A/N: This is the redited version of the Charlie and the Chocolate Factory story I had posted before, which was titled Waiting for the Heavens. Hopefully this version is a lot better and if you ssee anything that might need improvement let me know.

Title: Bittersweet Memories

I must have been around four years old when the beatings first began. I remember it like it happened only yesterday. I had gone to bed right after dinner that day and father wasn't home yet. I lived alone with my father and he occasionally had to work late, from what I can remember. When father was working late our next door neighbor Mrs. Beezlbee, who was a very kind old woman with no children of her own, would bring over food for me to eat and would put me to bed. Mother had died soon after I was born, so I don't remember that much about her. I was always told by people in the neighborhood, who knew my mother that I looked so much like her. I would constantly compare my appearance to my mother's; since I was able to find a photograph of her hidden in the house. My mother and I both have dark brown hair. My hair was straight and short reaching only to my shoulder blades. My mother's hair was wavy and long; reaching the middle of her back. My eyes are a blue-gray color where my mother's where a hazel. I did inherit my mother's pale complexion though.

I was fast asleep when my bedroom door was flung open. I quickly sat up in bed fearing something horrible was going on. "Daddy, what's going on?" I asked curiously.

My father didn't bother to turn on the lights in the room as he stumbled toward my bed. As my father reached my bed I smelt an odd odor on him, which I found out years later to be alcohol. I suppose something should have registered in the back of my brain telling me that this was not normal; that I should run and get as far away from my father as possible. It didn't occur to me that my father would do anything to hurt me because he loved me. I guess we all can be a little naïve at times.

"Daddy…?" I questioned as he loomed over me without saying a word. "You're scaring me…"

"You look so much like her and yet you aren't her. She's dead and it's your entire fault." My father muttered.

"Are you talking about mommy?" I asked softly.

My father slapped me across the face and shouted, "You don't have permission to speak of her! Never mention her!"

I felt tears begin to form in my eyes and my cheek, which was where my father had managed to hit me, was stinging painfully. "I'm sorry…I didn't know…" I said softly. I thought I had actually angered my father by bringing up my mother because he had never hit me before, but I was so naïve.

"You can never be sorry enough. It's your fault she's dead. She should be alive instead of you!" He spat venomously as he slapped the same cheek once more, but with a bit more force.

"But I really am sorry daddy, I didn't want mommy to die." I replied as the tears flowed freely down my cheeks.

My father was unaffected by my apologies or my tears. "It's your entire fault!" He shouted as he hit me again.

I don't remember how many times I was hit that night. I remember my sobs and pleas were unheard as he beat me for something that I unintentionally caused. After that night my father seemed to beat me almost every day blaming me for my mother's death while screaming that it was my entire fault. After the days turned into years of this torment I began to believe that what my father said was true, that I caused the death of my mother and I deserved to be punished for it. The beatings only grew worse as I got older though.

It was seven years later when I was about eleven years old. I met a boy who would become my closest friend and help me through the torment my father placed upon me. It was during recess sometime in the middle of October. I was sitting on a bench watching some of the other kids play kickball. I never participated in the games children played in their free time for I was afraid that they would find out about my father or they would also beat on me for some unknown reason. I decided to become distant from other children my age in some vain attempt to protect the little bit of myself that I had left. One of the boys waiting to get up to kick the ball noticed I was sitting by myself and walked over toward me.

"Hi, what's your name?" The boy asked curiously. He had dark brown hair and wore large orthodontic headgear.

"Caroline Heartford…" I replied quietly.

"My name is Willy Wonka. I saw you watching us play kickball, would you like to play with us?" He asked politely.

I looked down at my feet in embarrassment. "Oh no that's okay, I just want to watch." I replied shyly.

"Are you sure, you could be on my team." He stated.

I nodded. "I'm sure…"

"It's your turn Willy!" One of the boys yelled over toward us.

I thought for sure that Willy would have run back over toward the kickball field and leave me alone on the bench. I was surprised when he said, "You can go for me Ted!" I saw the boy on the field shrug while another boy stepped up to the plate.

I looked at Willy and frowned. "Why did you give your turn to Ted?" I questioned.

