Cherry Heart

THE LITTLE GIRL had been playing chess with her dad, her small hands carefully moving the pieces on the board while clutching on her pink Barbie doll. They were both enjoying each others company, lost in the game and each others laughter. But as the evening stretched on, her father playfully pinched her rosy cheeks and gave her a soft, playful punch, causing her to giggle. "Your quite the strategist, my little princess," he said with a smile. However, as he glanced at the clock, a hint of concern appeared on his face. "Sweetheart," he said in a gentle tone, it's getting late. We should wrap up the game and get you ready for bed." She held onto the chess piece and spoke with a stinge of sadness in her voice, "But dad, you always do this. You never spend enough time with me." Her eyes teared up, and she was on the verge of crying. Her father opened his arms to her and spoke softly, "I always want to spend time with you, my princess. Unfortunately, I have some work to do now. But tomorrow, we can go out for ice cream together, how does that sound?" She mumbled against his shoulder, "Promise," while extending her pinky finger. He linked his finger with hers and repeated, "Promise." They both laughed as he playfully lifted her up onto his shoulder while going up the stairs to her room. Once there, he gently placed her on her bed, tucking in the bedspread with a soft rustle. He leaned in and whispered, "I love you, princess." She grinned and replied, "I love you too, dad." He kissed her forehead before leaving the room and closing the door behind him, the sound of the latch clicking into the place echoing in the quiet hallway. The thunderstorms mixed with piercing screams had woken her up from her peaceful slumber. She called out for her father, tears streaming down her face as she crawled and peeped through the stairs to see dark masked figures, one of them with a snake tattoo with strange letters engraved on his arm, dragging her father covered in blood, the little girl wanted to fight for her dad, and she screamed for help hoping someone would hear. As she gazed upon him, he uttered brokenly to the men, "Please, I beg of you, I'll do anything. Don't harm her." The two aggressors then shifted their attention away from him and turned towards her with an ominous grin. They advanced towards the girl at a slow pace. Suddenly her father cried out, "Run!" She whimpered painfully, but she managed to climb out of her small window, but she slipped and tumbled down into the bushes. She quickly got up, but her heart was pounding with fear as she saw the two masked figures hot on her heels, they were chasing her relentlessly, and she knew that she had to keep running. But as the masked figures closed in on her, they heard police sirens blaring in the distance. One of the masked figures with the snake tattoo cursed loudly at the other, saying "f**k, it's the cops! Get the body and let's get out of here!" She watched as they lifted her father body into their van and drove away. The little girl was left alone, shaking in grief, sorrow and anger. As the police approached her, all she could think of was avenging her father's death. She knew she had to be strong and brave, no matter how scared she felt inside. The memory of her father's last words urging her to run echoed in her mind, spurring her on a fight for him and make those responsible pay for their crimes.