my mother's forehead and shatters.

"MOMMY!" I scream. "MOMMY! What did you do?!" I glare at the horrible, wretched murderer. "GO TO HELL! I HATE YOU!"

He looks at me with eyes full of pain. "I'm sorry Jade…"

"DON'T YOU DARE SAY HER NAME. I HATE YOU!"

He closes his eyes and grabs a knife. I recoil, thinking he will kill me. But he takes the knife and plunges in… himself.

I sob and I sob. Grabbing the jade necklace mom gave me for my birthday, I walk out the door to the forest and I don't look back. I don't think I'll ever look back.