"Nanny Celine, when can I see my mummy?" Two years old Tessy asked.
"Don't worry Tessy, your mummy will come see you once she no longer has to work, okay?" Nanny Celine assured.
"I hope so. I haven't seen mummy before, I wonder what she looks like." Tessy just couldn't help but wonder while she swinged her little legs.
"You'll know soon. Now, are you done with your homework?" she asked and Tessy nodded.
"Tessy, your history teacher is here." Nanny Zoe announced from the door.
"Ok!" Tessy got up and walked towards her. Nanny Celine couldn't help but stare at her before simply shaking her head.
"This child is just too pitiful." She remarked. "But it's amazing how she is so sensible at such a young age. She's just two years old."
Just as Jackson promised, he bought a house in the woods where wild animals didn't lurk around.
The fence was really high and the house was of good quality. He hired a lot of guards, maids and 5 nannies just for Tessy. Nanny Cana, Nanny Tracy, Nanny Rose, Nanny Zoe and Nanny Celine.
Tessy was given everything a child could ask for. She ate good food, slept in the most comfortable bed, wore the most beautiful dresses, even if she wasn't going anywhere. She was taught by the best teachers from all over the world.
Her life was great, it just had one thing missing.
Tessy was discovered to be a child genius when she said her first sentence. She said;
"Nanny Zoe is shorter than Nanny Cana but Nanny Cana doesn't know that Nanny Zoe has a fairer skin than her"
Everyone was completely amazed and immediately phoned Jackson, from there, her learning began.
By the time Tessy turned two, Maya gave birth to a boy, now having two boys to take care of. But the guilt of giving up Tessy still followed her because of the curse. Jackson tried his best to take her mind off of things.
He bought her a huge mall, a restaurant and even a boutique. Although she didn't ask for any of it, he just kept buying them, as well as numerous dresses and jewellery.
He went ahead to introduce her to many of his friends and it got to a point where she started falling for him but she wasn't sure if she was actually falling for him or his wealth.
She just felt empty and that all he was doing for her was for nothing. She tried to convince herself that she was happy but she knew clearly that it was impossible.
Mara walked past a toy shop and her eyes landed on a very alluring doll. It somehow reminded her of Tessy even if it was just a glance.
'What harm would it do to send her just one doll?' she thought
Unlike Tessy who was a girl, Casper didn't play with toys. He had the same nature as his father, who was arrogant. But just like Tessy, he was also homeschooled with the same teachers but different schedules.
When Tessy received the doll, she was happy. So happy that she couldn't contain her joy. This was the one thing she would treasure for the rest of her life because it was from her mother.
Hearing that Tessy was happy about the doll, Mara felt warm and delighted inside. It was good. Just good.
Three years passed and Tessy grew wiser. She understood things better and knew exactly what kind of situation she was in. Abandoned!
"Nanny Celine, my mother abandoned me, didn't she?" Tessy asked with her head down. She clutched onto her doll, not wanting to let go.
Ever since she received it three years ago, it had been her companion. She carried it everywhere except for the bathroom because she didn't want it to get ruined.
Now, she had more reason to hold on to the doll, as it was all that was left of her mother's care.
Nanny Celine was finding it hard to respond. It was true but how to make it seem false, how to lie to her?
"She doesn't love me. She kept me here because she doesn't want to see me, am I right?" Tessy spat out coldly.
"Dear, she loves you. It's..."
"That's a lie!" Tessy interrupted harshly. "I'm a nuisance because of the curse. No one wants to keep a cursed girl around and that's why she locked me here, am I right, Nanny Celine?" Her words got to Nanny Celine.
Tessy's gaze was just so terrifying at the moment and she didn't have the spine to lie. No one could.
"It's all for your own good child."
"Ha! Hahaha!" Tessy laughed but it didn't sound like the laughter of a five year old at all.
She understood everything clearly. She knew what was right and wrong. She knew what was white and what was black. She understood her situation better than anyone.
"Just as I thought!" She muttered softly. "Tell the language teacher that I won't attend classes today. I...don't want to see anyone." With that, she walked out of the room.
Nanny Celine felt sad and worried. Tessy was too smart to deceive so, there was no way she could lie to her for long. The curse was to blame.
Tessy had been told about the curse at the age of four in order to prepare her for whatever would happen in the future.
It might've looked like the right thing to do but seeing such a development, it no longer seems like a wise choice.
Tessy walked towards the back fence and looked up. It was very high. She saw a bench close to a dog hole, so she sat there and started thinking.
For a little girl, she had a lot of things in her mind and tried not to cry but her soft baby emotions ruined it. Tears started flowing down her cheeks and she began to sob quietly.
After a while, she stopped crying and cleaned her face, wiping every trace that would lead people to know that she was crying but her expression remained sullen.
"Stupid curse!" She muttered.
Just then, a little boy crawled in through the dog hole from the other side of the fence. He looked up to see this little girl looking sad.
At first, he was stunned at how pretty she looked. She looked just like a princess doll but had such a sad expression.
"What would make a lovely girl like you sad?" He asked.
Tessy woke up from her thoughts and turned to look at him but had an indifferent expression. She quickly looked away, completely ignoring his presence.
"Hey, don't ignore me." He walked to her front but she didn't lift her head. "Why the long face, princess?"
She looked up with a glare which frightened him. She opened her mouth to speak but stopped. She looked away and said;
"None of your business!"
"Sure it's not my business but, let me tell you this." He stepped backwards. "I... " He pointed his thumb at his chest "...am your prince that's going to save you, the princess, from this castle." He concluded and put his hands on his waist.
"You're joking!" Tessy stared blankly. She wasn't finding his gesture serious or hilarious at all.
"Come on, you're sad which means you don't like it here. Come, I'll take you to a place that you'll like." He stretched his hand to hold on to hers but she evaded it.
"Mind your business!" She simply stated and got down from the bench, making an attempt to leave.
"Hey, wait a minute." He grabbed onto her doll and took it. Seeing that he took her doll, she stopped.
"Give it back." She demanded. He looked at the doll and then at her. An idea!
"If you want it, come and get it." With that, he ran towards the hole and crawled out.
Tessy couldn't quite comprehend what just happened. It all happened in a flash. This boy had taken her doll, the one her mother bought her and ran through the dog hole, out to the world she had never seen.
What was she going to do? She had never gone out before, what if she got lost? No! Now wasn't the time to think, it was time to catch the doll thief.
So what if she had never gone out, there's a first time for everything.