Expelled From Home
"Look, what's this? Do you still want to be absent, if it wasn't you who stole my jewelry?"
Belinda showed an artificial anger when she found her jewelry in Shena's closet.
Shena shook her head quickly. The girl couldn't believe what she was seeing. How could her stepmother's jewelry, which she had never touched, suddenly be in her closet?
Angel and Agnes looked at each other for a moment. They smiled wryly as the mission to prank Shena went well. That girl had to be eliminated.
"It's not just that, Pa. There's something even worse." Angel said. "She has dared to sell herself to old men who frequent nightclubs. On top of that, Shena also deals in illicit goods!" he added with a sardonic glance at Shena.
Alvin, who was already angry about Shena stealing his mother's jewelry, was even angrier when he heard the bad news that Angel had just told him. His jaw hardened and his hands clenched into fists. The man didn't expect his daughter to do something so out of line.
"You're too much, Shena! Did Papa ever teach you to be a thief? Did Papa ever teach you to be a cheap girl?" growled the man who had raised Shena.
"Those are lies! They're lies, Pa! I've never stolen, let alone sold myself, Pa," Shena argued while shaking her head. Of course, Shena couldn't accept this because she didn't do what her stepmother and stepbrother accused her of.
"Shut up! Leave right now! I don't want to have a daughter like you!" Alvin threw Shena out without mercy. The man was already affected by the second wife and stepchildren who were always spreading slander about Shena.
Belinda and her two daughters smiled with satisfaction at Alvin's anger. They had deliberately made Alvin angry so that he would throw Shena out. The three of them intend to take control of Alvin and everything the old man has.
"But, Pa, I didn't do what they accused me of," Shena denied for the second time. Who else would defend her but herself? Her chest rose and fell in time with her irregular breathing. Anyone in Shena's position would have felt the same way. The girl never thought her father would believe Belinda and her two daughters.
"Never mind, Shena. You don't need to defend yourself! It's obvious that my jewelry is in your closet, so there's no need to deny it," Belinda said.
"No! No, Dad. Don't believe me, it's all Auntie Belinda, Angel, and Agnes. They never liked me," Shena retorted, pointing an index finger at the three people whose names were mentioned.
"How dare you! How dare you talk like that! What did we do that for, huh?" snapped Belinda who didn't accept that Shena continued to defend herself. This time, she didn't want her plan to fail again. With the help of her two children, she had to get Alvin to kick Shena out of the house.
"What for, what are you asking for?" Shena ventured. "Just tell me! You want to control my father, don't you? Even this house and everything my father owns!"
Belinda and her two daughters looked furious. The woman instantly looked at Alvin, hoping that he wouldn't be affected by what Shena had said.
Angel and Agnes also looked at each other, worried that their stepfather would believe Shena. They didn't want to be kicked out.
"Shena, enough!" Hearing Shena's words made Alvin lose his temper. With sure steps, the old man approached his daughter. A hard slap landed on Shena's smooth cheek, causing all eyes in the room to widen instantly.
Shena clutched her burning cheek. The girl never expected Alvin to slap her face. All this time, let alone throwing a hand at Shena's body, the old man had never spoken harshly to her. However, after living together with Belinda, Alvin changed so much that he was able to hurt his biological daughter.
Before this incident, Shena had often received bad treatment from her father. Alvin defended Angel and Agnes more than Shena in any case. Not once or twice did Alvin scold Shena for mistakes the girl never made.
Belinda and her two daughters smiled with satisfaction at the scene unfolding before them. This was exactly what they had hoped for, kicking Shena out of their lives.
"You had the heart to slap me for them? You could hurt me with a mistake I never made?" Shena screamed. Her tears flowed freely. She remembered the days when her happiness was still within her grasp when her mama was still around. Her life was full of love and peace. Unlike now, her life seemed to be destroyed, and she had even forgotten how to be happy.
Alvin froze, regretting what he had done to the baby he had gotten from the woman he loved so much.
"Papa has broken his promise to Mama. Let alone take care of me, Papa doesn't even trust me anymore! I hope you don't see this incident because if you do, be prepared to always be haunted by guilt if one day Papa finds out the truth," Shena said emphatically.
The man didn't move. He still remembered it, a promise to protect the most precious treasure left behind by his wife, Shena.
"If you want me to go, I'll go, Father." Shena couldn't help herself anymore. Why stay with a family that didn't love her?
Shena picked up her backpack and stuffed some clothes into it. Her fingers reached for a picture frame that showed a picture of her with her late mother and stared at it for a moment.
Ma, please forgive Shena. Shena can't take care of Papa anymore, because Papa himself doesn't want Shena here anymore. Papa has found a new child that he loves more than Shena. Pray for Shena, Ma, Shena's heart rumbled. The girl sobbed as she looked at the face of the woman who had passed away two years ago.
After packing up her things, Shena looked briefly at her father who was still standing in the same place. Then, the girl stepped nonchalantly toward Belinda.
"Congratulations Auntie, now there's no need to make the drama as if I'm a victim because I'm leaving this house. Enjoy everything you've wanted since two years ago," Shena said without any fear.
She then approached Belinda's two girls. Shena slapped Angel and Agnes in turn and managed to startle both girls. Belinda was furious to see Shena daring to hurt her children, while Alvin remained silent.
"Look Pa, your daughter is insolent! How dare she hit our child," Belinda yelled at Alvin.
Shena laughed at Belinda's words as she wiped her tears roughly. "Our daughter?" she mocked. "Didn't I hear wrong? Ah, yes, your daughter. That's right." Shena answered her question while nodding her head.
Belinda's breath sounded ragged, she wanted to slap and even beat Shena, especially with the whining of her two daughters who felt pain on their faces, adding to her irritation. However, she decided not to do that because she didn't want to make Alvin side with Shena.
"What's wrong with Angel and Agnes? It doesn't matter if Mama's jewelry is missing, but don't you hurt them!" Belinda said as she started to cry.
"Never mind, Auntie. Don't go overboard!" snapped Shena equally annoyed.
"Shena!" Alvin snapped.
The girl whose name was called then turned her head casually.
"Apologize to your Mama!" Alvin ordered.
"I already did that in my heart, through her picture. I have only one mother, Mama Sandra, not this arrogant woman," Shena replied, pointing at Belinda with her chin.
"You, insole—"
"Insolent!" cut in Shena who already knew what her father was going to say.
"How dare you interrupt Papa!" Alvin growled.
"You're no longer my father. You're the one who said you didn't want to have a daughter like me!" Shena replied again with emphasis.
Belinda, Angel, and Agnes were getting more and more excited as they watched the argument between the girls and their Papas.
"Never mind, I'm too lazy to stay here!" said Shena as she walked away from the people who had made her feel oppressed.