A Fresh Start

Victoria was shocked to see her mother and sister at the door of her apartment. "Mom, Adrian, what are you doing here?" she asked. "Valerie, you're here too? I wasn't expecting you." She looked at all of them in surprise.

"Same thing, what are you doing outside your house?" Her mom asked sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

Victoria was taken aback by her mother's sarcastic comment. "Well, you're not the only one who can be sarcastic, you know," she said with a smirk. She turned to unlock the door. As she did, she heard her brother say, "Let me help you with that." He reached for the bag of groceries in her hands. She let him take it, grateful for the help. "Thanks, Adrian," she said.

'Penny isn't home,' Victoria thought. The fact that the door was locked must mean no one was home. She remembered that before she left, Penny had been fast asleep in the living room. Now the apartment was quiet and empty.

As they all stepped into the apartment, Adrian sniffed the air. "Mmm, it smells like chocolate in here," he said. Victoria smiled. "That's probably because Penny might have been baking earlier," she said. " She spoke about baking being her favorite thing to do on a free afternoon."

Everyone turned to look at Victoria. They were all waiting for her to answer their question. "Who's Penny?" they all asked at the same time.

Victoria looked a little startled. She felt a little awkward having everyone's eyes on her. She started to explain. "Penny is someone I met a few weeks ago. She's having some trouble at home, so she's staying with me for a while.' She could feel their eyes on her. Then she added, "She's just a little girl, about 8 to 9 years old. At least she doesn't act so childish like Valerie."

Valerie's ears perked up at what Victoria said. Victoria's words were sharp and accusatory, and they made Valerie feel defensive. "What do you mean by that?" she asked, her annoyance clear in her tone.

Victoria rolled her eyes and said, "I mean, you're acting like a child. Grow up."

This made Valerie even more irritated, and she snapped back, "I'm not acting like a child. You're just being rude."

Victoria was used to Valerie's quick temper, so she simply chose to ignore her sister's outburst. Instead, she turned to her brother and mother, who were both busy with their own tasks. She asked them, "What about Dad? How's he doing over there?"

Their mother looked up from the bag she was packing and said, "He's doing just fine. Valerie is going back to him today, you know he can't be alone."

Valerie huffed and crossed her arms, feeling annoyed that her mother was treating her like a child. Valerie, still feeling annoyed, interjected, "But before I go, I'm going to have to take a tour of this town to see what my sister saw in it that made her decide to stay here." She was speaking with a hint of sarcasm, and Victoria rolled her eyes in response.

"What about Adrian?" Victoria asked their mother. "Is he staying here too?"

Their mother nodded her head. "Yes, he's been accepted into the same college where you graduated from, and he's starting there in the fall." "It's a great school," their mother added.

Victoria nodded her head in understanding, and then her brother, Adrian, abruptly stood up and headed into the kitchen. Victoria looked back at her mother and asked, "Mom, if you, Adrian, and I are all staying here, may I ask why you all decided to come and stay with me?" She spoke softly, not wanting to anger her mother with her question. She knew it was a difficult and painful topic for her.

Her mother paused for a moment, collecting her thoughts. Struggling to control her temper, moved toward her daughter and slapped her hard on the back. But Victoria didn't react the way her mother expected. Rather than flinching or showing pain, she merely stared back at her mother defiantly.

This enraged her mother even more, and she struck Victoria a second time. But still, Victoria refused to show any pain. Her mother was furious that her daughter wasn't playing along, and she demanded, "Why aren't you showing any pain?"

Victoria bit her lip to keep from crying out, and feigned a pained expression. "Ow!" she said, hoping to satisfy her mother's anger. But her mother saw through the act and hit her again, even harder. Victoria was surprised by her own resilience, but she continued to play along.

Suddenly, the door opened and a little girl entered the room. "Hello!" she said, smiling at the unfamiliar faces. It was Penny.

Valerie let out a snort and looked Penny up and down, taking her in. "Penny, huh?" she said, a smirk playing on her lips. "She looks like a gullible kid," she said, addressing her mother and ignoring Penny's presence.

