An array of colorful balloons and streamers adorned the boring beige walls of the place that used to feel like home. Everything was supposed to be perfect today, but they just had to ruin another good thing didn’t they?
Though the emotion on my face was false, I solely focused on trying to keep the atmosphere lively. This was supposed to be Emma’s 7th birthday after all, everything needed to be ‘perfect.’
“Why don’t you finish your cake, baby?” I asked her, a smile on my lips masking the mob of emotions crawling beneath my skin, threatening to burst out any moment.
She looked down at the homemade pastry I made displayed in front of her. It was a double-layered chocolate cake topped with lemon-flavored frosting and rainbow sprinkles.
“I…I don’t think I’m hungry anymore, Teddy…”
My gaze slowly shifted to the state of the living room, where my parents’ voices clashed like warring titans. Remnants of the once vibrant party lingered like ghosts. It felt barren, just like this household. I feel as if only me and Emma were the only living occupants. The atmosphere within the air, caused by their latest argument, felt like a thousand small knives were piercing my flesh.
Dad was nowhere to be seen, probably off sulking in his car at God knows where. And I had a pretty good guess on where Mom was. The kitchen fridge was unceremoniously yanked open, a bottle of whiskey missing from one of the shelves.
‘Typical of her.’
I thought bitterly. Once upon a time, I gazed at that woman with eyes full of love, the woman who carried me for nine months and cradled me in her arms when I was born. But where was that woman now? The one who used to sing me lullabies and comfort me whenever I had nightmares?
Now, she was a shell of her former self, engaged in pointless heated screaming matches with my father, and eloping around with random men, drowning her sorrows in whiskey trying to find a sliver of salvation at the bottom of a bottle of Jack Daniel’s.
And my father, a man who was far too lenient for his own good. He should have ended this god-forsaken marriage years ago instead of putting up with my mother’s bullshit and trying to salvage and fix whatever he could from whatever was left of their relationship. If he had done just that, then maybe he might have saved me years of frustration and tears.
My parents were truly stupid.
“Mommy’s angry.”
“She’s always like that. C’mon, let’s get you to bed, you can open your presents in the morning,” I picked her up and carried her over my shoulder, gently rubbing circles on her lower back in an attempt to ease the weight, caused by our mother’s nonsense, on her tiny shoulders.
“But I’m not sleepy~” she yawned.
“Well that yawn says differently, little lady,” I chuckled.
After ascending the stairs, we make our way to Emma’s bedroom. I pause every now and then in my tracks, as I take in the plethora of various photographs decorating the walls—each portrait depicting the olden days, when things didn’t turn to shit.
In my hometown, happy families went camping. Once upon a time, we were them. Swimming in the sea, eating ice cream together.
She ruined everything…
I pause in my tracks as I stand before our parents’ bedroom. My eyes linger at the drunk form of my mother sprawled out on the bed holding a bottle of whiskey, muttering a string of incoherent nonsense. At that moment, the crawling sensation returned, as if invisible insects sought refuge beneath my skin threatening to dig themselves further beneath my flesh. I feel myself sinking, the floor giving in and turning into sand, threatening to devour me whole.
Just what was this feeling? Grief? Melancholy?
No. It was something else. This feeling, beyond grief or melancholy, lingered—an ominous presence.
I placed Emma gently down on her bed, the room embraced us in a quiet, yet comforting stillness. Brushing away a few strands of her hair, I observed my sister’s peaceful slumber, a bittersweet smile dancing on my lips, knowing that, for now, she was safely taken by the sweet yet tranquilizing embrace of sleep whisked her away to a realm of magic and dreams. A realm where she was safe from the poison that had slithered itself in, and corroded our family, our stronghold.
Tenderly, I kissed her forehead before quietly tiptoeing out of the room to avoid disrupting her sleep.
Once again, I found myself in the halls, surrounded by those portraits that seemed to taunt me whenever I looked. Before I knew it, I found myself in front of the window, staring at the black abyss from beyond. The abyss stared back. It seemed to possess a voice of its own as it spoke to me.
Surely, you have a solution to your problem?
“I do.”
But you’re too scared to go through with it?
“I am…”
Then you know what needs to be done.
“…I will.”
That woman—no, that thing is an imposter. That is not the mother I know, but a parasite wearing her skin. Somehow, it had snuck into our home, replaced my mother, and had been slowly sucking away our lives ever since.
It caused my father insurmountable grief, my sister a great deal of sorrow, and forced me to be the parent for her sake. Something needed to be done, and I was beginning to build up the strength to do it. My sister deserved a true mother, and I, a life beyond this abyss.
As quiet as an imp, I descended downstairs to the kitchen. Doubt began to seep into my thoughts, but I quickly brushed them away. My eyes, once more, shifted to the barren living room, Dad still hadn’t come back.
‘Good.’
I thought to myself. This would make things slightly easier.
I entered the dimly lit kitchen and made my way around the island, my hand glided across the smooth granite surface. My eyes wandered for a bit, till my attention was caught by a glimmer—the light bouncing off a tool’s cold steel.
