Chapter 1

 

I cower into the wall as he repeatedly hits me. Slamming his fists into my already bruised and bloody face while kicking his steel-capped boots into my sore stomach. I bit my lip to prevent myself from yelling out in pain and soon tasted blood. It didn’t matter if I yelled out anyway, no one would hear me. Closing my eyes tightly to hold the tears back I thought about how different it used to be. How he used to love me, how he used to care for me, how he used to be a real father to me.

 

That was right. My father beat his mute daughter. It wasn’t my fault I was mute. When I was born somehow my voice cords had fused together. Dooming me to be abused by the whole school and my father. I used to have a mother but she died. The town thinks it was a freak accident. Only I knew that it was my alcoholic father.

 

I was brought out of memory lane by a particularly powerful kick to the rib-cage and I knew straight away that it was another broken rib, probably the 6th one this week. I let a few tears drop as I thought about the 6 years since my mother died, 6 years since I was 10, 6 years since I was ever happy. He saw these tears and picked me up by my hair and I let out a whimper as it pulled at my scalp.

 

I looked into my fathers red eyes as he stared at me in disgust. In a drunken voice he yelled at me

"this is all your fault so don’t cry. You brought this on yourself by killing your mother" I stared into his eyes as I knew that closing my eyes would only make him more angry. Throwing me on the floor he spat at me as he stumbled up the wooden staircase to collapse in his bed.

 

Waiting a moment until I heard his loud snores I dragged my sore and beaten body up the staircase and into the bathroom. Looking at myself I saw that my long brown hair was a mess and knotted with my blood. My face was cut, bruised and puffy. My plain old blue eyes stared back at me blankly, hiding all my pain in them. I saw that my lip was busted and was still bleeding profusely.

 

Wincing I took my shirt of trying not to aggravate any of the bruises and cuts on my torso. In the mirror I saw my sickly thin and pale skin spotted with dark bruises, there was a huge dark splotch on my left rib cage that looked horrible. Closing my eyes I tried my hardest to keep the tears back. Taking of the rest of my clothes I saw that I had more cuts and bruises over my body and knew that I would have to wear my hoddie to school tomorrow.

 

Turning on the shower so it was boiling I stepped in and winced as the water hit my body. Once I got used to the water I stayed in long enough to wash away the blood and slightly relax my body. When I was done in the shower and had washed my matted hair I turned the water of and put my clothes in the wash basket grabbing a towel on the way, gently wrapping it around my body.

 

I opened the door hearing the snores of my dad and knew it was safe to get to the retreat of my room. I had put a deadbolt on my door 2 years ago so I would have a refuge when my dad got mad. Dropping the towel I walked over to my wardrobe and pulled out my old pyjamas and slipped them over my body wincing as the weight settle on my body. Walking over to my bed I settled in and awaited the long night ahead where I would get no sleep.

 

Looking up at my ceiling I thought about how this beating was worse than the rest. My father had gotten drunk again and had come home mad while I was cleaning the kitchen. He had seemed in a bad mood and me innocently asking how his day was seemed to set him off. I winced at the memories of his kicks and punches. It was worse mainly because today was the anniversary of mothers death.

 

I resented my mother for leaving me in my dad’s care. I resented her for making my live my life with an abusive dad. It wasn’t like this at all before, 6 years ago my family wasn’t the richest but we were happy. Dad had a decent job and mum took care of me. We were all happy. Mum was expecting another baby and I was excited to have a younger sibling to take care of. I was hoping for a brother.

 

But everything turned around when dad started coming home drunk. They would fight more and we weren't as happy. Then dad lost his job and came home more drunk than ever before. We didn’t have much money before but now we were broke and most likely to live on the streets. Dad had come home made and started beating into mum. I had sat on the staircase and watched it all as they yelled at each other. I watched as dad hit her, again and again. I watched as she slapped him back and he became unstoppably. He had gone into the kitchen and I saw him grab our big knife. The one I was never allowed to touch.

 

I sat there on the staircase as he stormed into the living room and killed my mother. He just stabbed her, just like that. I sat there and cried my little heart out as I lost my mother. I saw the life drown away from her as her head lolled to the side and she looked in my direction. Her eyes held so much love and sadness. I saw her mouth the words 'I love you' as her life faded away.

 

Her death haunted me every single night. I never had a good sleep, haven't in 6 years. I had loved my mother but had learned to resent her as my father beat me. He beat me and blamed me for her death. He beat me for being mute.

 

School was not much better. I wasn’t beaten but had no friends and was teased and pushed around every day. The teachers ignored me for they knew I couldn’t answer them. I kept my grades up in hopes of getting a scholar ship and moving out of this place but it was hard. They used to try and make me take of my hoodie but have given up when I refused. I mainly blended in the crowd and kept to myself but there was always the days when the 'it' group would get bored and decide to torment me.

 

They teased me for being a mute and always hiding in my hoodie. There were the days when I could go to school without a hoddie like when dad didn’t hit me in the face for a while. But they were rare. As I thought about all this I felt my eyelids droop and the sweet abyss of sleep take over me. Sleeping a dreamless sleep.

Author's Note

Please comment and tell me what you think! I hope you all like it!!

Reviews

[lovejulez03]

Good work. Sad and honest and you did well :)

[Rae Elizabeth]

Awesome story (:

[jimmy]

A really great start, once again, Tanaya. ^_^

[No name]

Sad, heartbreaking, brings me to tears but a very strong write. Will continue reading.

[Coyote Poetry]

A very strong story. Hard to live a normal life when abuse is a problem at your home. I like the history given and the struggle to fit in. Thank you for the strong opening chapter.
Coyote

[13ReasonsWhy]

oh. violent for sure. but in all a wonderful job. it is a perfect starting (to me) and a wonderful concept and storyline. in all: LOVED IT!!

[emma]

i liked it, very brutal and violent, but it was good. a few grammar and spelling problems, though. and i noticed that you used verbs in the present tense alot. such as, "turning on the shower" and "waiting a moment." now, i'm not saying that was a bad thing, but i really noticed it. you could possibly try and change it up a little? just a suggestion, though. as a whole, i liked this. a good, intruiging start, though it was sad.