Page 235 of Obsession

Amanda Wrise.

My mother.

A promiscuous woman.

She slept with my father the same night they met. A drunken, unknown client who forgot to use protection and gave her an unwanted pregnancy.

I punched the mirror and screamed in rage.

The proof that someone was really messing with me. Proof that the universe had a really fucked-up sense of humor was Amber. Of all the girls in this damn world, she had to be my stepsister.

I wanted to leave, to disappear, to never see anyone again.

Every single person I trusted and loved was destroying my life. My father was the last person in the world I trusted, and now I realized that he had lied to me even more than my mother.

I stepped out of the jet of water and stared at myself in the color-stained mirror. My face had stained black too, and I began rubbing furiously with a towel over my skin, reddening the spots and causing an unpleasant burning sensation. The hair dye had reached some of my cuts and the pain was excruciating as the abrasions now looked like tattoos.

My hand hurt a lot too, even though I hadn’t broken the mirror. I was in the same situation as Harris, my knuckles bruised from uncontrollable rage.

I looked at the pale, emotionally drained face in the mirror.

The black hair completely changed my features. I looked more mature, whereas the blonde had given me a more childlike expression.

It was much darker than my natural hair color and much darker than the chocolate brown color my mother had. None of this detracted from the unmistakable resemblance between the two of us, a resemblance that was enhanced by the dark color.

At least that was me. The real me, and I would never change anything about myself to avoid looking like someone else.

I left the bathroom with my hair still dripping. As it was a cheap box dye, it was still dripping black even after four washes.

I went to my room with the thought of changing and leaving this house that I wouldn’t be returning to anytime soon. I paused when I spotted a large cardboard box next to the bed.

I walked towards it and picked up the envelope that was attached to it. I gulped and felt myself getting dizzy when I realized it was from my mother.

Angrily, I tore open the envelope, curious to see what she had to say.

What she had to say now.

My father hadn’t told me that I had received a package from her. Of course he had other things on his mind.

I thought it was another apology letter, and I wasn’t prepared for such a shock. I whimpered as I took out a thick paper that was nothing more than a wedding invitation.

This couldn’t be real. She couldn’t have sent me something like this.

The colors varied between silver, black and a little red.

The illustration was a snake winding around some roses, without their names, just the message:

You are invited to our wedding.

My God!

I started to breathe normally, unfolded the letter and began to read it…

My dear Katy,

I know that you hate me and that you no longer think of me as your mother. These are the things that tear my soul apart, and I wish you would have just given me a few minutes and listened, but you rejected me, and I can’t blame you. I can’t turn back time, but every living second breaks me because of the hatred you have for me.

Maybe you think I never loved you, but you know that’s not true, Katherine. You were, are, and always will be the most beautiful thing that has ever happened to me.

---