Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I smiled, thinking the kind police officer had really come to help me.

But, a few days later, he was released. My injuries weren't severe enough to keep him in jail.

When he came back, all the pent-up anger from those days was unleashed on me, and I was beaten even more brutally.

I was beaten until my bones fractured, my ears rang, and I spat blood.

That time, I lay in bed, barely clinging to life for a month, only recovering under Thalia's care.

Thalia pitied me and was heartbroken. She went to confront my parents, questioning why they treated me this way.

But to them, Thalia was just an old woman meddling in their business. They called me a worthless child, saying they could do whatever they wanted with their own child, and no one else had a say.

Thalia had no choice but to hold me, crying and heartbroken.

"Stella, my poor Stella, grow up quickly. When you do, leave this place and never come back."

Thalia tied a red string around my wrist, saying it would protect me.

She told me that beyond the mountains, there was a sparkling blue sea that could wash away all my sorrows.

I asked Thalia, "When I get there, will I stop getting beaten? I'm afraid of the pain..."

Thalia said, "There, someone will love you. No one will beat you."

Thalia often spoke of her children, who were all successful and caring. They had taken her to many places in recent years.

I believed Thalia's words.

So, I began to hope... hope to grow up, hope to see that distant sea.

But my father's gambling losses grew, and so did the frequency of my beatings. His blows became heavier.

I became numb, unable to control it.

Each time I was beaten, I curled up on the ground, burying my head low, silently gritting my teeth.

I thought, hit me, hit me, it'll be over soon.

After the beating... a good sleep would make it better.

But he saw my silence as defiance and hit me even harder.

"You worthless girl, scream! Why aren't you screaming? Do you think you're better than me?"

"Damn brat, just as dirty as your mother!"

...

My life was a mess, but I still wanted to grasp that glimmer of light.

I wanted to see the blue sea Thalia spoke of.

It was this unrealistic fantasy that kept me barely alive.

I thought things couldn't get worse.

But after disappointment came despair.

When I was eight, he lost a lot of money at the casino, and they were pressing him for repayment.

If he couldn't pay, they would break his legs.

Desperate, he looked at me.

He bathed me, dressed me in a new pink dress, making me look pretty.

I thought my father had changed, but he was pushing me into an abyss.

That night, an old man came to our house, circling me with a malicious smile.

His eyes were filled with scrutiny, greed, and disgust.

I felt completely exposed and vulnerable, like an object on display, subjected to everyone's gaze.

The old man's hands roamed over me, making me feel like bugs crawling all over me, making me want to vomit.

I couldn't stop trembling. I wanted to escape, to leave this place.

But my body felt like it was filled with lead, my feet too heavy to lift.

The old man seemed satisfied and handed my father a stack of money.

"Five thousand in total, count it."

My father told me to go with the old man first, promising to bring me back after he won big at the casino.

It was the first time he spoke to me in a gentle tone, but all I felt was a deep, unsettling cold.

As the old man approached me, tears fell from my eyes, one after another.

I backed away in fear, looking at my father with pleading eyes.