CHAPTER 1

I looked at both my parents in shock, trying to articulate my words right. "What?" I uttered barely above a whisper trying to fight the lump in my throat.

"I don't believe this, this is a joke, right"? I asked, anxiously waiting for a response. 

The room was silent as though someone had passed away. I was sitting across from them on the couch in our medium-sized living room.

"Dad, mum! Say something" I muttered, seated completely baffled.

Dad stood up, his eyes filled with remorse. He walked towards me with his hands stretched out, "Listen honey, we felt that it would be best to tell you at the right time" and sat beside me, placing his hand on my shoulders.

"Don't you dare touch me" I blurted as I shrugged his hands off my back. I stood up, feeling restless and overwhelmed. My mind was racing, and I couldn't help it. I wiped my face with the palm of my hands, trying to calm myself down. 

My brows furrowed in anger and frustration "After all these years, you both chose to keep me in the dark?" I yelled.

Dad used to tell me I was the best thing that ever happened to him. He was indeed the best dad. All my life I've always looked up to him, to think he was never mine to begin with.

Dad lounges on the edge of the seat. "We were going to tell you baby, but the timing was never right." 

"You would have known earlier, but your loving father didn't want you to get hurt" mum interjects.

Dad's face wasn't as couthy as it used to be. For the first time, I saw him helpless."We love you baby and, no matter what, you are still our daughter". 

"So why dad, why did you keep it from me for so long?"

"I didn't want things to be different between us, it'd have changed things if you had known earlier, it's better this way."

I turned to look directly at mum's face. "I could have expected this from dad but you mum?" I asked, feeling dejected. 

Mum has never been a big fan of me. I would have expected her to say something, being that she must have always wanted me out of her life for the longest time.

My heart started racing, as I couldn't keep eye contact with her. My anger towards her was aggravated.

Mum apathetically looks at me for a millisecond, "You are over-emphasising this dear, we couldn't tell you then, but we are now, you aren't our biological daughter and that's it. Why make a fuss about it?"

"What do you mean you are not my biological parents?" I burst out in a fit of rage.

Dad stood up and walked towards me empathetically "Honey-" 

I raised a finger, stopping him from taking any step further, "No dad, don't, just don't."

At that moment, mom went to the kitchen and came back with a bag of chips. Her lackadaisical attitude spoke volume like she had been waiting for this moment.

"Becca, what are you doing? Don't just sit there", dad instigates her.

She munches loudly on her chips. "Well, what can I do about anything? She's being ridiculous right now, causing so much drama if you ask me."

"I am causing drama, really mum?" My heart shatters into fragments.

"It's Becca to you now," she added.

I nodded in affirmation,"Oh, I almost forgot, Becca."

"Bella, this is not the time to be displaying your madness" dad yells.

Dad says empathetically,

"Listen O, you need to calm down, we can talk about this amicably".

"No! Don't tell me to calm down, you don't have that right-" I paused to catch my breath.

"-at least not anymore". I stared at both of them in anger mixed with sadness. 

"I can't believe you two right now."

My defense mechanism at that moment was to walk away. I heard what they had to say, and so I needed space to bawl my eyes out. 

I turned around abruptly, stomping my feet on the stairs with my fist clenched in anger. 

"Olivia", dad called out to me.

"Don't you dare walk out on us like that young lady, we are still your parents," he said profoundly.

I paused for a moment, and my upper lip curled in disgust. "My parents you say-" walking down the stairs, gazing at him with a heavy heart.

"-you are not my father, you said so yourself. She never even treated me like her daughter", I said in a shaky voice, trying my best to hold back my emotions.

"You watched me cry to you dad. I complained about mum's behavior towards me and every day I asked myself what I ever did wrong, why nothing I ever did pleased her. And you knew the answer dad, you knew! And you kept it from me.

It could have been better than this, and maybe if I had known earlier it wouldn't hurt so much, to think I wasn't even your daughter, and you left me in the dark for this long. So don't you dare call me your daughter Mr Garcia, cause all along, it never felt like I was."

I could see the hurt on dad's face when I called him by his name. I looked at mum who buried her face in her phone screen, stuffing her mouth with chips. 

It broke me more seeing how unbothered she was and, strangely, I should have been used to it already. I guess no daughter can ever be used to her mother's hatred.

I withdrew my steps and went back upstairs to my room.

"O, listen to me, I'm sorry" 

"Olivia!" he exclaimed.

I slammed the door forcefully behind me….

- - -

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have begun our descent into Houston, Texas..." The pilot announced, waking me up from sleep.

"Please turn off all portable electronic devices and stow them until we have arrived at the gate. In preparation for landing in Houston, be certain your seat back is straight up and your seat belt is fastened."  

I walked out of the plane, the sun's warm rays embraced me, casting a radiant glow upon my being. I could feel the gentle breeze caress my skin. 

It was my first time being far from home.

As I step into the apartment I had just rented, a wave of anticipation washes over me. The air is filled with the freshness of new beginnings. I take in the unfamiliar surroundings, eager to make the place my own.

My phone rang, I checked to see who was calling and saw it was my dad. I turned off my phone and headed inside with the rest of my belongings.

I opened the bedroom door to see everything in order, just like I've always loved my bedroom organized. A wardrobe by one side of the bed, a set of tables and chairs on the other side and a bookshelf directly opposite to the bed. 

The room decor was an additional aesthetic. I proceeded to walk in as I fell flat on the bed.

"So this is my life now" I uttered, heaving a deep sigh.

I started unpacking everything from my bag and organizing it in the wardrobe. As I was setting up my new space, I knew I wanted to make it feel like home. One of the first things I did was place a framed picture of dad and I in the center of the bedroom wall. 

It was a special gift he gave me on my 18th birthday, and I cherish it so much. Seeing the picture every day would bring a sense of comfort and remind me of the love we share. 

I try to fight back the tears as I stare at the frame. Dad was always there for me and taking this big step of moving out without his blessings is a huge deal. Not being able to reach him is also going to be really tough. I can feel it already.

After unpacking, I skipped dinner and went straight to bed.

1:30am

I awakened from a deep slumber. I felt parched and decided to head to the kitchen for a glass of water. As I stepped into the dimly lit kitchen, a faint, unsettling noise came from somewhere in the room. It's almost like a whisper, but I can't quite make out the words.

The darkness envelops me, and I stumble in the blackness, searching for the light switch. I try to brush it off as my imagination playing tricks on me. My heart started to race, and I couldn't shake the feeling that I was being watched. 

Panic sets in as I find the switch and flick it on, illuminating the room. As the light floods the space, I catch a glimpse of a shadowy figure disappearing around the corner.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end as I turned around, expecting to see something lurking in the shadows. But all I see is darkness, and the feeling of being watched intensifies.

I reached out to the pocket knife on the counter and walked in the direction of the noise "Hello, is anyone there?" I cautiously approached a hidden compartment in the storage room, my heart pounding in my chest. I slowly open the door. 

"Who are you? reveal yourself now!"