Elara:
Coming home from school, I carefully placed my award on the mantlepiece in the living room. Looking at it, I allowed myself a small smile, remembering the days and nights of hard work that had gone into earning it. For a fleeting moment, I wondered if today might finally be the day I’d make my father proud.
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Mother would have been.
Later, at the dining table, I decided to tell him. My heart raced as I took a deep breath, trying to steady my nerves.
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“Father,” I began, my voice trembling slightly. “I won the National Science Shield today. It’s for my project on renewable energy solutions. It’s on the mantlepiece in the living room.” My pulse quickened as I waited for his reaction.
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Father glanced up, his expression unreadable. He took a sip of wine, then shrugged. “Oh.”
I froze. ‘Oh.’ That’s it?
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He took another sip, barely looking at me. “When did you even have time for that?”
I felt my chest tighten, my throat constricting. How could I respond to that? The words I wanted to say screamed in my mind: After Mother divorced you, you never gave me an ounce of attention. Leon has always been your entire world. Leon this, Leon that. It’s not like I even exist.
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But all I managed was a quiet, “I’ve made time.”
He gave a vague nod and turned back to his plate, as though the conversation were over. “Good for you, I guess. Did you even mention it to me?”
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Before I could answer, Leon cut in, his voice casual. “Hey, do you think the lighting in the living room needs adjusting? It’s been kind of dim lately,” he said, barely looking up from his phone. “It’s hard to read in there. It would really help.”
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He spoke as though his lighting problem was the most pressing issue at the table, more important than anything I had to say.
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Father brightened, a smile crossing his face which I had never seen on his face while adressing me. “What an outstanding observation, son! You’d make a great heir one day.”
I gripped the edge of my plate, heat rising in my face. ‘Great heir??Great heir! Here I am winning national-level awards, and HE would make a great heir?!’
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I didn't say anything. I didn't want to risk making him mad, especially since I was a child guessing my moves in a game of an adult. I was the pawn he was the queen. I vowed to myself that one day I would be the queen and he would be the pawn, at my mercy.
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Returning to my room, on the mantlepiece I saw the award that I put so much effort into achieving. Looking at it I had the strange desire to pick it up and smash it into the ground. Those sleepless nights, hours of research all, for nothing.
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I wondered why I wasn't in Mother's custody. She gave me the attention I wanted, needed and deserved. I doubted if Father would have even known (or even cared) if I didn't come back to his house from school. I doubted if I could ever be perfect enough for his liking. In the next room, I overheard him talking on the phone.
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"Appearances matter Ellen– and goodness knows how much she helps with that,"
I instantly recognized the voice on the phone.
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"Valmount, please," Mother was on the verge of tears.
"I said enough is enough!" he boomed.
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Quickly I ran up to my room. In there out of breath I dove into bed and hid under the covers, his words echoing in my head I need to use her for making me look good. So that's what I am to him? A lousy waste of space? All my life I had tried my best to impress him, to make him proud.
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I just needed to do more.
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and then Add to home screen.