XXIV

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“Mar, have you had dinner tonight?” her mother, Maggie's silken voice came through the phone as Emerald grabbed the milk carton from the refrigerator.

Almost as if the guilt ate into her, she blinked rapidly a couple times before clearing her throat, unsure of whether to tell her mother that she was just about to eat dinner at past 10p.m at night or that she would only be consuming a few of her famous baked goods accompanied by a glass of cold milk.

Her mother had a strict rule against eating late at night, eating measly or insubstantial amount of meals and most importantly, not eating anything at all.

Emerald knew that this rule was made the utmost prioritized law in her mother's constitution all because of her. She remembered how she had made herself suffer from the bottomless contrition that had devoured her soul at such a young age.

She remembered all