☙❦❧

woke up to the blinding sunlight entering her room and she sat up squinting her eyes at the brightness. The amount of sleep she had gotten the previous night was not enough to keep her awake for the day to come.

Sighing, she made small efforts to slowly climb out of bed and once she sat at the edge of her mattress, she hesitated.

Maybe she should stay home today. School could wait.

The pain that traveled up her spine folded over her shoulder to meet the bruises on her collarbone. It was almost impossible for her to move and she felt pathetic even trying to be productive. It's not like anyone would miss her presence at school.

No one wanted to see the hideousness that she was.

They preferred Aralyn.

The sister who could do no wrong. Aralyn was truly a beauty. With her delicate features, she was a sought-after girl in Le Viour Academy. Her 5'7 curvy figure sashayed most places. Letting guys see the prominent curves in her hips.

Aralyn sure was a flirt. A tease. But Evelyn saw no wrong with that.

The girl was confident to walk in her revealing clothes. It was obvious Aralyn appreciated herself. And that was fine.

But with her baggy shirts and leggings, it was clear Evelyn didn't appreciate any part of herself.

And if she tried to, the perpetrators at school would taunt her for trying to be like her sister. For there was only one Aralyn and no one could dare attempt to be her.

As soon as Evelyn came of sounding age, she knew her younger sister was loved.

And she finally knew that the way her parents treated her was not how normal children were to be treated.

The way her mother would laugh and cuddle with Aralyn. The way her father would kiss Aralyn goodnight after reading her a bedtime story. The way both her parents would fuss over her.

Evelyn knew. She wasn't meant to be part of the family she was put into. They didn't want her and after years of trying to make them see a daughter, Evelyn gave up. She didn't want them either. But each time the pain sliced a part of her, Evelyn knew that was a lie.

She wanted to be loved. She wanted to feel appreciated. But her family always reminded her of what she was.

A mistake.

And Evelyn accepted that. She accepted her role.

The role of disturbing an almost perfect family. Because without Evelyn, the Moreau family would be completely and utterly without a flaw.

It hurt her to be so alone, with no one by her side. But sometimes Evelyn bitterly wondered, how was it all her fault?

After all, it was her mother whose infidelity came to light.

Then Evelyn realized that she was a constant reminder of her mother's unfaithfulness towards her father. That's why she was hated.

She was the flaw of the family.

And she could not be thrown away like the bottles of alcohol her father threw towards her.

So she wept and the tears burned her cheeks acting like an acid. Allowing each mask to be scorched away from her face one by one.

And Evelyn was terrified of when the final mask would burn and cripple away to reveal the truth. Evelyn would not survive long enough for that though.

She would make sure.

☙❦❧