The sound of loud heels echoed inside the living room. Camilla had just come back from one of her endless outings. Her perfume entered the whole house before she even dropped her handbag. Outside, neighbors always admired her, the expensive dresses, the wigs, the way she walked like a queen. Everybody thought she was a perfect mother.
But inside, Ariana knew the truth.
The little girl was sitting quietly in the corner, holding a book that wasn't even hers. She had found it in the dustbin yesterday when Camilla threw away some old things. Her small fingers rubbed the pages slowly, but her eyes were on her mother.
Why are you sitting there like a useless child? Camilla's voice cut through the air. She dropped her bag on the chair and pulled off her shoes. "Don't you have something better to do? Lazy girl!
Ariana flinched. She wanted to answer but her throat felt tight. She was only ten, yet she had learned that silence was safer. Talking back brought slaps.
Camilla looked around the house, adjusting her wig in the mirror. She smiled at her own reflection, then hissed at Ariana. You better not disgrace me tomorrow when we go out. If anybody greets you, just smile a bit. Don't open your mouth and embarrass me. Ariana nodded quickly, Yes ma.
Inside her chest, something always tightened when her mother spoke like that. She wished she could be like other children in her class, laughing freely, running on the field during break time. But her mother never allowed it. She was not allowed to join drama club, not allowed to sing in choir, not even allowed to talk to her classmates.
The neighbors only saw Camilla's makeup and gold chains. They didn't know the insults that poured inside the house every single day.
The next morning, Ariana sat by the window. She watched other children in the street rushing to school, their bags on their backs, their faces bright. She wished she could join them. She wished she could laugh like that.
Camilla came out of her room wearing a short red gown, holding her phone, her nails shining.
Are you still there? Why didn't you sweep this house since morning?" she barked.
Ariana jumped up. "Sorry, mummy…"
Camilla eyed her. "Sorry for yourself. Do you think life is a joke? See your mates outside there, do you think you can be like them? You are nothing. If not for me, who is going to be looking at your face?"
The words cut Ariana deep. She bent down and started sweeping fast, even though her eyes were hot with tears.
When she finished, she carried the dustpan outside. One neighbor, Stella greeted her kindly. "Ariana, good morning! Are you not going to school today?
Before Ariana could open her mouth, Camilla's voice came from inside. "Don't answer anybody! Come inside now!"
The girl dropped her head and hurried back in.
Camilla folded her arms. "So you've started gossiping with our neighbors now right? Next time I catch you talking to anybody, I'll give you a very hot slap.
Ariana kept quiet. Her chest pained her, but she swallowed it.
She remembered last week in school, when her teacher begged Camilla to allow her to join the debate club. Camilla only laughed and said, "This one? She doesn't know anything, just leave her." From that day, Ariana stopped raising her hand in class. She believed her mother's words too much.
Now, at only ten years old, she already felt small, like she was nothing.
One Friday morning, Ariana dressed up for school. She wore her blue uniform neatly, even though the collar was already tearing. She tied her shoelaces and held her books. Today, she had promised herself she would try to answer a question in class, no matter what her mother said.
Camilla stepped out of her room, already dressed in a gold jumpsuit with long earrings. She looked Ariana up and down.
"Where are you going?"
Ariana looked at her shoes. "School, mummy…"
Camilla hissed. "Who sent you? You think money grows on trees? From today, you are not going anywhere again. Pack that uniform inside. No more school."
Ariana froze. Her throat tightened. "But… but mummy, exams are coming.
A sharp slap landed on her cheek.
"Did you just talk back to me?" Camilla shouted. "I said no school! You want to disgrace me in front of everybody? Sit down inside this house. If anybody asks, I will tell them you're going abroad. Abroad is better than this useless school here."
Tears filled Ariana's eyes, but she didn't argue again. She went to her room, removed the uniform slowly, and folded it. Her chest hurt, like somebody was pressing her heart.
That afternoon, her teacher, Miss Laura, came to the house. She was a young woman with brown hair and glasses, always smiling at the students. She knocked at the door gently.
