Chapter 5
There were three days off before the college entrance exam. I reluctantly returned home.
To create a good study environment for Olivia, my dad and Bella tiptoed around like cats.
Olivia was a poor student. She sat at her desk either spacing out or chewing on her pen, frowning.
I couldn’t be bothered with these people. I just sat cross-legged on my floor mat and read.
No matter what happened, once the exam was over, this family would have little to do with me.
Two days later, the night before the exam.
As if summoned by fate, I woke up in the middle of the night. A huge shadow inches away startled me!
Olivia was standing next to my floor mat, holding a kettle of water motionless in both hands.
I shot up…
“What are you doing?”
Olivia let out a piercing scream, as if she was the one who had been frightened.
A large kettle of freshly boiled water splashed towards my face. I instinctively pulled up the blanket to shield myself…
This was my first time in a hospital since 2008.
My dad brought me. Bella stayed home to comfort the “traumatized” Olivia.
My forehead, face and hands all had varying degrees of burns.
What do burns feel like?
It’s like the flesh under a thin layer of skin has been scalded and cooked. It’s a constant, unrelenting pain that no nerves can block out. You can’t sleep, and it’s a living hell! Even with my writing skills, I still can’t fully describe it.
The doctor told me I needed to be hospitalized immediately.
I refused. I still had to take the exam. This was the biggest turning point in my life, and I couldn’t miss it.
The doctor shook his head as he prescribed burn cream and antibiotics, telling me to be very careful these two days and not let the skin break, to avoid infection.
Afterwards, on the way home, my dad impatiently said: “Why did you provoke her in the middle of the night?”
I was already in pain, plus I was anxious and worried about not getting enough rest affecting the exam tomorrow. On top of that, years of pent-up resentment finally burst out. My temper flared up like a volcano erupting. Standing on the empty street, I shouted: “How did I provoke her? I was sound asleep, how could I have provoked her?”
“Dad, your favoritism is too much! That kettle in our house had just boiled water! She was trying to kill me!!!”
“People in hell always try their best to drag others down with them!”
My dad slapped me across the face.
I was stunned.
The burn layered with the slap, and I was in so much pain I could barely breathe. Tears streamed down my face uncontrollably.
I was just a child no one cared about. In the eyes of my dad and my birth mom, I was always unwanted…
I kept thinking over and over:
That year, when my mom snatched away the $300 I had stolen and told me to get lost, why didn’t I just die? All these years, why did I fight so hard to stay alive?
My trembling hand touched my face. The burning, stinging areas had indeed broken skin.
My dad didn’t continue scolding me. He turned and walked towards home, and I silently followed behind him.
That night, the moon was high, clear and bright.
The shadows were long.
I didn’t sleep at home.
I took my exam admission ticket, packed my bag and left.
I didn’t have money for a hotel, so I found some steps outside the exam school and sat there all night, hugging my knees with my eyes closed.
The next day, exam takers started arriving early.
I didn’t want to move at all. Exhaustion swept over my whole body, and my mind was foggy.
“Zoe Parker!”