At some point people find out they're different one way or another.
Sometimes it seems like I'm cursed... I thought the same thing when I was in Elementary school because of something that happened before my parents were married, and long before my siblings and I were even born.
You see, a long time ago back my Father and Uncle Aryeh still had their parents with them. They liked to sing, and dance, count their blessings and share in the culture of our forefathers...
Then, when they were teenagers, they'd gone on vacation with their parents to some tropical beach resort having a good time. But something terrible happened.
One day while Uncle Aryeh and his folks were mingling at the pool and Dad had gone scuba diving with some other teens, a tidal wave hit. Their folks died and so did so many others, Uncle Aryeh almost drowned.
So Dad and Uncle Aryeh had to move in with their mom's brother, Great Uncle Ezekiel and Great Auntie Talia. Losing their parents, then the consequent moving to a whole other country, and all the changes they went through toughened them up.
I say it just made them bitter.
Because of his and Aryeh's parents deaths, then the subsequent changes in their lives, AND the two incidents involving the Hunstclan… my father had banished anything not proven with science or logic from his family forever.
Once the Sonnenbergs had Nerine, they had moved to an upper middle-class Connecticut neighborhood... then after that stunt on the beach, they officially settled into New York city.
Rivka was no longer an infant. Raised in a household where science and strict practicality reigned supreme, she found herself at odds with her father's skepticism towards anything supernatural. Both he and his brother, Aryeh, remained deeply critical of everything that escapes the standards of science.
He would impose his will that she walk without guidance of her roots from both sides of her family, denying the longing to know more. Discord occasionally filled their home, with nostalgia for gentler days past but a faint light in troubled times.
Then there was the matter of her birthmark.
When Rivka was in preschool, she became curious about the strange curled dragon shape on her shoulders. She asked her mother Dulcea about it one evening.
"Mommy, why do I have this picture on my back? The other kids said it looks funny."
Dulcea gently brushed Rivka's hair aside to get a better look. "It's just a special mark you were born with, my darling. Some people have birthmarks that make them unique."
Not satisfied, Rivka turned to her father. "Daddy, is it because of something bad?"
Cleavon shrugged dismissively. "Don't be silly. It's nothing but a pigment mutation under your skin. Now come, it's time for bed."
None of her family knew the mark's dark significance to the Huntsclan. But Rivka grew up reassured by her mother that it meant she was special in her own way. Though her father dismissed its importance, in her heart Rivka took pride in what made her different.
Sure, we knew Grandpa Ilan and Grammy Naomi who were Mom's parents.
I remembered the talk we had when I was six and found out that my caring, supportive grandmother had Alzheimer's disease. Back then it was just another mysterious disease that did not have an effect on my life. When my parents sat me down and had a serious talk about her illness, it didn't entirely register.
Eli and Mom were the ones who saw her slowly succumbing to it. First it was the little things like the keys, then a few words she meant to say at a news conference for the hospital with Grandpa Ilan, and so forth until she started to lose her memories. And then one morning she was gone. Grandpa soon followed suit, medics say it was natural causes but Mom, Eli and I agreed that it was a broken heart.
This was what made Eli extra determined to invent something that can preserve memories besides photographs.
But Father and Uncle Aryeh's folks we only saw them through the occasional photos or really old films.
My big brother, Eli, once made the mistake of calling Great Auntie Talia as Grandma, Uncle Aryeh became glum then Father VERY clearly stressed out that we only had to address our great Uncle and Great Aunt as Great Uncle Ezekiel and Great Aunt Talia.
We couldn't even call them 'Grunkle Ezekiel' or 'Grauntie Talia' either.
But what wasn't the worst of it. If Cleavon caught Rivka watching a show about fairytales or something that he didn't approve of, he'd switch it to a cheesy educational show for children. In this guarded life, both fantasy and the faith of the family lineage alike were barred from view. Even her Uncle Aryeh, Cleavon's younger brother, was complicit in supporting this inflexible ban.
One example was that on Rivka's fourth birthday, she wanted it to be mermaid themed. But Cleavon said it was ridiculous and made into a generic undersea theme. What's more, only a select few classmates were invited. Particularly those with financially influential parents, however, even these children seemed unimpressed by the party.
It went like that for quite a while.
Say I'd asked for those old coloring books little girls loved so much – this was the 80's so Rainbow Brite and other great stuff was in… but only Mom, my Aunt Geneva and the grands would get them because they actually listened.
Dad would always get me the more…er, mundane ones, saying they were better. They weren't.
