Four Years Ago
Lillian's heart still fluttered with the remnants of stolen moments, her boyfriend's gentle touch lingering on her skin like the last traces of a dream. The evening had been a rare escape, a fleeting respite from the harsh reality that awaited her at home.
The journey back had been bittersweet. Josh had driven slowly, stretching each second, neither wanting the night to end. The car had stopped a block away from her house, the engine's hum fading into the silence of the late hour. Under the darkness, he had kissed her softly, a promise of safety and love.
"I have to go" he groaned at those words.
"Stay with me tonight, you can say you slept at a friend's"
I rolled my eyes at that, "Yeah right, according to my mom I don't have friends… just her" she reluctantly slipped out of the car.
Sneaking through her bedroom window had become a practiced routine, a necessary skill in a life ruled by her mother's iron fist. But tonight, the darkness felt heavier, the air thick with foreboding. As Lillian carefully eased the window shut behind her, the familiar creak seemed louder than usual, a harbinger of what awaited inside.
The room, normally her small haven, felt like a trap. Her mother stood in the doorway, eyes gleaming with anger. The silence between them was thick and oppressive, like the calm before a storm. Lillian's heart pounded in her chest as she prepared for the onslaught, the warm glow of her evening already fading to a distant memory.
"Mom… I-" her words were cut short with a slap across her face. "Mama, I'm-" and then another on the other cheek.
"Did you seriously think I wouldn't find out!? How long has this been going on?"
"He is a friend, I promise"
"YOU DON'T HAVE FRIENDS!" she screamed into my ear. "How many times do I have to say that? To beat it into you!" I whimpered at her harsh tone.
"I am sorry" the traitorous tears already started a free fall.
She roamed around the room with her hand on her temple, already anticipating the incoming headache. "You always make this hard for me" she spoke, her voice filled with sympathy as she raised her hand once more.
"Kristen" the voice of my father from the bedroom door was my saving grace, hopefully for a while longer.
"She went out- your daughter went out to see a boy to do only God knows what" she threw her hands in the air.
"A word Kristen" he beckoned her to the corridor and closed the door, snippets of their conversation managed to slip past.
"You are taking this too far, she is eighteen now, do you want her to run away again?"
"She needs to obey instructions" They continued on arguing concerning me and finally it died down and I was left for the night. I shakily let out my breath that I was holding. This isn't the end, I know she will find a way to punish me in the morning.
* * * * *
In the pale light of dawn, Lillian stood in the middle of her bedroom with a packed suitcase. She ran the scene over an over again in her head, trying to convince herself that this is for her good.
Her phone lighted up with a text from Josh, signifying he within the neighborhood. "I can't do this anymore"
She opened the door to be met with her cruel mother's face. "What is the meaning of this?" she questioned once she spotted the case.
"I am leaving mother, I can't do this anymore"
"I am going to pretend this little outburst did not just happen, now, come along for your performance train- No" I stood my ground and refused. "You are throwing your life away for some boy?" she yelled.
"This is my life, I can decide what to do with it, and for the record he is not some boy, Josh cares about me way more than you or dad ever did" she closed the distance and slapped me clean across the face.
"I have sacrificed everything for you and your dream, is this how you repay me? Repay us!?" she looked at me with eyes full of anger, disappointment and resentment.
"It was never my dream mother, it was yours, you did this for yourself, you want someone to carry on your legacy after you, but no matter how hard I try, they never call my name, they always call yours" I grabbed my backpack and suitcase. "I'm going to live my life the way I want it, I will no longer sit in your shadow regretting never making a move"
I gripped my case handle hauled them out of the house, past her husband that was also telling at me to stay. Josh, my boyfriend, parked his car right out my house and helped me load my things to his trunk.
"Are you sure?" he asked me and I nodded my head with an assured smile.
"What lies have you fed her!" my mom yelled at him but I told him to ignore her.
"Thank you for looking after me all this time" I bowed my head, "But I'll take it from here"
She entered his car and faced tomorrow. In the side mirror, my parents stood at the threshold of her childhood home, a place that had never truly been a sanctuary. Shadows of memories flitted around her, whispers of fifteen long years filled with mental and physical torment. Her mother's exploitative hands had shaped her existence, but they could not crush her spirit.
With one last glance at the crumbling facade that had confined her, Lillian stepped into a future she would craft with her own hands.