Holly was just a kid at the time, only six years old in fact, when her father's habit of partying started to get out of hand. The commotion from down the hall kept her awake long after she was supposed to be asleep.
A couple hours past midnight, the noise died down. Holly's throat was painfully dry, so she got up and slowly creeked her bedroom door open. There were people scattered across the floor sleeping in the strangest positions. Holly's heart began to beat faster. There were empty and broken bottles strewed across the hall to her father's library, and the wall was stained with an unknown substance.
Suddenly, a man lying on the ground grabbed Holly's ankle.
"Daddy, help!" She screamed desperately.
The man wailed and dragged Holly to the floor, then suddenly a kick was swiftly delivered to the man's face. It was Steven, Holly's older brother.
"You okay?" Steven held out his hand to help Holly up.
"Y-yeah… Thanks."
"Don't sweat it."
The siblings barged into their father's library, where he liked to spend his alone time. He was sitting drinking at his desk next to the fireplace.
"Dad, what the hell are you doing! Holly was just attacked by one of your guests! This is no place for Her! She's not safe!" Steven shouted at his father Christopher.
"Steven… come here." Christopher slowly beckened his son towards him.
Steven creeped his way over, and then his father viciously smashed his head into the desk. A tooth falling out of his bloody mouth.
"This is my house… and you live here without paying a dime. Who are you to tell me how to raise my own daughter, you ungrateful brat!" Christopher yelled, "Now if you know what's good for you, you'll go back to your room!"
Steven stopped and glanced over at his sister. She was trembling. His eyes sunk and then he walked out to hall, closing the door behind him.
Christopher stood up and walked over to Holly.
"Don't worry about him." Christopher squeezed his daughter in his arms, " he's a young man. And my successor. He's got a lot to learn if he wants to take over the company one day. Like how to get people to stay in line. You know, your mom has only stayed with me as long as she has because I'm firm with her. If you guide people and show them what they're good for, you'll have them right in the palm of your hand. Now let's get you back to bed."
Now, an adult Holly sat in her car looking up the hill towards her father's photogenic house. You'd almost forget the man living there was a waste of oxygen. She climbed out of her car and slammed the door behind her.
The line to get in extended for what felt like miles. Christopher stood at the door greeting every guest with a pristine smile. Holly couldn't breathe. She started feeling dizzy. Like everything and everyone around her was spinning. Desperately, she found herself gasping for air.
"Hey!"
A young blonde man in a light blue suit darted to meet Holly's confused gaze.
"It's okay… breathe. Everything's gonna be okay…" the man said gently as Holly's breathing normalized, "Do you need anything? I can help. Whatever you need."
"Thanks… but… I'm… uh… good…"
Holly turned around and strolled towards the house embarrassed. Once she got into the party, she nervously made her way to the multitude of food set out for the guests to feast on. There she found some muskmellon to munch on. However, her favorite food was ineffective at easing her nerves.
"What do we have here?" Christopher jested while walking up to his daughter with slick back hair and a well tailored maroon suit, "Honey, you really should eat with a little more tact, my shareholders are watching. And you wouldn't want to disrespect poor Steven would you?"
Holly's heart sunk.
"What… does this have to do with Steven?" Holly asked.
"Don't you remember, sweetie? It's the anniversary of your brother's death." Christopher said with a hollow voice.
"What? That's not today. That's not for a couple mon-"
"Holly Vanderlile! You forgot the date of your brother's death? I raised you better than this!" Christopher sighed, "It's okay, though. I forgive you. And I'm sure Steven would too…Alright, I'll be right back I have someone I'd like you to meet."
After her father left, Holly noticed the beautiful sound of a piano. It had been playing this whole time, but she didn't pay mind to it. But for just a second she couldn't ignore it. It was playing Steven's favorite song. A song called "tomorrow's winter". For a second, Holly's heart was melted and she remembered staying up late listening to her older brother try and fail repeatedly to play all of the notes correctly. He never did get to the point where he could.
Holly's father came back with a man in a light blue suit. The same man that helped Holly outside.
"This is Evan! I'm sure the two of you will really hit it off! I've got important business to attend to. Ta! Ta! " Christopher said before making his way over to a table packed with investors.
"Hey, you doing okay?" Evan asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Holly replied.