Or say I wanted those Sears dolls based off fairytale characters, Dad would only get me the dolls of career women saying they were better role models. Okay, being a lawyer and doctor is all well and good but I didn't want
That's how I noticed that sure, Dad could get me trampolines, jewelry kits, maybe even the occasional fun board games or outdoor kind of toys.
Back then, I didn't have the nerve to speak up since I was just a little girl. But as I grew, all that repressed frustration and disappointment simmered.
One day in December when Rivka was eight years old, she came across a book that caught her interest. However, because it was about magical creatures, Cleavon adamantly refused to purchase it. He insisted on buying scientific or historical books that simply held no appeal whatsoever for Rivka. When she expressed her dislike for those options, Cleavon disregarded her opinion and tried to force her into accepting them, leading to a tantrum from Rivka.
The store manager, a kindly woman in a wheelchair, attempted to reason with Cleavon. She suggested that he should consider not imposing such advanced reading material on his young daughter unless she genuinely desired it or it was relevant to her school subjects. However, Cleavon dismissed her advice and forcefully pulled a disgruntled Rivka out of the store.
Dulcea, Rivka's mother, strongly disapproved of Cleavon's attitude. On Rivka's seventh birthday, Dulcea and Great Aunt Talia took the young girl to watch "The Little Mermaid" in theaters, much to Cleavon's chagrin.
Mom, she's gentle, elegant and smarter than you take her credit for. One look at her style and you'd think first she were some social debutante. Nope, she's in the biomedical field while her workaholic sister, Aunt Geneva is a pediatrician.
Rivka loved her siblings but felt somewhat distant from them, sensing they don't understand or even care about what she's going through.
"It's just books about little girls in different periods of history, give it a try." A twelve year old Eli had gently tried to encourage Rivka into reading some American girl books. "And who knows? It might even help out with homework someday."
My big brother, Eli, love him dearly but sometimes he just doesn't understand me, figuratively speaking.
When he was younger he held a great fear of disappointing our father which is the reason he tried to diffuse fights between us during their childhood years, before Eli found what he was good at.
I think deep down he admired my gumption to stand up for what I believe in, even if it means going against the wishes of our father.
Eventually, Eli became passionate about technology, he is an idealistic and visionary man, who develops his scientific projects with a focus more on practical results than merely economic ones.
Nerine, who was the youngest of the Sonnenberg children, rolled her eyes. "Why are you so obsessed with all this? I mean, it's just like Daddy says: 'It gives little kids dumb ideas about there being magic or some weird beings in the sky.' Like that helps them prepare for life, Personally, give me a good TV show with people fixing up a new house or someone's face any day."
And… my precocious little sister, Nerine.
We got along okay when she was younger but after she finished the second grade, she started to take after our father, just not in a good way.
Nerine agreed with everything Father says and constantly tries to be the golden child, taking pride in the fact that she, Eli, Uncle Aryeh and Father were the only "smart, normal" ones in the family.
It was eerily ironic that two people who share the same genetic makeup can be so drastically different. True, both sisters had the same diamond shaped face, the same chocolate brown curls and hazel-green eyes. However, apart from that, it seems they were two complete and total opposites.
Nerine had no patience for Rivka's idealistic nature and other interests. In her eyes, only practical subjects like school academics, future careers and pop culture held value.
The ten year old Rivka pursed her lips. "First of all, you don't even care for the environment, jellybean. Let alone half the safety tips we'd learned. Haven't you ever wondered about the stuff that goes on in our house?"
"No."
"And what about the things Dad and Uncle Aryeh won't let us talk about or celebrate?"
"No. Halloween is full of dumb fake stuff anyway, and besides, Uncle Aryeh says the Winter holidays in December are just an excuse for people to overspend."
"Or why Dad always says no whenever Great Uncle Ezekiel and Great Auntie Talia asks us to visit them in Israel?"
"No, and why should I?" Nerine said dismissively. "Plus I don't see why we should visit Great Uncle Ezekiel either."
"Uhm, building family bonds and memories for one thing, I can count on my hands the number of times we also got to Uncle Zevach and Aunt Chaya."
Nerine peered critically at her sister from over the magazine. "That's because Auntie Chaya just HAD to get into a fight with your third grade principal."
Rivka grumbled, folding her arms. "Well, he didn't have to yell at me... and I quote:" she took on condescending nasally voice. "Do I look like a baby? Is it bedtime? Then why are you telling me stories?!" Rivka had mimicked the exact words of her rude principal.
