Flashback/Dream
Yelling consumed the house. It was nothing different than any other day. No one heard because the nearest houses were more than one-hundred-yards away. No one knew what went on within the walls of that house. No one knew how the little girl suffered.
She hid when the fighting started and curled into a bawl in the corner of the living room, praying that tonight she would go unnoticed. But just as every other night she never did.
A smack resounded through the room, and then stillness followed. Heavy footsteps broke the silence, as they walked towards the corner where the little girl was. A strong grasp at her tiny arm and she was hanging in the air. A large hand grabbing at her chin forcing the child to look at him. Small golden brown doe-like eyes pierced his, strawberry-blonde curls framing her face, her pink dress and tights with her black dress shoes clinging to her tiny form. No look of love or compassion crossed the mans face, as it never did. He threw the child to the floor only to pick her up again and hit her across the face. Blood spilled from her nose, for it was broken, and tears built up from before, fell freely from her eyes.
The woman sat on the floor, watching her child helplessly try to escape the wrath of her fathers' hands. And watched as he pushed her again to the floor where she lay unmoving.
The man left the room silently leaving his wife and child to themselves. The woman got up like a ghost and walked to her child, picking her up like she did most nights. She walked out of the room and into the darkened foyer, climbing the stairs slowly. Walking down the long hallway that followed the ascent up the curving stairs, the woman passed many doors and walked into the lighted one at the end of the hallway. Running water into the clawed-foot tub, the woman undressed her child delicately as to not hurt her anymore than she had been that night.
The water was warm and nipped at the child's skin just enough to sooth her bruises. Her mother wiped away the blood from her face with a wash cloth, and settled down on her knees in front of the tub.
Small golden brown doe-like eyes looked at her mother, wanting her comfort and love. But neither were found within her mothers' eyes, rather she saw pity. The little girl had hoped to find anything but pity within her mothers' eyes, but she knew now that her mother could no longer feel good things.
Her mother took in the image of her fragile child, looking so small within the gigantic tub, how pale her skin was compared to the bruises that marked her skin. How lost and vulnerable she seemed.
"I'm so sorry Sara." Whispered the mother to her child as she held her underneath the waters surface, the little girl fought with the little strength she had left, her lungs burned for air, she needed to breathe, and so did, filling her lungs with water. The little girl went slack in under her mothers hand and the woman cried out.
No one would hear her desperate cries as she pulled her child out of the tub, cradling her in her arms. No one would hear the mothers' desperate cries as she tried to revive her child. No one would hear the child cough up the water from her lungs or take her new breath. No one would hear as the mother gasped in horror at what she had just done.
No one would know what happened within this house for it was covered up in secrecy and lies, bows and lace, hidden behind the small golden brown doe-like eyes of a little girl with strawberry-blonde curls framing her face, and her dresses and tights and her black dress shoes.
Hidden behind the bruises of a little girl.
A/N: If it doesn't make sense to you now it will in the next chapter. That's how it usually is with me. :smiles:
Happy Earth Day to everyone. (and B-day to me. lol)