He shrugged. "I didn't want to play anymore anyway. Where do you live?" Willy asked curiously.

"My dad and I live on the edge of town it's only a few blocks away from school." I replied.

"Really, my father and I only live a few blocks away from here too. Do you walk home?"

I nodded. "Yea I walk home every day because my father works."

The school bell rang signaling the end of recess. "We could walk home together. Meet me at the front of the school after class." Willy stated and ran off to class before I had time to reply.

After school I met Willy at the front of the school and we began our walk home. "What do you like to do for fun?" Willy questioned.

I frowned. No one had really asked me what I did for fun, but then again no one really bothered to walk home with me either. "Well, I like to read books if that counts."

Willy smiled. "I bet your room has books like all over the place."

I chuckled and shook my head. "No not exactly, my dad doesn't really buy me books."

He frowned and asked, "How come your dad won't buy books for you?"

I averted my gaze from Willy and watched the sidewalk we were walking on. "He doesn't approve of the books I read. He doesn't really approve of anything I do." I replied quietly.

"Oh, so you and your dad don't get along?" Willy questioned.

I bit my bottom lip in fear. I thought I had given out to much information about the relationship between my father and me. I began to wonder what would happen if Willy were to find out that my father abused me. Would he stop being my friend? Maybe he would tell the whole school? I couldn't let him find out to much about my father. "Yea something like that…" I simply replied.

Willy must have noticed my mood change when he brought up my father because he quickly changed the subject. "So what kinds of books do you like to read?"

I shrugged. "Anything really, but my favorites are fantasy books."

"Why do you like fantasy books so much?" Willy asked curiously.

I thought for a moment. "Cause it's an imaginary place where you can escape reality and just have fun." I replied.

Willy smiled and stopped walking. "Oh, this is my house. I'll see you tomorrow at school Caroline."

"Bye…" I said as Willy entered his house.

When my father got home from work he didn't even notice me. He ate the food Mrs. Beezlbee had brought over and locked himself in his bedroom for the remainder of the night. Rare occasions like this ever happen with my father and I was extremely grateful for these rare moments.

The next morning I got up and was just about to get dressed for school when my father began to bang on my bedroom door. My heart leapt up into my throat in fear. "Yes…?" I asked afraid my father wanted to beat me since he went to bed early the night before.

"Schools closed today." My father stated.

I frowned. "How come school is closed?" I questioned.

"Just look outside!" My father replied rudely and walked away from my bedroom door mumbling.

I quickly went over to my bedroom window and peered out of it. There was a white blanket of snow covering the ground. There seemed to be at least three feet of snow on the ground if not more. I thought it a bit odd for snow to fall in the middle of October, but I didn't ponder over this thought too long. I went into the kitchen to make myself breakfast and saw my father sitting at the kitchen table reading the morning paper. I made myself a bowl of cereal without glancing at him; afraid he might yell at me for no reason in particular. I sat down at the kitchen table and stared into my cereal bowl as I ate.

"I want the walkway cleared by the time I get home." My father demanded not even looking at me.

I nodded. "Yes dad…"

As soon as my father left for work I quickly put on a sweater, snow pants, a pair of snow boots, a heavy winter jacket and a pair of gloves. I went outside and grabbed a snow shovel from the shed in the backyard of the house. I then began shoveling the snow on the walkway, which was more complicated than it sounds considering the snow was heavy and there was a lot of it. Every once in a while I would stop shoveling the snow and glance up and down the street. There were children having snowball fights, some children were building snowmen and the adults were either shoveling their walkways or brushing the snow off their cars.

I sighed and continued shoveling the snow. "Hey Caroline!" I looked up and saw Willy standing on the sidewalk.

"Hi Willy…" I replied with a smile.

"Do you want to have a snowball fight with me and a few friends of mine?" He asked.

I looked at him sadly and replied, "I can't I have to shovel the walkway before my dad gets home."

Willy looked at me sadly and said, "Oh ok…" He was about to walk back up the street but turned back to face me with a smile on his face. "Hey what if I help you shovel? You would get done faster and then you could play with us." He offered.

"You don't have to help me." I said. I didn't want Willy to help me because this was my responsibility I didn't want him to do something he didn't have to.