"Well, you kinda were telling stories." Nerine said matter of factually.
"Aunt Chaya said he was being an antize- an antisevem- well, an intolerant jerk when he yelled at me."
"Why did you have to go tell your principal the first weird thing you saw in Recess anyway?" Nerine shrugged.
Rivka flatly added. "He also said I shouldn't expect special treatment especially for a daughter of the wannabe social climbing lawyer."
Nerine finally paused and blinked. "Okay... now that was out of line from him."
Unfortunately, the 'noodle incident' as Rivka called it, was what lessened their visits from Uncle Zevach and Aunt Chaya going forward.
Cleavon was displeased with how Chaya confronted the principal, and in a moment of anger, he harshly told her to "handle her own children." Unfortunately, Cleavon had conveniently disregarded Chaya's recent miscarriage and her rightful defense of Rivka against a verbally abusive authority figure.
The insensitivity of Cleavon's remark, coupled with his diminishing their family ties, took a toll. While Chaya remained proudly protective of her nieces and nephew, even sending presents to them every now and then, the rift distanced them all for some time.
The thing is I'm pretty much the opposite of what Father hoped I'd be. Nerine picked up on that, and in school didn't want to associate with her "weird sister" sensing that I would allegedly "hold her back". So when we got into the same elementary school she always snubbed me regardless of events.
"Fine, then stay in your corner, and be boring." retorted Rivka. "I wanna do my own thing."
Nerine huffed irritably at her older sister's verbal sneer, but didn't respond.
She'd later grow up to be the "pretty overachiever" in High school and made it her personal goal to get into an Ivy league University to become a successful architect.
No one understood me best like my Uncle Ezekiel and Auntie Talia did besides mom, and even they had trouble convincing Father to let me do things.
"Haven't I warned you? Stuffing the children's heads with a lot of silly stories."
"Oh, but they aren't!"
"I say they are!"
"Cleavon," Ezekiel said quietly. "Let Rivka light a menorah this year. It means so much to her. Have you forgotten what it's like to be ten years old?"
"She has to learn. In this life you can't have everything you want."
"It's not just all these 'Americanized cash-grab' holidays you try to keep out." said Great Aunt Talia. "You forget the ones you used to celebrate, those that are a part of both families, yours and Dulcea's. You might be surprised at yourself. You might enjoy it too."
"You're one hundred per cent wrong about that."
"You've let your whole life turn sour," Great Uncle Ezekiel shook his head. "You've no right to sour the children's lives too."
"I don't want to talk about it..."
"You just don't want anything around to remind you. But the children are still here, as we are. You can't look at us and not be reminded."
And you remember, Uncle Aryeh. Yeah, he's a Science nerd through and through.
True, he does love me and stuff but his hopes for me are way different. Dad's all about making sure we excel in the more meaningful school subjects as a reflection of potential future success.
Whereas Uncle Aryeh is more innocently insensitive by trying to open up our minds to the Scientific fields.
Rivka rushed over as Uncle Aryeh arrived at the house. "Uncle Aryeh, did you bring me any rocks from your trip?" she asked excitedly.
Aryeh fished in his bag, producing a few dull stones. "Here are some typical igneous specimens from the site," he said clinically. "Basalt and such - good for your geology studies, yes?"
Rivka tried to mask her disappointment. The rocks held no magic or mystery to Uncle Aryeh - just samples to be clinically observed and categorized. She had hoped for a gemstone or fossil to fuel her imagination.
Sensing her lack of interest, Aryeh continued obliviously, "Now tell me, did you finish your science homework? The stellar classification sequences and spectral analysis should prove-"
"I'm more interested in stories than assignments this weekend, Uncle," Rivka interrupted gently. Her interests differed greatly from his, though she loved him nonetheless.
So yeah, the whole family is full of successful type of people in respectable fields.
My father is a hotshot lawyer always on the lookout to better the family finances, Mom is a well-known Biomedical scientist and pathologist who participates in conferences, publishes articles, wins awards herself. Uncle Aryeh is an astrophysicist in the Observatory.
In time, by the time he become a senior in High school, Eli became a science and robotic prodigy, Nerine developed an interest in architecture despite still being in elementary school. Both were 'perfectly' lucrative career choices according to Father.
Cleavon Sonnenberg was strictly practical and meticulous especially when it came to his three children living up to his high expectations.
"How many times have I told you this nonsense isn't going to get you anywhere? Focus on your studies for something productive."
"That's of no use. I have told you a thousand times that this will not bring anything good."