"Good afternoon, ma," she greeted when Camilla opened. "Please, I came to ask why Ariana has not been in school for some days."
Camilla smiled sweetly, the way she always did for outsiders. "Oh, don't worry, Miss Laura. She traveled. Very soon she will continue her education abroad. You know we want the best for her."
Miss Laura's face lit up. "Wow, that's wonderful. I will miss her in class, but I'm happy she has that opportunity."
"Thank you, my dear," Camilla said, closing the door quickly.
Inside, Ariana sat on the floor, hugging her knees. She heard everything. Abroad. Her mother had already decided to erase her from school and lie to the world.
Days turned into weeks. Ariana stopped waking up early. She had no school to go to, no friends to see, nothing to expect.
Sometimes, she would sit by the window and watch children walk past with their bags and lunch boxes. She would whisper the answers to maths questions she still remembered, just to remind herself she once belonged in a classroom. But after a while, even that stopped.
Camilla didn't care. She spent her mornings on phone calls, laughing loudly with her friends about weekend parties, or showing them her new wigs and dresses. Her wardrobe kept growing. Ariana's books stayed dusty in a corner.
One evening, their neighbor, Mr. James, stopped Camilla outside. He was a kind man in his forties, always carrying his little boy, Daniel.
"Madam Camilla, long time," he greeted. "I don't see Ariana in school again. Everything okay?"
Camilla gave her usual bright smile. "Oh, she's fine. I sent her to the UK to continue. You know I want the best for her."
Mr. James nodded, impressed. "Wow, that's good. God bless you."
Ariana heard all this from inside. She pressed her ear against the curtain. Every lie was like a knife.
At night, when Camilla returned from her outing, Ariana tried to speak. "Mummy, why did you tell them I traveled? I am still here."
Camilla's eyes flashed. She grabbed Ariana's hair and yanked her head back. "Are you mad? You want people to know I locked you inside here like a prisoner? If anybody finds out, you will suffer more."
Ariana cried silently when her mother finally let go. Her scalp burned. Her heart too.
The house grew colder each day, even though it was full of shiny clothes, perfumes, and jewelry. For Ariana, it was a cage. She didn't play. She didn't laugh. She didn't dream anymore.
The evening was quiet, except for the sound of Camilla's laughter outside. She was still with her friends, gisting about fashion, money, and men, while her daughter sat inside the dark room, alone.
Ariana's stomach made a loud noise again. She pressed her hands on it, wishing for food. She wanted just small bread, or just little rice. But she knew her mother had locked everything in the kitchen before leaving her inside. Hunger had become her closest friend.
Her eyes moved back to the window. The sky was slowly changing color, the orange of sunset fading into the gray of night. Sometimes she liked to watch the sky because it was the only thing that made her dream. The rain was heavy that night. Thunder rolled across the sky, shaking the windows. Ariana sat in the corner of the sitting room, hugging her knees. She was shivering, not just from cold but from fear.
Camilla came back late, her makeup smeared, her gown wet from the rain. She dropped her bag roughly on the chair.
"Stand up!" she barked at Ariana.
Ariana jumped to her feet, her small frame trembling.
Camilla stared at her for a long moment. Her lips curled. "I am tired of you. You are a disgrace to me. A child that brings no joy, no pride. Look at yourself skinny, always crying. What kind of daughter are you?"
Ariana's throat tightened. She wanted to beg but the words refused to come out.
"Pack your things," Camilla ordered coldly. "From today, you are no longer my responsibility."
Ariana's eyes widened. "Mummy, please… where will I go? I don't know anybody…"
Camilla slapped her hard. "Don't call me mummy again! I don't have a child like you."
The words cut deeper than the slap.
Ariana stood there, shaking, as Camilla went on. "By tomorrow morning, I will tell all the neighbors you've gone abroad to continue your education. Nobody will ever know the truth. As for you, get out of my sight."
Ariana slept on the cold floor that night, her heart breaking. By dawn, Camilla dragged her small bag outside and pushed her into the rain-soaked street.
"Go! And never come back!" The door slammed shut.