SOME THINGS ARE MEANT TO BE

CHAPTER 5

There was so much pain in her lower body that she did not dare to move. It hurts that much.

He had not only torn her body apart, but her soul as well.

She fluttered her eyes closed, for she had no more power left in her. Her long eyelashes had been soaked with her tears, and there was some vague translucent color on her pale face.

She scrunched up in a fetal position. She was bruised everywhere from sleeping naked in the cold, since she did not have anyone to cover her up with a blanket. On the brand new sheet, there was a ghastly sight of bloodstains.

She felt so miserable that she hugged her stomach. Her weak voice vaguely escaped from her badly bitten, scarred lips,

“Mummy... mummy... .”

As helpless as a child, the only thing she needed was her mother—but her mother hated her.

She could still recall the events that happened that year. Even though they had led a plain and tough life, her mother had loved her until then.

Flashback

A woman held a young girl’s hand. The girl had a round face, a pair of big eyes and two long rolls of eyelashes which batted like small fans when she blinked.

“Mummy, why have we come here?” Curious, the little girl tilted her head upwards. The woman merely bent her waist down and placed her hand on her soft, flawless face.

“Juju, this will be our home in the future. Remember, from now on, your name is ‘Julianna ’ . Can you remember that?”

After the little girl nodded her head in obedience, the woman stood up. She had recently married into the Roberto family with three-year-old Julianna in tow.

“Roberto, Is this Julianna? She looks beautiful.” The man looked at the little girl as she tried to hide behind Evelyn. She had the mold of being a beauty and she would definitely be a gorgeous woman when she grew up.

“Come, Juju. This is your new father. Can you call him ‘Daddy’ ?” Evelyn nodded her head as she pulled Julianna from behind her. Julianna cast a look at her mother and she glanced at the strange man.

Then, in a soft, timid voice, she called, “Daddy”.

She would behave so she wouldn’t be left behind by her mother.

“Ha... great. Good girl. Right, I have a daughter too, but now, I don’t know where she went to play.”

Roberto ’s face glowed with affection at the moment of his daughter. She was his most treasured darling baby.

“Daddy...” a velvety voice rang. Then, like a flapping butterfly, a little girl ran right into Roberto’s arms. Julianna tugged at the corner of her mother’s blouse and looked at the little girl’s attire with such envy. It looked beautiful, like a princess from a fairytale. But she could give it up as long as she had her mother. She moved closer towards Shen Roberto unconsciously.

“Ah...” Roberto carried his baby daughter in his arms, “Dianna, this is your new mother and that is your new sister.” He pointed at Shen Roberto and Julianna who were standing in front of them.

“I don’t want a mother.” Diana pouted her lips delicately. “Nor do I want a new mother or even a sister. I only want Daddy. I hate them.”

Diana could only look apologetically at her father. He had really spoilt her rotten. She was his only daughter, of course. It was inevitable.

“It’s alright, Roberto . I understand.” Evelyn simply shook her head, but she had made up her mind to always treat Roberto’s daughter well. She could only truly call this place her home, where she would gain everything, once the daughter accepted her.

She loosened Julianna ’s small hand but the little girl only held on tighter to her clothes.

“Mummy... ” She blinked her black eyes. A stream of tears had gathered on her eyelashes rapidly. Was her mother giving her up?

As she looked at her daughter’s pitiful expression, Evelyn hesitated for a moment. Then, she hardened herself and pulled her hand away. And she walked towards Diana.

“Diana, I am your Auntie. In the future, I will give you lots of delicious food and I will play with you. I will love you just like how your father loves you.”

Maybe it was because of the gentleness in Evelyn’s voice or perhaps it was a voice that little girls liked. Nevertheless, Diana blinked her eyes in reply.

“Will I be the only one you love? Just like how Daddy does?” she asked Evelyn with her arms still hugging tightly around Roberto’s neck. Diana would give her the part of her father if she would only really love her, play with her and make lots of delicious food for her.

Evelyn was caught in a dilemma. She subconsciously looked at her daughter who stood alone at the side. It wasn’t until she saw the look of displeasure flash on Diana’s face that she started to nod her head.

“Yes, I will only love you.”

“Mummy.” Julianna’s mouth trembled from time to time, with her eyes filled with tears. As she helplessly looked at her mother, tears started to streak down her face.

