Chapter 12 Pepper: A fresh start? Part 1 (Early childhood)
Pepper's point of view
I was cold… damp and miserable… tears streamed down my cheeks
"QUIT IT!" screamed a voice, "VIRGINIA ANNE POTTS, YOU QUIT THAT RACKET THIS MINUTE OR I'LL GIVE YOU SOMETHING TO CRY ABOUT!"
It was my mother… again…
I had been conceived from a horrible situation. She'd been attacked and being a good girl, raised in a Christian home, she wasn't allowed to do anything except wait out the pregnancy and go through a traumatic labour. I think her parents thought she should have been grateful… She wasn't, she resented me…
My earliest memory is of her screaming at me and shaking me when I was about 18 months old…
"I never wanted this… I was going to go to medical school, I was going to be a doctor… I was a good student… and then he came along… and he got me drunk and took advantage of me… 9 months later, you came along and all you do is scream all day long, and I don't know what else to do I've tried my best…" she shut me in the cupboard under the stairs.
Eventually, the day came when I was old enough to go to Pre-Kindergarten… All the other kids knew each other from preschool… I knew no one and I was extremely shy… I could already read and write and count. While the other kids were learning to read and write… I was sitting in the back of the classroom… alone reading Little Women. No one bothered to pay attention to me until the teacher took roll call…
"Virginia Potts?"
I glanced up,
"Yes ma'am"
The teacher smiled and nodded approvingly. She asked me some questions. She fixed my hair and helped me wash my face. That went on for about a week and then two weeks later, a woman came to see my mother and me at home.
She observed the home and my mother and me in it.
The woman came into my room and packed a bag for me. She took me to a big house, it felt empty… there was a woman and two boys in the living room, they were sitting on the couch. I peered out from behind the woman who'd brought me there… the pretty blonde woman crouched down in front of me.
"Hello Ginny, I'm your aunt Linda… this is Shane and this is Richie."
The woman who had taken me from my mother left. I stood close to the door, waiting for something to happen.
"Boys, why don't you go and start your chores? I want to talk to Ginny alone."
"Yes ma'am, I'd be happy to"
Aunt Linda came over
"Your mom isn't doing very well right now…" she explained, "That's why you're living with us"
"Oh"
"I homeschool Shane and Richie, I can do the same with you if you want"
"Yes Ma'am"
Aunt Linda glanced at her watch and said
"I'm going to start dinner… maybe you could set the table?"
"Yes ma'am…" I began but then I froze.
"What's wrong?"
"I've never set the table before"
Aunt Linda taught me how to set the table. An hour after I finished the table, Aunt Linda told Shane to take Richie and me into the living room so that we could watch TV for a while. Shane taught me how to use the control, and he let me choose what to watch.
When dinner was ready, Aunt Linda called us through to the dining room…
Shane pulled my chair out and tucked it in for me
"Thank you, Shane"
"My pleasure Ginny…"
"I'm very proud of you boys for being sweet to your cousin"
Aunt Linda served dinner, alphabet soup and grilled cheese sandwiches.
"Eat as much as you can Ginny but don't worry if you can't finish…"
As Aunt Linda finished serving dinner, a man came into the dining room… he grabbed her from behind and spun her round… surprised, angry and ignoring Shane and Richie's protests, I jumped down from my seat, crawled under the table and bit him on the leg. In surprise, he almost dropped Aunt Linda, and then he almost fell on top of me, but I wasn't afraid of him… I stood up, hands on my hips, glaring at him…
"So this is little Virginia, huh?"
"Yes, this is she… she prefers Ginny."
"How are you Ginny, I'm your uncle Vince"
"I'm fine, thank you sir… sorry I bit you but… I thought you were attacking Aunt Linda"
"I don't intend to cross you again, Ginny! I don't know if I would survive it." he teased, and I giggled. "Don't worry kiddo, you did the right thing… you weren't sure about the situation so you went with your gut…"
Vince put me back on my seat. He put his arm around Shane and used his other arm to mess up his hair…
"Daaaaad!" Shane whined
"All right I apologize for messing up your hair." he said, sitting at the end of the table next to me… he reached around Aunt Linda, tapped Richie on the shoulder and when Richie gave him a look he said "what?"
I lived with the McMahons until I was 14 years old… when I was nearly 7 years old, they had another baby - a little girl, Stephanie Marie McMahon. She was born on the kitchen floor.
The next six and a half years of my life were very happy and comfortable… then everything changed.
