Maggie picks on Emily

It was a scorchingly hot Tuesday morning in New York city. I was under the sheets of my fluffy bed and my head resting on a soft pillow. I knew it was already morning but I didn't feel like leaving my bed. I didn't want to see anybody and I didn't want anybody to see me. I have a horrible body I'm disgusted with.

I heard some loud noise which sounded like my step sisters'. It sounded like they were arguing about something perhaps about having the largest meal for breakfast which was what they always do each morning. Of course, my step mother, Rosaline is an awesome cook. She could win an award for the best culinary cook. Even though I feel lazy to be awake, I get jolted awake by their loud screamings. Anyways, how can I control or stop them from disturbing? They also have a right in my dad's house. Their attitude always make me reminisce when I was his only girl. Those were such sweet times.

I heard loud footsteps marching in my bedroom. I easily recognized the footsteps, they were my dad's. His boots always echoed a husky sound.

"Emily! Emily!" He called in a high pitch voice.

I didn't want to respond. My mind felt jittery thinking he may want me to go to school.

"Emily, it's time to go to school, get up Emily." He folded his arms.

"I don't wanna go."

"You can't spend your whole life hiding in the house, distancing yourself from a lot of people. You have to stop isolating yourself. Do you wanna be a nerd? Do you wanna abandon your education? Don't you wanna be a doctor anymore?"

Fury surged through me and I popped out of the sheets and glared at him, "look at me dad. Look at my face! Look at my hand? Do you think I enjoy staying at home all day? Regretting each day that I'm missing out on studies? Do you think I wanna be this way?" I yelled and tears rolled down my hazelnut eyes.

Sam, my dad advanced to the bed and he sat besides me, he touched my elbow gently and looked into my eyes, "I know it's sad what happened to you but you've got to accept this is how you look like now and move on. Accept yourself the way you are. Anybody who's gonna love you will love you. You don't have to extremely perfect to be accepted by anyone and darling, you are 100% perfect. Don't think you are ugly."

I uddenly felt like a cool sensation on my chest, I felt a bit relieved and I tried to smile, "thanks Papa." I moved closer to him embracing him warmly.

We started hearing footsteps and we looked at the door to see who it was. It was Maggie, one of my stepsisters. She frowned at the the two of us and folded her arms, "dad, mum wants you at the car."

"Okay I will be there soon right after I....., " Sam said and she cut him off, "right now dad." She gave me an icy glare but I wasn't noticing, my head was bowed.

Sam slowly dropped my hands and sprang up to his feet, "darling I will be back." He kissed me on my forehead and he stepped out of the room.

Maggie walked up to me, "playing the crybaby again so dad will feel sorry for you? What do you want him to get for you this time hun Emily? Let me guess, a fancy car. No, wait, a Japanese gown. Stop acting so sad so he will stop feeling sorry for you. It's been two years since your accident isn't it time you moved on and stop being a baby?"

"Do you think I can move on that quickly in this my situation? Who told you I'm making daddy pity me so he'll get me gifts? If I really wanted gifts, I would just ask." I snapped.

"You are just using your condition to your benefit. You are not sad at all you are like this in fact you enjoy looking so ugly and disgusting."

"That's not true!" I shouted.

"If you want me to believe you, stop making papa pity you, stop whining to him like a sick puppy. You are eighteen try to stop being a child. You can try to work to earn some cash instead of getting dad to pity to you to give you gifts. Oh, I forgot, you lost your other hand so you can't work. You are so unbelievable." Maggie giggled and stepped out of the room.

I felt a painful lump in my throat, I couldn't resist tears streaming down my eyes. I sprang to my tender feet and I walked to the huge mirror hanging on the wall in my bedroom. I glanced at my body. I shifted the strands of my jet black hair off my right cheek and I glanced at my cheek.

I felt stabbed in the chest seeing my cheek roughly squeezed and wrinkled. I trembled and glanced down at my left hand, it was not there just my arm and I sighed. It was difficult to control tears from falling down my eyes.

I started to go down memory lane of two years ago, 10th of May 2020. My mom, ms Celie and I were in a limou truck driving down a highway after visiting the shopping mall. My mom was the driver. She started noticing that the brakes of the car was failing, the car veered off the road approaching a bunch of tall mahogny trees and before she could try to step on the brakes one more time, the car smashed against the trees and we both passed out. Few minutes after, the car exploded.

Many hours later, I slowly opened my eyes and all I could see was a sea of white. Images of the car smashing against the trees suddenly flashed through my mind and I jolted anxiously thinking about my mum. I felt a deep pain on my right cheek and I touched it. It was plastered.

I noticed my dad sitting besides me. His head was bowed and it seemed like tears were streaming down his face, "papa? Papa" I muttered.

He raised his head up and looked at me and held my hand, "oh dear you are awake."

I felt his hand trembling and I felt confused, "what's wrong dad? You look uneasy. Where's mum?"

He bowed and sniffed.

"Where's mummy?"

He was still silent. I wanted to ask again and I suddenly realized that I couldn't feel my left hand, "what's going on? Why can't I feel my hand dad?"

"Darling..." His voice began to crack.

"What?"

"Sweetie, you don't have a hand anymore. You have just one now."

I panicked and looked so astonished, "what are you saying? What are you talking about? How can I have just an hand?"

"Sweetie, the accident you and your mother had was so bad, there was slim chances that you would survive that's why I agreed with the doctor to amputate your hand cause I did not want to lose you too."

"What do you mean lose me too? Hold on, where is mummy? Where is mummy daddy?" My heart started racing incessantly.

"She is...she is gone. The fire in the car....it roasted...."

"It roasted what papa speak up."

"It roasted her throat that it was impossible for her to breathe."

My heart skipped and tears gushed from my eyes in streams, "are you telling me my mother is gone?"

Sam rose from his seat and sat besides me placing my head on his chest consoling me.

I broke out of my thoughts and walked to my wardrobe. I pulled the knobs open and pulled out a fancy toy teddy bear sitting on my dresses and I hugged it affectionately, "mama...mama." Images of my mum handing me the Teddy when I was three on my birthday, flashed through my mind and I cried even more.