TOO YOUNG FOR THIS
922 Words
Morning came, but it didn’t feel like a new day.
It felt like a continuation of something heavy - something that had started the moment Ella opened that drawer and discovered the truth her mother had been hiding.
She lay awake long before the sun rose, staring at the ceiling, her thoughts looping endlessly.
Bills.
Final notices.
Deadlines already passed.
Her chest tightened.
This wasn’t just a rough patch; this was something deeper, something dangerous.
By the time she got out of bed, she had already made a decision that she wouldn’t ask questions yet until she understood everything.
Not until she was ready for the answers.
When she stepped into the cold morning air, the quiet of Hallstatt wrapped around her like a blanket. Snow rested gently along rooftops and pathways, untouched and deceptively peaceful.
Everything looked fine.
But she knew better now.
The bell above the store door chimed as she entered.
And immediately, she paused.
Eliana stood behind the counter, her brows furrowed in concentration as she tried to calculate something on the register. Eric stood beside her, flipping through a small notebook like it held answers he couldn’t find.
They both looked up at the same time.
Relief washed over their faces.
“Ella,” Eliana exhaled. “Thank God you’re here.”
Ella frowned slightly. “What’s going on?”
“I don’t understand this pricing system,” Eliana admitted quickly. “And I think I gave the wrong herb to someone earlier.”
Eric raised his hand halfway. “And I might have… messed up the stock count.”
Ella blinked.
For a moment, she didn’t speak. She just looked at them.
Really looked.
They weren’t ready for this.
They weren’t supposed to be.
And yet, here they were; trying, struggling, stepping into something far too big for them.
“It’s okay,” Ella said softly, stepping behind the counter. “I’ve got it.”
Her voice was calm and steady, but inside, something shifted.
Because this - this right here - was no longer temporary.
The morning passed in a blur.
Customers came in with their usual requests, expecting the same efficiency and warmth Marie always gave.
Ella delivered.
She smiled when needed. Explained mixtures. Measured carefully.
She didn’t miss a step.
But every now and then, she felt it—that quiet pressure building behind her ribs.
The awareness that she was holding something fragile together, and one wrong move could break it.
“Ella,” Eliana said softly at one point, leaning closer. “Are we… okay?”
The question caught her off guard, and she glanced at her sister.
At the worry in her eyes, and the unspoken fear.
And for a moment, just that moment, Ella wanted to tell the truth.
She wanted to say:
“I don’t know.”
But she didn’t.
Instead, she smiled faintly.
“We’re fine.”
It was the same lie their mother had been telling.
And now, Ella understood why.
The door chimed again.
Ella barely looked up this time.
“Welcome,” she said automatically.
But then, she heard a familiar voice.
“Busy morning.”
Her head snapped up.
It was him.
The stranger.
He stood near the entrance, hands tucked into his coat pockets, his gaze sweeping across the store before settling on her.
Observing.
Always observing.
“You again,” Ella said, before she could stop herself.
A small smile touched his lips. “Is that a problem?”
She hesitated.
“No.”
But she wasn’t sure why her heart skipped slightly.
He walked closer this time, slower. As if taking everything in.
“You’re running things today,” he noted.
“Yes.”
“And doing it well.”
The words were simple.
But something about them felt… different.
Not like casual praise.
Like he meant them.
Ella looked away first.
“Can I help you with something?” she asked.
He studied her for a moment longer before nodding slightly.
“Yes,” he said. “But I think you already have enough to handle.”
Her chest tightened.
“What does that mean?”
But before he could answer—
“Mum?”
Eliana’s voice cut through the moment.
Ella turned instantly.
And her stomach dropped.
Marie stood at the entrance.
But something was wrong; very wrong.
She looked pale and unsteady.
And for the first time—
Weak.
“Mum, what are you doing here?” Ella rushed toward her.
“I’m fine,” Marie insisted, but her voice lacked strength.
“You should be resting.”
“I just wanted to—”
Her words faltered.
Her hand moved to her chest.
And then—
Everything happened at once.
Marie swayed.
Her body giving in before she could stop it.
Ella reached her just in time.
“Mum!”
The world blurred.
Eliana gasped.
Eric shouted something.
The stranger moved, but Ella barely registered it.
All she could see was her mother slipping.
“Stay with me,” Ella said urgently, holding her tightly. “Look at me. Mum pleaseeeee.”
Marie’s breathing was uneven, and so shallow.
“I’m… okay…” she whispered.
But she wasn’t.
And Ella knew it.
For the second time in days, fear hit her, full and unrelenting.
And as she held her mother in her arms, surrounded by a*****e that suddenly felt too small to contain everything falling apart, Ella realized one thing with terrifying clarity:
She wasn’t ready for this life…
But it had already chosen her.
- Writer
