Chapter 1

Diana leaps for joy when the door to her parent’s room opens, revealing her dad. “Father?!” she called and went to him. “Where is my little sister?” She demands and walks to her father.

“She’s inside with your mother,” her father answered.

 “Can I see my little sister now?” She requested and her dad smiled, nodding his head in return. Diana didn’t wait for her dad to say a word before she pushed the door and entered the room her mother was in. She screeched excitedly, seeing her sister, who had just been born. “She’s pretty,” she mumbles and tries to touch her on her cheek, but her mother jerks her hand away.

“Can’t you see she’s little?!” Gloria snaps at her daughter.

 Diana didn’t take her seriously and continued to cower over her junior sister. “What’s her name, mother?” She implored, staring largely at her.

Gloria smiles and places her child gently on the bed, then she turns to Diana, “I and your father concluded that her name will be called Penelope,” Gloria disclosed and Diana cringed again.

“Penelope? I love it!” Diana divulged. “We’ll be the best sister the world ever knows, and I’ll make sure I take good care of her until she’s old enough to be on her own. When she starts to walk, we’ll go on a lot of adventures. We’ll do everything together. I will let no harm come to her and she will always be happy,” Diana continued to rant about how nice she will treat her little sister. She makes lots of promises that Gloria laughs at.

“I’m going to have a bath, make sure you look after your sister and make sure she doesn’t cry,” Gloria warns, standing up from the bed and walking over to the washroom.

“I will, mother,” Diana assure and sit on the bed. She admires her sister for her beauty and cute smile. Hence, she attempts to carry Penelope into her arms but unfortunately for her, Penelope slips from her hands and falls to the ground, earning a tiny soft cry from Penelope.

Gloria, together with her father hears the little girl sob and comes running in to know what has happened to their daughter. Gloria yells, seeing her child on the floor and quickly moves to pick her up while Diana’s father, Daniel, pulls Diana out of the room.

“What is wrong with you? How can you be so wicked to your sister?!” Daniel scolds her.

“Father, I_,” she tries to speak, but her father shuts her up when he pushes her roughly, letting her hit her head hard on the table in the living room. Diana cries out, holding onto where she hits her head. She tries not to believe that her father has just pushed her down. What is wrong with his attitude?

Daniel ignores the blood rushing out from her head and continues to scold her, “You threw your newborn sister on the floor, Diana. You are wicked!” Daniel accuses her.

Diana then begins to weep as she struggles to stand on her feet. She knows it is wrong for her to have hit Danielle on the floor, but it is also wrong for her father to treat her in such a manner. She groans when she sees the blood on her hand and looks up at her father.

Just then Gloria walks into the room, her eyes looking fierce as ever, her face squeezed into a ball that has been pressed to burst.

Diana opens her mouth to say something but closes it when she sees the threatening stare her mother gives her. She chokes on her tears as she swerves around and runs to her room. Why have her parents acted so brutally toward her?

*End Of Flashback•

Diana twists her head and stretches her hands, feeling how weak and tired her core is. She has just returned from work after having a stressful day. She retires on the couch, sitting to have a quick nap before her parents get back and make her do multi-tasks.

After Penelope’s birth, Diana begins to see that her parents didn’t care for her anymore. Those times when she gets the attention and support from her parents have long perished the moment Penelope comes into the picture.

Her parents now treat her badly. Scold and curse her whenever she makes a slight mistake. They maltreated and beat her up like a slave. Most times, she wonders if they are her parents or if they pretend to be before Penelope was born.

Even when they did these things to her, Diana didn’t look at the wrong side. She still loves her parents and sister. Every day she wishes for them to change back from their bad to good.

Her thoughts break off when the entrance door was pulled open and her junior sister, Penelope ran into the house carrying a bag. She makes a halt when she gets to Diana and raises the bag she is carrying for Diana to see.

“Sister you can’t believe what’s inside this bag,” Penelope uttered, grinning from ear to ear.

Diana tried to snatch the bag from her but Penelope was quick to move backward. “What’s in there?” Diana asked, having no idea what Penelope was trying to hide from her.

“Guess?”

Diana tries to think and when she gets what Penelope is trying to tell her, she raises her eyebrows, “Gifts?”

“Yes! How did you know?” Penelope jumps up in excitement.

Diana shrugged, “I just guessed,” she mumbled, and asked Penelope to show her the gift.

Penelope agrees and begins to put out all the beautiful gifts that were given to her. Diana gazes at them with amusement. There are dresses, shoes, chocolate, biscuits, and lots of fascinating things that form saliva stuck inside their throat.

“Who gave you all these?” Diana inquired.

“Father,” Penelope proclaims and begins to flaunt her gifts.

“Father?” Diana thought, “But where’s mine?” She asked aloud.

Penelope didn’t give her any answer and continued to chat happily about the gift her father had given to her while Diana gawked at her.