A year to live and die

Their voices

Sianna POV

I STAND UP AND DUST myself off. This day can’t get any worse. It must eventually end. Clearing my throat, I took off running. I can hear his footsteps. He was following me! Fuck!
I pull my hoodie over my head and run faster. 

"Sianna! Please, just a minute." He shouted trying to catch up to me. What does he want from me? Ugh! What have you gotten yourself into, Sianna? 

He pulled my hoodie from my head and pulled me back. I almost fell backwards but he held me upright. I turned and looked at him with anger,"What! What!...what do you want from me?" I yelled, glaring at him. 

"I am sorry about yesterday! I shouldn't have said what I had said. Em... I have this rage that gets me when I am told the right thing..." His voice tailed off. I turned to see if he was still there but he started down the road to his path. 

I thought to call him but what's the meaning here? He has made a mistake and asked for forgiveness. Things are not solved easily this way. I was still angry. However, I can pretend to forgive him. Anyway, I wasn't going to meet him again so why bother! 

Time flies by and uncertainty doesn't happen for the sun to shine bright and the day arrives. As usual, I took a fresh shower, drank my coffee and got ready for my customers. 

Now that it's time for lunch, I was about to close the door when someone stepped in and averted that from happening. 

"Sorry, it's my lunchtime," I said pleasingly. Are you not going to your lunch or you did and was disturbing my lunch time, I said to myself. 

"Please," The woman said. I noticed a girl hiding behind the woman. She was holding her mother's hand as if she was scared of something terrifying. What happened to them? 

"Ok, come in," I gestured to the couch from them to sit on. Once we were all seated, I said, "Introduce yourselves," 

The girl that was sitting beside her mother was shaking vigorously. Her lips were dry as her face looked pale and her skin looked dead as if she wasn't eating food nor sleeping. 

"I am Erica and this is my daughter Brynn," Her mother said. My eyebrows furrowed. What could turn this beautiful girl into this frightened and alone girl? 

"What is it? Are you okay?" I asked, showing concern in my voice. 

"That's why we are here. My daughter, it has been 2 weeks. She is not eating. She is not attending her classes in school. She is barely coming out of her room. When I force her to eat, she vomits. And when I force her to speak up, she cries. I am afraid that something has happened to her. I begged to go see a doctor but she's refusing to go. I just don't know what...do anymore," Erica started crying. I can understand. She was a mother and mothers are always worried about their children every second. But where is her father in this all? 

"What about her father? Have he tried to speak to her?" I asked. 

After sniffing and wiping her tears, she answered, "Her father died when she was 7 years old. I took care of her all by myself until she was 11 years old. Then, Kevin joined our family. I started working. I started going with my friends and he took  care of her." 

I hope it's not what I am guessing. I hope I am guessing wrong. Please, God! 

"Erica, I would love it if you give us some minutes so  Brynn and I could speak," I told her. She caressed her daughter's shoulder before she kissed her forehead and looked at me for sureness. I nodded affirming that her daughter is in safe hands. Once her mother was out, I waited for Brynn to say something. 

She was sitting, her head down as her fingers twitched nervously. All I could see was a broken soul. This little girl was suffering a lot all by herself. I closed my eyes and shook my head to calm myself down. 

I swallowed nervously before I uttered, "It's the...stepfather. Isn't it?" 

She raised her head and stared at me, her eyes wide, astonished that I got what she was dealing with for a long time, alone. 

A tear rolled down her eyes before she shut her eyes down and cried silently. Just like other days, she cried silently and alone. Afraid to say a word, she is a bitter soul. 

I stood before I went to her and hugged her as I let her cry a river because this time she wasn't crying alone, I was crying too not because I felt sad for her but because it reminds me of how many girls in this world were going through this alone. 

I pulled and bent on my knees while I wiped her tears off her face and breathed out before I asked, "Since when did it start?" 

She kept quiet for seconds, "Since last year." Her voice was as Hoarse as the rustling of the autumnal breeze.  

"Why didn't you tell your mom that he is raping you all this year?" 

"He threatened me that if she found out he would kill her and then kill me. If it wasn't for her, I would have told the police already," she sobbed covering her mouth to prevent her whimpering. 

I hugged her as I soothed her, "I may not feel what your heart is feeling now but the painful scars in your soul can't be missed out." 

I pulled while I wiped her tears as I continued,  " but I know one thing for sure is that you are a brave girl, Brynn. As brave as a lion and I respect you for that." 

A small smile formed on her face and I felt courageous. Now, let's see how I can help her. Think! Think faster Sianna! 

"Where do you live?" I inquired as I sat beside her on the couch 

"Down the street across from the library of uncle Gary," she answered. It's great!! 

"Is your phone with you?" She took out her phone from her jeans pocket and gave it to me. Once I took it, I added my number in it and gave it back to her. Ok, now what? 

"Listen, you know you are pregnant, right?" I wasn't confident she knew about that. 

She nodded, "last week when mom pressured me to go to the hospital, Kevin took me to the hospital and I found I was pregnant. He was forcing me to abort the baby but I refused and warned him to expose him." 

"Look, I can't promise you anything. I can't stop your mother from taking you to the hospital and I don't think you can either so your mother knowing you are pregnant means a dilemma but we don't have a choice and we have to take this road. One thing for sure, you can call me and I will be there as fast as I can. I am with you and we will fight this together," I embraced her. 

A knock on the door told me it was her mother. After they went out, I went down the street and to uncle Gray's library. 

I looked through the shelf of books for something to read. I grabbed the first book on the second shelf. Speak, which was published in 1999, is a young adult novel by Laurie Halse Anderson that tells the story of high school freshman Melinda Sordino. After a sexual assault ends up in her busting at the end of a summer party, Melinda is ostracized by her peers because she will not say why she called the police.   

The theme of "Speak" is isolation. After the rape, Melinda is unable to speak about what happened to her and quits speaking altogether. I read this book when I was 13 years old. It was my very first book to read and my favourite. And I was going to read it once again, today. Because today I spoke to a girl that reminded me of Melinda. 

By the time I finished reading the book, It was ten pm. I stood up and put the book back on the shelf before I went out. My phone buzzed. I took it out from my coat's pocket and unlocked it to see a text from Brynn that said, He knows, help me!!!