"You think that passion of yours will pay the bills or put food on the table? The world is full of logic and it is not kind to dreamers."
My dad`s been saying all that to me since I was thirteen.
He'd always pushed me to do more 'useful' hobbies or courses that didn't interest me, while putting extra emphasis on financial success.
His so-called 'constructive, well-meaning' goals didn't exactly change too much once I became a teenager and started noticing boys.
What I remember most about junior high, however, was the incredible pain and heartache that students inflicted on one another with their words and actions. There were students who seemed to have it all together and made those around them feel as if they didn't measure up.
Stowed away but not entirely forgotten, are memories of previous school days that occasionally trouble me. Taunts from peers about my body which, as I approached and entered womanhood… the only feminine curves I got were on my top half.
I didn't have much luck in the dating department. Like most young women, I dreamed of true, genuine love but it was like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Moe often than not, I was surrounded by shallow, conceited and or ambitious men. Some turned out to be terribly cold-blooded boys or men my father had kept introducing to me.
One particular incident had centered on an intellectual boy Rivka had had a crush on, Luke Sinclair. She'd gotten what she thought was a love note asking her to meet him at a diner where she waited for her secret admirer until they close up. Rivka had been utterly humiliated.
Eli had been concerned, he'd already reached the age where he'd felt a certain sense of responsibility, and had become protective of his younger sisters.
So the next day, Rivka wiped her tears and asked around. It wasn't until she interrogated one jock, Eric Decker, who smugly "asked" in a backhanded way if she liked the note.
When I told him I hated it, he had the gall to look offended. But I saw through that in a minute. Never mind that I spent hours waiting in vain for a guy who NEVER showed.
A group of junior school kids walked past whispering and giggling.
"But... I thought you liked Luke Sinclair," Eric said once they had passed.
Rivka's mouth fell open as it hit her. "You did it? It was you, wasn't it?!"
"Well...What's so good about Luke Sinclair anyway?"
Rivka felt her cheeks warm up. "He's... he's-!" She gestured with her free hand, angrily searching for words. "He's gorgeous!"
Well it wasn't just his looks to be honest, but she was so frustrated that it was the first thing that popped out.
"Gorgeous is he? That's all that matters is it?" Eric's voice had a bitter tone. "Just as long as the pretty people stick together."
"Ugh! Is that what it's all about?! " Rivka spat. "I like someone else and that makes ME the bad guy?! You're nothing but a cheat and a FAKE."
"I'm a fake?!" Eric snapped when he was close to me. His voice was quiet. "You dress like a model, pretend you're eighteen, and stick your head into stupid subjects no one cares about." He said the last part slowly, as if Rivka had committed a capital crime.
As if to add further fuel to the fire, Eli had followed and eavesdropped in on this.
Despite his good intentions- he barrels in without thinking, and threatens the guy. "Hey, my sister doesn't owe you anything!" Eli had snarled.
Rivka was in no sympathetic mood either, the constant pressure of her father, the criticism of Nerine and her peers was taking its toll. She viciously yanked Eric by his shirt, hissed at him over what he'd done and how much it hurt her.
"But the letter was true, Riv." Eric put his hands in his pocket and looked down at his feet.
"Oh yeah!?" Rivka's lip curled. "As though Luke Sinclair truly did write me a Valentine's Day letter."
"No." Eric's shoulders drooped. "I wrote you a Valentine's Day letter. Then I got cold feet and signed another name. But everything else was true."
Rivka was unimpressed. "That was still mean. Your confession doesn't change what you did. I don't owe you anything, least of all forgiveness. From now on, leave me alone."
Eli added, "Next time, think before playing cruel games with someone's feelings. Consider how your actions might hurt them."
Rivka prepared to leave, "We're done here. Don't bother me again."
Eli nodded, "Come on Riv, he's not worth another moment of your thought. Let's go."
The siblings then walk away, leaving Eric to reflect on his mistakes as Rivka maintains her dignity and self-respect.
As they walked away, Rivka sighed. "Thanks for having my back there Eli, but I could've handled Eric on my own."
Eli nodded. "I know, but as your big brother it's my job to look out for you."
Rivka turned serious. "You know I love you Bugbear, but you've got your own life to live. I'll be choosing a college soon, striking out on my own path. You're just gonna have to face the fact that I won't always have you there to protect me."
Eli frowned, troubled. "I know, it's just hard to imagine you out there without anyone watching your back. The world can be a dangerous place, Riv."
