One

It was surprising.

It was really amazing how a visit to a hardly frequented salon could change one's appearance. Anna could not stop admiring and wondering as her eyes momentarily caught her image in the standing mirror.

She totally looked like someone else. The skillful mix of black and ombre in her shoulder length hair made her look like she came out of a teenage model magazine.

She loved it.

“Anna.” A knock followed the familiar masculine voice that called her.

“Dad.” Anna didn’t back away from the standing mirror. She actually didn’t wish to turn, she already knew what he was about to rant about. 

A heavy sigh intruded the heavy air and Anna braced herself for the repetitive lecture on how it is very foolish of her to resign for her good paying job to start over at some institution.

“Have you gotten your suit from Josh?”

“Uh?” The woman who was already leaning towards the decision of snapping at her father’s lecture had her head swinging towards the alternative entrance to her room which was specifically in the attic of their simple, modern bungalow.

Her father, who had grown more older features over the year in a way that saddened Anna, pocketed his hands into his faded black shorts. “You are resuming work tomorrow, you should sleep early.”

“But-”

“I know…” His eyes wore a look that made her heart squeeze. “I have realized I can’t stop you, so the best I can do is wish you all the best.”

Anna’s legs finally left the fixed position it wanted to stick to and she walked towards her father who was passing to her, a warm smile. 

“Dad…” Like a toddler, she spread her arms and rushed into her father, engulfing him in a wide hug, getting a rare chuckle from the man who stood few inches shorter than her. 

“I am glad,” Anna muttered delightfully, her head leaning on his broad shoulders.

“Just be careful.” His hand rested on the back of her head in a fatherly manner and she could not help a cheerful tug of her lips. 

“I will be Dad. I will.” Anna, whose eyes kept darting to and fro soon had her eyes landing on the very picture she found hectic to look at and she felt suddenly weighed down. “I miss her. I am doing this for her.”

Anna had intended those words to be a confirmative whisper within her, but her father heard anyway.

“She would not want you doing this.” The man’s voice also seemed heavy as he released his daughter whose eyes made sure to evade his. “But I can see your mind is made up.” 

Daniel Hendrick who was no doubt her best friend as much he was her father, reached for the side of her face and gave her a quick remainder of how warm his touch was and will always be. “Come down when you are done, your mother made dinner.”

“Okay Dad.” As she took retreating steps into her room, her ears picking the firm footsteps of her father as he took the route that led to their backyard, Anna found it really, really hard to ignore the sadness in the air.

She did it successfully in past months- ignoring the fact that her sister was no longer with them.

But at that moment, perhaps because of the fact that her plan was about to go into action, she felt the pain the more. It was worse than the first few weeks of pain. But it definitely was different. Before, the pain made her weak, but right there, it was fueling her rage.

As the vengeful woman decided to go all over the documents she had to submit on her first day at work, her stomach rumbled and all revenge plans were instantly put on hold.

Anna Hendrick hated to play with anything meal related.

Barely two minutes after, a quick journey down the ladder connected to her room landed her in front of the laundry room and all it took was some few steps and Anna was finally in the spacious kitchen.

“Hey mom,” she threw a greeting at the small woman who was keeping her attention on the garnished pasta she was dishing into the plates… which were very new.

“Did you buy new plates?” Anna asked with a frown as she settled by the island which wore a colourful look thanks to a little decoration they gave it when the house still had its shine.

“Yes. I threw out the old ones.”

“Why?”

The woman looked up, her busy hands pausing. A single blink became three before she monotonously replied with her thick yet sonorous voice, “Because they remind me of Darcy.”

Then, she continued what she was doing.

Anna scoffed. She definitely wasn’t going to keep pretending her mother was acting like she never gave birth to her elder sister. “Mom-”

“Listen, that job of yours you just got …” The coldness in her mother’s eyes was not a new sight. “I want you to forget about it.”

“Why?”

The serving spoon in her grasp clinked against the pot as she dropped it. “What is the use of working where she used to be employed? What are you trying to achieve?”

“I told you, I want to find out the truth.”

“What will that change?” Anna sat still and reflected back the sarcastic calmness in her mother’s eyes. “Is it going to bring her back?”

"It won’t. But I am certainly not going to spend my whole life bearing the thought that she committed suicide.” Anna felt something rise within her and her quickly folded hand slammed against the marbled surface. “Something is wrong and I am going to find out what exactly it is.”

The dark haired woman who also had signs of quickened aging both on her face and in her hair scoffed, her tongue poking the side of her mouth after. “You are wasting your time Anna Hendrick. Let the dead rest already.”

“The dead!” Anna found her teeth gritting after her outburst. As she tried to contain the rage, her father walked in, his face contorted into a frown.

“The dead you speak about is my sister, your daughter and the Darcy I know would never commit suicide.”

“Why are you acting like you actually knew her? What if she was hiding something from us? Uh?”

Anna was finding it hard to find any sense in what her mother was saying. “You and I know that I am the one with hidden thoughts, I am the rebellious one. Darcy always made sure to tell you about her issues and this is how you decide to deal with her death? You intend to accept the claims of that goddamn, stupid company? You want to accept that Darcy committed suicide?”

Tears stung the eyes of the woman who was already finding it hard to continue the display of her rage, so she just lowered her head and tried to gather herself as quickly as possible.

“Are you done?” After a brief silence, her mother questioned and that had Anna abruptly getting off her stool.

“No mom. I am not. I will never be done until I find answers to my question.” Her hands stylishly caged a filled plate. “I will not rest and I will show you and I will make you regret not deciding support my quest.”

“Anna…” her father finally said but the woman already had a plate of pasta in her palms, her legs were already walking towards the backyard.

“I will be leaving for work by seven-thirty, so don’t get worried about me,” she directed the sentence to her father who she could feel staring concernedly at her back.

As the hotness of the plate stung her palms, Anna took a second to wonder how things would be at the new place. She hadn’t even been given a position yet.

A sigh soon escaped her as she hoped and prayed everything would go as planned.

A swift motion of her head as she took a right turn had her head landing on another picture of her sister. It was a solo picture that was taken when she went for her first concert. Her smile which always lit the house and warmed their hearts was present as she posed akimbo for the camera which was taken by her friend Josh who was with Anna on the whole revenge thing. 

Anna closed her eyes for a minute and she could see her sister’s blonde, shining hair bouncing as she danced to her favourite song. The purple floral gown which happened to her favourite danced along in a way that was quite a sight.

The woman who was creating a film in her head felt something trickle down the side of her face and as her eyes flung open, she realized the tears came to visit once more. Sighing, Anna took one more look at the picture, but this time, she said, as firmly as possible, “Don’t worry Darcy, I will make sure to avenge you.”