Even though I was responsible for cooking at
home, Mom was often gone, and when she was,
there was never anything in the house, and I
went hungry.
And at lunch, Mom never gave me money for the cafeteria. She didn’t care about me at all.
When she found out, my partner started pretending she was full and asked me to finish her leftovers every day.
Thanks to her feeding me, I finally gained a little weight, felt better. To pay her back, I helped her with her homework, and I started being able to talk to more people.
<
I was determined to ace my finals a month later.
But on test day, Mom locked me in the house.
No matter how much I cried and screamed in the kitchen, she wouldn’t open the door. She even ripped up my admission ticket, and destroyed books I had hidden in the cupboard.
I stood surrounded by the mess, and she stood
outside the door.
“What’s the point of reading all those books?
Even if you pass, I won’t let you go. You’re not
Brittany, you’re stuck with me.”
My heart shattered. I leaned against the door
and asked, “Mom, is Brittany really your
daughter?”
Mom’s shadow stiffened, but she still denied it.
“What are you talking about? I’m your mother. If
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you were as sensible as Brittany, I wouldn’t be
beating you.”
But I had no idea what was wrong with me.
I picked up the torn pieces of my admission
ticket and put them in my pocket.
Mom’s voice continued outside the door. “I’m
telling you, you’re going to end up working at a
store and getting married! After the test, you’re
going straight to work at a warehouse!”
“I’ve taken care of you for so long, it’s time to
pay me back. Stop trying to compare yourself
to Brittany.”
I didn’t listen to a word she said. I looked at the
window and had a crazy idea.
We lived on the third floor, and below was a
shed to protect the cars.
JI
く
If I was lucky, I could jump out and land on the
roof.
If I wasn’t.
I looked down, and I could always just break an
arm or a leg.
I was going to risk it for myself.
I saw Mom’s vague figure outside the sliding
door. I quietly moved to the window, quickly
opened it, and jumped without hesitating.
I made it.
I slid down the shed’s pole to the shock of
everyone who was on the street.
I had to take the test before Mom caught me.
Mrs. Davison taped my admission ticket
together, and my classmate let me borrow a
<
pen and eraser.
Mom finally caught up to me when I rushed into
the testing center.
She grabbed the iron railing and yelled, “I made you who you are, you should listen to me, you
little snake! I raised you, and this is what I get!”
But nobody wanted to listen to her. The parents waiting outside the testing center stared at her
weirdly.
What kind of monster doesn’t let their daughter
take a test?
The test lasted three days, and the last two
days, I hid from her by staying at Mrs. Davison’s
house.
I didn’t go home even after the test was over. I
went to work at a nearby factory, which
provided food, lodging, and a salary. It was
<
tough, but it was better than at home.
I was tightening nuts in the factory when I got a
call.
Mrs. Davison called the factory.
She told me excitedly, “Miracle, the scores are
in! 706 points! You’re number one in the
county! The high schools called me, you’re
getting in!”
It was like all the hard work, suffering, and pain
had an outlet.
I wiped the sweat and tears from my face, and
put my head on the table and cried.