And Evelyn really did what she had promised to Diana. To the eyes of the little girl, she was a marvelous mother who gave her everything she wanted at home—she even gave Julianna’s share.

Evelyn carried Diana and was feeding her at the dinner table.

“Mummy, I want to eat that.” Diana looked at the cupcake in Julianna’s bowl. She knew she must have it. She painstakingly picked it with her chopsticks.

When Evelyn heard that the little girl had started to call her mother, she was almost brought to tears. She had finally started to call her mother.

“Diana, that belongs to your sister. Daddy will pick another one for you, OK?” Roberto informed his daughter with a hint of displeasure.

“That is fine. An older sister should give in to the younger.” Evelyn quickly coaxed Diana, who was in her arms. She put her hand on top of Roberto’s hand and took the cake out of Julianna’s bowl. She had intentionally neglected the look of grievance on Julianna’s face.

Yes. The older sister must give in to the younger one. That was why she had to give her everything, including her own mother.

Diana only took a bite out of the cupcake and she refused to eat after that.

“Hey... you can have it back.” Diana set aside her plate and pushed it to Julianna’s side of the table. “Aren’t you fond of eating that? Then eat,” she arrogantly said. She was the only princess in the family. Julianna was basically nothing.

Julianna lowered her head and looked at the cake that Diana had eaten. She bit her lip and looked helplessly at Evelyn, “Mummy...”

“Your sister gave you that. So you should eat it.” Evelyn purposely ignored the tears in her daughter’s eyes. She continued to feed Diana attentively as she sat in her arms.

Julianna’s head sank even more. She hesitantly took the fork that lied next to her plate and began eating. However, she did not taste the sweetness of the cake, instead, it tasted bitter.

“Mummy, I don’t want to eat. I really don’t feel like eating anymore.”

But she still kept on eating because her sister had wanted her to eat.

“I don’t want them to draw blood,” cried out Diana while they were at the hospital. She kept pushing and pulling against Roberto’s body, struggling her way out of his grasp. Her father ached to see her princess like that.

“Diana, listen to daddy. It will not hurt. We just need to draw a little bit of your blood.”

“No! No! I don’t want to!” Diana would not stop crying. There was nothing that the doctor could do.

Julianna, who was present at that moment, glanced over at the doctor’s hand. She swore she saw a thick syringe. She couldn’t help but shudder.

It would be painful to be pierced with that.

Evelyn could not think straight when she started to panic. She tilted her head down and thought of an idea as she glanced over to her daughter. She grabbed Julianna ’s small hand in haste and put it in front of the doctor.

“Diana, look. It won’t hurt. Even your sister is doing it.” She pulled at Julianna ’s arm as she said it while the little girl, on the other hand, struggled out of her grasp.

“This child is not sick. Why do you want me to draw her blood?” The doctor gave the little girl a strange look. But Evelyn had sent her some stern looks and warnings, and so he held Julianna ’s thin elbow against the table.

“Mummy, can I not do this, too? I’m scared...” She started pulling on Evelyn’s blouse. She squeezed her tiny frame in fear.

“Evelyn, you don’t have to do this. Right?” Even Roberto couldn’t bear to look at her.

“Draw...” Evelyn hardened herself. She went over and took over Diana , “Look, your sister has already done it.”

The doctor gave a sigh of frustration. Even the mother did not feel sorry about putting her daughter through such stress, so why should he?

Julianna bit her tiny lips as she looked at the syringe. For the little girl, the needle seemed thicker than her arm. She managed to stifle a cry of pain when it finally pricked her tiny elbow. Tears only started to flow down her eyes when she lowered her head.

“Mummy, It’s painful for me... .”

She stole a peek at her mother. All she saw was her mother coaxing Diana . She had not even looked in her direction.

“Diana, did you see that? She doesn’t feel the pain. Drawing blood is not painful at all.” Evelyn kept talking to her and reassured her in a soothing voice.

Not painful. Not painful?

“That was not right. Mummy... it really hurts.”

She was not sick but she had to let the doctor draw a huge tube of blood. Because she was older, she had to set an example for her little sister.

It was Diana’s turn. When the needle from the syringe pierced her blood vessel, she wailed in pain. Daddy was comforting her and mummy was crying.

All the while, Julianna stood there alone. For the first time, she really felt she was unwanted.

That year, Diana was five and Julianna was six.