My hand reached out and grasped it by its handle, the feeling of wood and dread seeping into my palm. I stare at my reflection in the lustrous blade, it stared back with equal tension. The voice of my conscience grew louder and more desperate with every step I took.
But I ignored it, despite the protest of my conscience, my body seemingly moved on its own. I sauntered up the stairs, gripping the weapon tightly in my hand. My eyes deceived me, as I began seeing shadows dancing along the walls, mocking me as I passed by.
Eventually, I found myself hovering over the creature occupying my parents’ bed, still in its drunken state. My heart felt like it was about to burst, insects and worms wildly thrashing around from underneath my skin. My eyes glared at it as it slept, fervor building up in my stomach.
I could feel the warm liquid dripping from my fist as I clutched the knife with strength I never knew I possessed, the faint sound of small droplets of crimson splattering on the floor felt like an echo in the silent room.
Seconds passed, they felt like eternity. Mustering every bit of courage I had, I slowly raised the blade above my head. The creature stirred, I wavered, my breathing shaky, hot tears streamed down my face and splashed onto the floor.
With a mighty yell, I slammed the blade down on the creature’s chest, jolting it awake. Its features twist in horror at the sight of the knife embedded in its chest. A deafening scream of terror and anguish reverberated in the room, a haunting cacophony of pain and fear that had been suppressed for far too long echoed throughout the house. Its eyes locked unto mine.
Panicking, I grabbed a nearby pillow and hastily pressed it against its face, muffling its screams. It thrashed around wildly, desperately trying to fight me off. Gritting my teeth, I grasped the knife once more, pulling it out, before slamming it down once again, this time I aimed for its stomach.
The imposter’s thrashing became even more violent, more unhinged. It swiped at my face, disorienting me, I hissed in pain at the intense stinging sensation on my right cheek. Still disoriented, I pulled out the knife once again and slammed it down in a random direction.
The room echoed with muffled screams that intensified in volume, pain, and the sickening sound of the blade penetrating flesh.
I repeat the action again, then again, then again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again, and again and again and again and again and again and againandagainA̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶̶͍̝̻̹̿̀̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚ ̶̻̹̅Ą̶̤̜͍̗̔g̷̱͍̳̑a̶̮̠͉̍͝ḭ̸̳̦͎̓n̶͍̝̿̀A̵͕͐́͠n̸̢̝̈́̏͝d̶̘͍̈́̄̓̚
I stop.
My breathing was ragged, my body and clothes were bathed in sweat and blood. My eyes felt like empty sockets as I stared at the sanguinary corpse of the creature that was mimicking my mother. Crimson stained the sheets and walls, its lifeless gaze was still locked onto mine.
My body refused to move from its position as I was frozen in disbelief, the cold metal drenched in dark crimson slipped from my grasp and fell to the ground with a clang. Minutes felt like hours as I began to grapple with the weight of my actions.
I felt a strange mix of numbness and satisfaction. The bitch was gone, dead, and removed from our lives. But, why did I feel the sudden growing sensation of dread from within my chest?
After what felt like an eternity, I left my parents’ room, leaving behind the carnage in my wake as I slowly strode to Emma’s room. The shadows in the halls seemed to be long gone, and so was the feeling of bugs underneath my skin. A trail of scarlet marked my path with every step I took, a soft serene smile formed on my face as I neared my sister’s room.
Quietly opening the door, I cautiously glanced inside. She remained deeply asleep, somehow unaffected by the chaos that had unfolded in our parents’ room. Disregarding my disheveled appearance—my body and clothes drenched in blood from head to toe—I approached her bed.
My smile broadened at the sight of my baby sister, peacefully lost in the realm of dreams, a sweet smile gracing her lips. I found myself pondering the nature of her dreams—what delightful fantasies danced in her slumber?
My hand extended gently to pet her soft hair—inadvertently leaving a trace of red imprints. She stirred adorably in her sleep, deep in the embrace of sleep. I continued, tenderly playing with her hair while softly crooning a lullaby.
“You are my sunshine
My only sunshine…”
Eager to share the tranquility of the moment, I nestled beside her—staining the sheets red in the process. My focus was solely locked on her innocent visage, as I carried on with the melody of the song. Inhaling deeply, my nose took in the sweet and enchanting aroma that emanated from her, an essence that added a layer of magic to the intimate scene.
“You make me happy
When skies are gray…”
Emma, my Emma. You are my joy, the sun that brightens my darkest days. I loved you from the moment you entered this world. Your laughter became the melody of my heart, and your presence, a ray of innocence and affection.
“You’ll never know, dear
How much I love you
Please don’t take
My sunshine away”
I feel my eyes getting heavy, and my mind drifting, as the soothing allure of sleep, as well as my sister’s presence, slowly lull me to the land of dreams. The unsettling reality that there was a corpse in my parents’ room faded into the background of my drowsy consciousness as I snuggled closer to Emma.
Nothing will ever take you away from me.