Chapter 15

She took the vacuum cleaner from behind the stairs and cleaned the house from top to bottom without entering the bedroom, and then mopped the floor. The house is big to clean for just one person; obviously, it would take a few hours to completely clean the house. It was better to avoid any scenes because when she remembered being seventeen, she was sitting in her room when her aunt barged in, claiming that I stole nana’s favorite jewel.

I denied that I only entered her room to clean, but she was already rummaging around my shabby things until she pulled out a necklace. It was really eye-catching. When I tried to explain further, my aunt gave me a sound slap that made me think I was seeing stars. She asked nana to bring a belt, and after a while, my cousin was back with a black leather belt and handed it to my aunt. Seeing it, my body involuntarily shivered. She waved the belt in front of me, saying, “I already warned you to enjoy what you have been given but do not covet more than that.”

"But my dear niece, don’t you always like to listen to what I say?" she said in a singsong manner, as if she was eager to cause blemishes on my skin with that belt. She raised the belt and started hitting me, leaving my pathetic self on the floor writhing and sobbing in pain. After she was done, she left feeling quite refreshed, as if she had just vented her anger.

From that moment on, she decided to avoid entering any bedrooms because she had ignored the person who framed her until now, and it didn’t awaken her curiosity. If she had to follow her hunch, it was Nana who framed her, and her aunt used that moment to pour out her emotions, as she enjoys seeing my battered body or seeing me cry.

With a shrug, she chased away her dark thoughts. Having them in mind would not help her at all, so why must she bring down her mood? She picked up the edge of her dress and wiped away the sweat. After the chores, she placed her materials back behind the stairs and pulled out her phone. It was already six minutes past four. She walked to the kitchen; the aroma of the food wafted in her nose, making her almost salivate.

She didn’t know following the steps on that video made her first try a success. She was all ears, grinning with satisfaction. She picked up a bowl from among the other utensils carefully arranged in the cupboard, serving herself a generously filled dish to satisfy her hunger since she hadn't eaten breakfast.

When she was done serving her food, she took it to her bedroom and placed it on the little table. She undressed herself and headed to the bathroom to cleanse herself. She then wore a dress and headed for the table. The more she approached, the more eager she was to eat. She picked up the spoon nearby and took a bite. Her expression brightened, and her eyes almost teared up, making it difficult to know what brought the reaction - either because the food was super delicious or because she got to taste real food since breakfast. She wolfed down the whole bowl and still looked eager to get another taste of it, but she took her bowl to the kitchen, rinsed it, and placed it back inside the cupboard.

She returned to her bedroom and went straight to the window because it faced the road. She observed how bustling the streets were, considering that it was almost night. Her eyes caught three black cars passing horizontally, and she stared aimlessly at their disappearing figures.