Olivia stood in the doorway of the house, looking very tired, and at the same time, she barely knew what to do. Her fingers rested weakly against the edge of the door as if even holding it open was a burden.
"Jewel, please lift the box carefully," she called out, her voice low and strained as she made her way inside.
The house looked the same as always small, quiet, and worn out by time. The walls had faded patches where paint had peeled off long ago, and the air carried that familiar scent of heat and struggle. Nothing ever really changed in this place.
She was exhausted.
Not just tired from work, but drained from everything from surviving, from trying, from carrying a weight that never seemed to get lighter.
She touched the wall as she walked, and a part of the old paint peeled off under her fingers. She stared at it for a second before letting her hand drop. Even the house was tired.
She had been working the whole day and finally got home. Slowly, she sank into the tattered couch, the weak cushion dipping under her weight. A deep sigh escaped her lips as she leaned back, staring faintly at the ceiling like she was trying to forget the day ever happened.
"Hey, you don't wanna read this book?" Jewel called out cheerfully as she hopped onto the couch beside her.
Jewel was full of life, the complete opposite of Olivia in that moment. She was a sharp, enthusiastic, bright, and pretty girl who still had that spark of youth in her eyes. She would be 21 by the end of the year, yet she still acted like the world hadn't completely touched her yet.
She was in high school, currently on mid-term break, and she had taken it upon herself to prepare food for her sister.
But deep down, she was nervous.
She had been thinking about it all day wondering if Olivia would be angry or proud. Wondering if she had crossed a line. Wondering if helping out had been the right thing to do.
Her fingers tightened slightly around the book she was holding.
She was anxious.
"Please, do not disturb me right now. I'm so tired," Olivia said, her voice heavy. "You won't believe this, Jewel -Jace made me work for him in his eatery and didn't even give me my share of the food I cooked with my own sweat."
Tilting her head back against the sofa, she hissed softly, frustration written all over her face.
Her mind felt crowded, like too many thoughts were pressing against each other. She swallowed, her throat dry, her lips slightly parted as she tried to steady herself.
She had just turned twenty-four the previous year.
Twenty-four, yet life already felt like it had gone too far ahead of her.
She had stopped schooling not because she wanted to, but because she had no choice. Someone had to step up. Someone had to take responsibility.
And that someone was her.
Her chest tightened slightly.
They both loved their mum so much.
Sometimes, in the quiet of the night, when everything went still and there was nothing left to distract her, Olivia would remember.
That night.
The screams.
The way her mother cried out in pain, begging, calling for help.
Olivia had run, her heart racing, her hands trembling but the door had been locked.
Locked.
Tears gathered in her eyes at the memory, but she blinked them away quickly.
By the time she got in… it was over.
"Don't mind him. I'll kill him if he messes with my sister," Jewel said, trying to lighten the mood. "You have to take a bath and eat right now you look like you could choke at any moment."
She laughed, but there was a small trace of worry behind it.
"Oh, sis, don't start. I'm tired," Olivia muttered. "I'll just take a bath and join you later to eat. What did you cook?"
Then it hit her.
She remembered leaving without anything to eat.
There had been nothing in the house that morning.
Her brows slowly furrowed.
How could that be?
"Well, I… er… went out to work, you know."
Jewel bit her lips, her eyes dropping slightly.
Olivia's body stiffened.
Her hands clenched immediately.
"So you… you what?" she asked slowly, her gaze fixed on her.
"I'm sorry," Jewel said quickly. "I helped out in Mama Bear's laundry, and she paid me."
Her voice softened towards the end, her eyes already filled with tears.
Silence filled the room.
Olivia didn't want this.
She didn't want Jewel to work.
Not now. Not like this.
She wanted her to stay home, focus on her studies, and have a life that was better than this better than struggle, better than pain.
She had made a promise to herself.
She would continue from where their mother stopped.
No matter how hard it got.
She released her fists slowly and covered her face with her hands, breathing out shakily.
"Don't let this happen again," she said, her voice low but firm. "Or you won't like my actions, Jewel."
"I promise. Honestly, it won't," Jewel replied quickly. "Let me get your food, sweet girl."
She stood up almost immediately and hurried away before Olivia could say anything else.
Olivia leaned back into the couch again, her body sinking into it like she had nothing left to give.
What a long day.
A very long day.
Her eyes drifted back to the ceiling.
She had been switching jobs back and forth, never staying in one place for too long. Life didn't give her that luxury.
In this country, if you didn't work hard, you didn't eat.
It was as simple as that.
She let out another quiet sigh, her chest rising and falling slowly as exhaustion finally settled deep into her bones.
From the kitchen, she could hear Jewel moving around quickly, probably trying her best to make everything perfect.
A small, tired smile almost formed on Olivia's lips… but it didn't last.
She closed her eyes briefly.
Tomorrow would come again.
And she would have to do it all over.
She would work herself to the bone again.
She picked up her phone and checked the time, it was past eight already.
She dropped it faintly and heaved a sigh of distress.
Today has been the worst and longest day she ever had.
She wished nothing happened.
She wished she was still the bright girl from years ago.
The girl who would stop at nothing till she makes it.
She heard a thud of plate gently placed right in front of her but her mind was still not there.
"Hey, what are you thinking about" Jewel sat beside her cupping her breast playfully.
She still placed her head on the chair and turned to look at her.
"That's my husband property girl" with a faint smile on her lips.
"Since when did you start thinking this belongs to your husband hmm hahaha"
"Don't be silly, give me the spoon" she stood upright and tasted the food.
"Woah you added that curry mummy does use to make food for us on Saturdays, this is so delicious damnn" she hurriedly packed it in her mouth as if she has not eaten for years.
"Yeah, I was at the store today and it was just uploaded there, I had to pick so I could use in remembrance of mummy" a tear dropped off her eyes and she looked down and then looked up with a big smile on her face.
"I'm here now, look at me, this is mummy and you're too old to act like a kid okay?"
Olivia patted her shoulder and planted a kiss on her forehead.
"I love you so much"
"I love you too, help me get some water, I need to drink water"
She hurried out of the living room to get her sister water while she eat and stared at her plate as if it offended her.
She wasn't sad.
She wasn't happy too.
She's been dealing with it for years.
She finally accepted her fate.
"So shall it be" she whispered, then rest her head on the couch again.