"Where do you keep the shovels?" Willy asked.

"In a shed in the backyard, but you don't have to-"I stated to say but I didn't get a chance to finish my statement because Willy had run off to get an extra shovel.

Willy was back with another shovel in seconds and began to help me shovel the walkway. Willy was right though, we did finish shoveling the walkway much quicker than I thought was possible. After we put the shovels back in the shed Willy asked, "So can you come and play now?"

I chuckled. "Sure…"

Willy's face lit up. "Come on we're all meeting at my house!" Willy exclaimed as he rushed off toward his house with me following close behind. When we reached Willy's house I noticed there were two boys waiting outside his house. One boy had blonde hair and bright blue eyes, I recognized him as Ted from yesterday's kick ball game. The other boy was a bit smaller than Ted and looked younger as well. The boy had red hair and green eyes.

"There you are! We thought you had gone inside." Ted stated sounding relieved that Willy had arrived.

"Sorry, I was helping Caroline shovel her walkway. I asked if she could join our game and she agreed. I hope you guys don't mind." Willy stated.

"Great, now we can make teams!" The other boy stated happily.

"I'm Ted and this is my younger brother Terance." Ted said introducing himself and his younger brother.

"Hi I'm Caroline…" I replied shyly.

"Okay so Ted will be on my team and Caroline can be on Willy's team. The only rule is no hitting the other person in the face and you can't leave this street or you're out." Terance explained.

"Okay you can have one place that you can call base. Base is where the other team can't hurt you. I pick the old pine tree in Mrs. Sherrie's yard." Ted added.

Willy looked at me and asked, "Where do you want our base to be Caroline?"

I thought for a minute while glancing up and down the street. "I pick your house, Willy."

Willy frowned. "Why my house?"

I smiled and said, "You'll see…"

"Okay ready, set, go!" Ted said as he picked up some snow and started making a snowball.

I quickly touched the wall of Willy's house and said, "Base!" Willy followed me and also called out base when he touched the house.

Ted looked at me dumbfounded for a moment. I took this time to quickly pick up some snow and form a snowball. Both Ted and Terance ran toward their own base as I threw the snowball at them, but unfortunately I missed.

"So that's why you chose to make my house the base." Willy stated watching Ted and Terance run behind Mrs. Sherrie's house.

I nodded. "Yea, I figured we wouldn't have time to run anywhere else by the time they started throwing snowballs at us. Your house was the closest." I explained.

"Oh I get it." He said as he picked up some snow and made a snowball. "Come on lets go find them."

It felt like our snowball fight went on forever, but really it only lasted for a few hours. The four of us called it quits when we couldn't feel our hands or feet anymore. Willy had invited me back to his house for some coco and I had happily accepted. I was sitting at his kitchen table with him sitting across from me while Willy's father made us both hot coco before his next appointment. I found out that his father was the town's dentist, which explained why Willy wore the awful orthopedic headgear. Once his father finished making our hot coco he went back to work.

"My favorite kind of hot coco is the one with the little white marshmallows in them. My neighbor, Mrs. Beezlbee, sometimes makes hot coco from melted chocolate. It's really good, have you ever had it?" I asked taking a sip of my coco.

Willy shook his head sadly. "I have never eaten chocolate."

I was rendered speechless for a moment. "But every kid has had chocolate at least once."

"My father won't let me have any chocolate. He says it might rot my teeth out." Willy replied sadly.

"Well Halloween is in a few days. He has to let you have at least one piece of candy." I stated.

Willy shrugged. "He's never let me have any candy before."

I bit my lip and decided to change the topic. "Well what are you going to be for Halloween?"

"I was going to be a ghost because no one will know that it's me!" Willy said excitedly.

I giggled. "I would know it's you because you just told me, silly."

He laughed also. "Well besides you. What are you going to be for Halloween?"

"It's a surprise; Mrs. Beezlbee is helping me with my costume." I replied proudly.

Willy frowned. "How will I know it's you if I don't know what your costume is?"

I smiled and shrugged. "You'll just know. Oh I have to get home before my dad does." I began to put my snow shoes, jacket and gloves back on. "Good-bye Willy, I'll see you tomorrow." I said as I left Willy's house and headed back to my own home.