"You're six or seven years older than she is. You're also a kid, Valerie," Victoria continued, trying to assert that her seniority over Penny wasn't really so big.

Penny wasn't fazed. "Yes, I am Penny," she said, standing up straight and looking Valerie in the eye. "Is there a problem?" she asked. Everyone was gobsmacked at her boldness. It was actually not so easy to find a girl who could match up to Valerie's attitude.

As Penny stood up to Valerie, Adrian walked out of the kitchen, munching on the bag of chips he'd been snacking on. Penny looked at him, aghast. "Oh my gosh!" she cried, pointing at the chips in his hand. "You're eating my chips?" She rushed toward him, but he didn't budge, unsure of what to do. Valerie just watched, smirking as Penny confronted her senior brother.

Adrian didn't know what to do. He couldn't tell if Penny was serious or just messing with him. He didn't know if he should apologize or just offer her some of his chips.

Victoria rolled her eyes and walked away, tired of the antics of her younger siblings. She went into her room and reflected on the day's events, which had been more chaotic than usual but not as sad as the past days.

As Victoria reflected on the day's events, she was struck by a strange memory. She remembered being hit by a motorcycle and her mother, but she couldn't recall feeling any pain. In fact, she couldn't recall feeling any pain from any of her mother's beatings. Even when her mother's hands were hot with anger, she didn't feel anything.

She wondered if she was numb to pain, or if something else was going on. Victoria was still reeling from the strange memory, but she put it out of her mind when she heard a knock on her door. It was her mother, who entered the room and asked if she was okay.

Victoria nodded and said she was fine, but her mother looked concerned. "You called us last night and you didn't sound okay," she said. "That's why we decided to come today."

Victoria's eyes widened in surprise. "I did?" she asked. "I don't remember calling anyone." she said, still trying to wrap her head around the situation. "Are you sure it was me?"

Before Victoria could speak further, she felt a sharp sting on her cheek. Her mom had hit her yet again. She raised her hand to her face and felt no pain, only confusion. She looked up at her mother, who was staring back at her, her expression unreadable.

Then her brother, Adrian, rushed into the room and sat down beside her, his hand resting on her shoulder. "Are you okay?" he asked, his voice laced with concern. Victoria opened her mouth to speak, but she wasn't sure what to say.

A memory flashed through Victoria's mind, and she suddenly remembered what she had been doing the night before. She had gone to the beach, then to the lighthouse. After that, she had come home and gone to sleep. But she had not called anyone. It was all very strange.

Then her brother spoke up again. "You sounded so upset," he said. "Did your boyfriend leave you or something? Did you lose your job?"

Victoria couldn't help but furrow her brows. 'I'm not sure where you're getting this from, I didn't call anyone last night.' she wanted to say.

Instead of trying to explain herself, Victoria decided to take a different approach. She looked up at her mother and said, "I'm so happy you're here." She turned to her brother and gave him a hug.

She decided to focus on the positive and try to enjoy their visit. After all, they were her family, and she loved them, even if they had been out of touch for a while. In this moment, she felt a glimmer of hope in her sad life.

She had not seen to her family since her graduation. She had never gone home to visit, and she had lost touch with her loved ones for over months. She wondered why she had let this happen. Was it because she was preoccupied with a man who she thought loved her? Was that man even worth it? No, he wasn't.

As Victoria was lost in thought and the deep moment, a notification popped up on her laptop. Before she could check it, her brother, Adrian, was already across the room, looking at the screen. He read for a few minutes, and then his face lit up. "Victoria!" he exclaimed, "You just got accepted! You just got a job!" He paused, then added, "And they want you to come in for an interview tomorrow!"

Victoria's eyes widened in disbelief. "What? Are you serious?" she asked. Adrian nodded, grinning from ear to ear.

Victoria, her brother, and her mother were caught up in the moment, celebrating the good news. But they had forgotten about Penny, and Valerie who were both still standing in the living room, glaring at each other. It was clear they disliked each other for no reason.