Rivka nodded silently, gazing ahead. She had no idea yet how truly dark the shadows held, nor the threats that would one day fall upon her family. Forces were already converging around her from the fringes of her knowledge, plotting to steal away the freedom and choice she now embraced. But that lay shrouded in the mists of time, while here in this moment walked two who yet knew nothing of the trials to come.
"I'll be fine, Eli," she said at last, clinging to hope and naivety a while longer. The shadows were coming, but for now she chose to walk in the sunlight with her brother, unaware of how soon night would fall.
After that bust of a Valentine's day event, instead of trying date or to fit in socially, I put all my efforts into class work especially with what else I was good at.
I'd excelled in Art and been encouraged by teachers' praise. Eli had it simple becoming proficient with machines and technology, and very soon he'd invented a very good technological program and someone paid him a lot of money for it.
"It's good that you came from college to dinner, dear." Dulcea greeted Eli. "I love having our family together like this, with the five of us together. The children grow up so fast, and the house is empty, and moments like this are the rarest."
"Studying close to home does have its perks." Nerine commented.
The subject about Eli's new robotic project came up, there were encouraging words. Rivka nodded politely, knowing this was a subject Eli worked hard on.
Cleavon nods, "Well I understand that a machine like this has many applications, right? In risky activities in industries, doing all kinds of domestic work in family homes, helping to care for the elderly in nursing homes, children in daycare, working in hotels... "
Eli was pensive. "That's right, its applications are practically endless."
Cleavon then asked, "And is there already an interested company? Because the patent for the prototype you are building must be worth millions."
Dulcea pursed her lips reprovingly. Rivka glowered at her father. Nerine said nothing, she only listened.
"Yes, but I'm not worried about money right about now." Eli replied.
"Oh, when will it worry you?"
"To be honest I have enough money not to worry for quite some time."
"But for how long? Money is what makes the world go round."
"So do ideas, Dad." Eli shrugged.
"Well we can say that this new project does not have financing, is that it?"
"No, it does. Myself."
"One day the money from the application you sold may run out."
Eli admits glumly, "In fact I bitterly regret having sold it, they completely changed the objective of my application!"
"Companies need to make profits!"
"And just the greed for that profit is damaging the environment!"
"We are in the mecca of capitalism, I am not asking you to destroy a forest!"
Yeah, this put him in conflict our father. That's just one of the few times I saw that Eli had his share of troubles too. Father expected him to become some big shot tech billionaire but Eli wanted to do more than just make money with his gift in robotics and computers.
It was only a matter of time before I could spread my wings, I didn't know it just yet.
Rivka gazed out her window with a sigh. She had walked these familiar halls for so long, but never felt like she truly belonged. The highest marks in her best subjects couldn't fill the hole inside her or satisfy her curiosity about what else was out there.
"I know there's more that's out there, and I just haven't found it yet," she sang quietly.
At home, Eli already moved out, her parents, her sister Nerine and her uncle Aryeh were in good health, but still Rivka didn't fit in. Her father, Uncle and Nerine only think of excelling in their careers and regard Rivka like something's wrong. She was just "Cleavon Sonnenberg's weird daughter", not allowed to truly express herself.
The cold-logical perspective offered nothing new or inspiring to her, and her father's expectations only left Rivka feeling alone.
Was the answer to forge her own path alone? Could she find fulfillment if she struck out on her own to discover what this calling inside her was? "I know there's more that's out there, something to fill this hole inside."
Her destiny didn't end at the limits of where she resided. There was so much more out there beyond these walls full of mysteries just waiting for her. "And I'll find out someday!"
Renewed with hope and determination, Rivka smiled. Someday soon she would break free and discover all that was calling her from far beyond the boundaries of her present life.
My interests deepened and I dug my heels in, further defying Father by choosing a career in the fine arts and a minor in baking.
"Cleavon, you don't seem to grasp the situation. Rivka is brilliant, I tell you, and she should be allowed to choose her career." Dulcea insisted.
"I agree that she needs a higher education, but NOT for such trivial subjects! I knew I never should've let you talk me into letting her take those selective extra-curriculars. I'm tired of tripping over her canvas and sketchbooks, and I'm tired of hearing her gather that well-earned money she got from those summer jobs just so she can visit Israel. I'll thank you and the elders not to fill her head with further nonsense either. Rivka won't need any of it as a career woman, and that's what she's destined for."
Rivka's heart dropped from her throat to her toes. If Mom couldn't change his mind, it wasn't going to get changed. But she's had enough.
