The Daughter In the Corner

The Choice

Dustin sat in his room, head buried in his trembling hands.

It had been an hour since he walked into that nightmare this morning but he couldn’t forget Amara’s eyes. Her violently jittering eyes begged for help but he never felt so powerless in his life. When he screamed, one of the maids rushed in and found him hugging his daughter in his arms on the floor. He felt broken when Amara was ripped from his arms, a gasping blue heap. He could only watch in horror as the maid flipped his baby over and struck her hard across the back a few times. A piece of uncooked strawberry popped out and Amara started breathing again.

For a brief moment, Dustin couldn’t move. He felt so lost and scared. His daughter nearly died in his arms over a stupid piece of strawberry and all he did was waste those precious seconds trembling.

He looked at the front of her dress and finally realized it was just strawberry jam. In his panic, he mistook the stain for blood and it clouded his judgment. If it wasn’t for the fact that he hired medically trained maids, he would have lost his precious daughter.

He couldn’t quite remember what happened next. When he came back to his senses, he was hugging Amara to his chest, crying like a madman. Amanda was in the background trying to make sense of what was going on. After a long while, Dustin finally let go so Amanda could comfort and bathe Amara before breakfast. Dustin also went upstairs to the bedroom to collect himself.

There was a soft knock on the door and Amanda slipped in.

“Hey, you okay?”

Dustin looked up blankly, his eyes still swollen from all the crying. “I thought I lost her.”

With a heavy sigh, Amanda walked up to him and pulled him into a hug. Dustin rested his head on her soft bosom inhaling her familiar scent.

“She’s fine now. Just a bit frightened.”

Dustin hugged his wife of five years. “I’ve been thinking all last night, and what just happened made me realize I haven’t been fair to you and Amara.”

Amanda held her breath, afraid of what he would say next.

“I owe Jenny and Peter too much and I will always feel like I am a failure of a father to them but in trying to make it up to them, I am now failing you and Amara,” Dustin pulled out of Amanda’s embrace and looked her in the eye, “I won’t deny when I first met you, you reminded me so much of Amelia and that is what attracted me to you but as I got to know you, I fell in love with you just as you are. You were never Amelia’s replacement and I am sorry I ever made you feel insecure.”

Amanda blinked back her tears, “So what is it that you’re trying to say?”

Dustin took a deep breath, “I can’t keep doing this. I have to pick a side or I am going to end up hurting everyone in the end so I have decided, let’s pack up and move to another city…”

“What about Peter and Jenny? What are you going to do?”

“They’re teenagers now. They won’t have time to play with me every weekend anyway. I’ll still visit them, maybe once a month or on special occasions and I’m always just a phone call away if they ever need to talk. I’m sure Amelia and Chris will help smooth things over with the kids.”

Dustin took Amanda’s hands in his own and looked into her eyes. “Amanda, you and Amara are very important to me. I don’t want to lose you two. Please tell me I’m not too late in realizing my mistakes.”

Amanda smiled sadly and choked on her tears. She couldn’t say anything but only nodded furiously. Dustin hugged her close and closed his eyes.

I’m sorry kids. I’ve disappointed you once before and I’m sorry I have to do it again but I can’t lose my family again. I’ll make it up to you guys in the future, I promise.

***

A few months later, Amara found herself on a countryside estate. The smell of fresh air, the sounds of nature, and the wondrous sights of ancient trees and tall mountains amazed the little girl.

She ran around poking at the trees and flowers in the courtyard.

“DADDY! Come see this! There are fish in the pond!!”

Dustin kissed Amanda on the forehead before he walked over. “Slow down, sport. You’re going to fall in.”

Ever since he broke the news that they were moving, Amara changed. She became noticeably brighter and more open to conversations. When he finally mustered enough courage to ask why she called him “father” and not “daddy” she confessed that it was because he had yelled at her a year ago at the Farley’s. She had thrown a tantrum because she felt neglected and he yelled at her telling her to be more mature like Jenny and Peter. So she had tried her best to act like an adult.

When Dustin heard this, he wanted to punch himself in the face. He never had a young child before, when he first met Peter and Jenny, they were older and already more mature so it was unfair to compare Amara to them. For the second time in his life, he cried in front of his child explaining what went on in his stupid head. He assured her that it was fine to be a child and that he would never compare his children again. Amara accepted his apology quietly. Since then, Dustin had been careful with his words, realizing how sensitive Amara was.

Dustin smiled at his beautiful young girl. It felt like she was no longer the small frail child hiding in the corner of a room. This was definitely the right decision.

***

When everyone was unpacking, Amara ran out to explore the grounds. As she climbed a fence to pick a low-hanging apple, she heard a small voice to the side.

“Hi! You must be my new neighbor!”

Amara slipped and let out a little shriek, squeezing her eyes tight, she waited for the pain to set in but what came was a bony embrace.

“Wow! Be careful! Geez, city girls are so clumsy.”

Amara looked up to find herself staring into the soft hazel eyes of a young boy. He looked a little older than her. She couldn’t stop looking into his gorgeous eyes...

The young boy smiled. “Hey, you’re kinda cute.”

Amara blushed, “What are you saying?!”

“Don’t be like that! I’m Derrick Sinclair. I live in the estate next to yours. I heard you guys were moving in today so I came to say hello.”

Amara pulled out of Derrick’s embrace and patted the wrinkles out of her dress trying to buy time to formulate what to say. “Amara Roger. I’m. Hi.”

Derrick blinked a few times before he threw his head back and laughed.

Amara lowered her head, her face flushed a shade of crimson. She was so embarrassed. She whirled on her heels and ran back to the house.

“Hey! Amara!! Don’t be shy! I’ll come tomorrow to play with you! Meet you here!”

Amara heard Derrick shout but didn’t bother to acknowledge. Ugh! So embarrassing!