She yelled at her father. "You either won't listen to me or you simply don't know what kind of person I am. I'm not you! The things you like aren't the same things I like."
It was nearly impossible to get the words out and yet they kept coming, giving her no chance to breathe. "You simply don't know how to let go. You're no father, you're a jailer. You wouldn't know how to behave with a teenager that doesn't fall in line with your goals."
Her father's reaction was total shock, as though he were watching his meek, reserved daughter change into a furious harpy before his eyes.
"A parent has to set up limitations and boundaries for a child, just the way he does for himself."
"But your life is all limitations unless it fits your idea, that's the point!" she yelled. "You're so critical of me and you never praise anything I do."
Cleavon glowered. "All right, that's enough now. It is not your place, young lady, to instruct me in how to act. I don't like your attitude."
She couldn't back down now. There were so many things that had been unsaid for too long, and now a lot of messy emotion oozed all over the place. "In middle school I used to go tiptoeing around this house, praying you wouldn't notice me and find something, anything, to pick on. I was so afraid of you jumping on me and my peers, I just shrank back into the wallpaper. I never stood up for myself. But I'm not afraid anymore, and you're going to hear this!"
"Rivka Leonie Sonnenberg, go to your room!" he shouted, and she could tell by his face that finally she had gone too far. "I don't want to hear another word. I make the rules around here, and whether you like it or not, you do what I say. I'm frankly not interested in your opinion of me, nor am I interested in continuing this conversation."
"Fine!" she screamed.
Whirling on him with a sob, she ran from the room and slammed her bedroom door behind her. The room spun; she couldn't stand up anymore. The weight of everything pressing on her was too great. She slumped on the bed, letting her tears spill onto the pillow, not caring whether he heard or not.
Well, the joke was on my father, I was accepted into the New York University via scholarship.
It was the late 90s, and back then, I had no knowledge of the Huntsclan, let alone magical creatures beyond what I had read in books or seen on TV.
At the University, I felt liberated.
And it was where made two dear friends there – The first is Italian heiress, Silvana Monticello. Spoiled sweet, emphasis on 'sweet', quirky, excitable and steadfast.
Rivka wandered the bustling campus green, maps and schedules fluttering in the breeze. As freshman in a new setting far from home, everything felt unfamiliar and daunting and exciting all at once.
Her things must've already arrived and she still hasn't located her dorm. She sighed, plopping down on a secluded bench.
"Excuse me, are you lost?" said a lilting Italian accent.
Rivka looked up into gentle grey eyes within a heart shaped face, framed by coppery brown hair that fell past the girl's shoulders.
The Italian girl had a kind smile. "I'm Silvana. Are you new here?"
Rivka nodded. "Rivka Sonnenberg. It's all so overwhelming."
Silvana sat beside her. "Where are you from in America?"
"Manhattan."
Silvana's face lit up. "I adore New York! The energy, the fashion. Tell me about it!"
Rivka found herself relaxing as she chatted with Silvana, regaling her with tales of Coney Island and street fairs. Silvana shared memories of festivals and family in Italy.
Before they knew it, hours had passed. Silvana linked her arm through Rivka's. "Come, I'll show you around campus. And you must join me for gelato - it will give you the courage to conquer anything!"
Rivka laughed, a warm feeling blossoming in her chest. This place may become home if she had a friend like Silvana by her side. And so began a brilliant friendship spanning cultures and distances, bonded by compassion and a shared sweet tooth.
Silvana was a good friend, soon we were joined by Beatriz "Bea" de Souza. A Brazilian Computer engineering major with a tough attitude but is secretly very sensitive and grounded,
Later, Rivka and Silvana finally found their shared dorm hallway.
Rivka spotted someone struggling to carry too many boxes and offered to help. The student, Bea, was a Brazilian young woman with an oval face shape and brown hair with pinkish highlights tied into double hairbuns. Wide-set brown eyes twinkled behind browline glasses.
Grateful for the help, Bea had gotten to chatting with Rivka and Silvana, who volunteered to help guide them all to their rooms.
Bea would eventually end up becoming my brother's coworker in robotics later on.
I was about to embark on a new chapter in my life, not knowing of the brewing storm brewing on the horizon in much less than a decade.
To be continued…
Author's note: Hold on to your seats for chapter three it's gonna be a wild ride for Rivka and her two new friends before the shadows of the past come back to haunt her and the family...
To learn more about my ocs, what they look like and the family dynamics a little better check out Rivka's family tree on my deviantART account, you can't miss it.