Winter's Mate: Fated on Ice

4

Rosie

I stared at the door of my parents' house and took a deep breath. Christmas Day was supposed to be a joyous day of people laughing, exchanging gifts, and pleasantries, but for me, since yesterday, it has been a nightmare.

I could still hear those comments in my head, still see that video playing on loop every time I closed my eyes.

I looked at the snow falling to the ground, uncaring of what the humans were feeling, whether they were happy about the snow or not. The chiming sound from the bells and the Christmas lights from the neighborhood lit up. Everything looked so normal, so festive, like my world hadn't just ended.

With a deep breath, I pressed the doorbell. My mother opened the door, and upon seeing me, her mood immediately soured. She scoffed and left the door open, turning her back like I was a stranger.

As I entered, the house never felt so small and constricted. Home was supposed to be comfortable and warm, but now it felt so distant and suffocating. Everything felt different. The familiar scent of cinnamon from Mom's Christmas candles made my stomach turn.

The family photo on the wall mocked me-the perfect twin daughters, side by side, both smiling. Except only one of us was truly wanted.

I reached the living room and my dad was seated on the couch, he was reading a newspaper and my mother beside him. The Christmas tree stood in the corner, still beautiful, still lit up.

"Sit down," my mom said, her voice sounding so distant. And I sat on the edge of the armchair across from them, my hands clasped in my lap

A long silence passed-before my dad folded the paper and removed his reading glasses, then faced me. His expression morphed into controlled anger as he spoke in a cold voice.

"Do you have any idea what you've done?" I flinched from how his voice came out.

I rubbed my hands together again as I opened my mouth to talk, but nothing came out. My mother glared at me, and I could see the disgust written all over her face.

"How could you do this to us?" my mother asked. "Everyone has seen it. Everyone," she added, her voice rising. "The neighbors, people from church, your dad's colleagues." She listed them, and I wanted the ground to swallow me.

"Because of you, we became a laughing stock when we went to church today. Everyone was talking about it. Do you know how humiliated I was?" Her voice cracked on the last word, and for a second, I thought she might cry.

"We can't show our faces anywhere," my mother said. "How could you be so stupid? So careless?"

"It wasn't like that." I managed to whisper.

"And how is it?" my father's voice boomed out and I nearly jumped from my seat.

"I didn't know he was recording-" I said.

My dad stared at me in disbelief as he cut me off. " You expect us to believe that?"

"Yes-"

Mom whispered, "Even if it's true, you still chose to-" She shook her head in disappointment. "You gave yourself to him like a cheap whore. On camera."

Did my mom just call me a slut?

"I didn't know about the camera!"

"You should have been smarter."

"I was lied to! I was used! I'm the victim here!"

Mom stood, face twisted with rage. Before I knew it, she slapped me hard across the face.

Silence. My cheek burned. Tears stung my eyes. I touched my face in shock. They'd never hit me before. Maybe they'd been saving their anger, comparing me silently to Sophia all these years

"We raised you better than this."

Dad stood, staring with disgust. "We raised both of you the same and look how differently you turned out." He shook his head. "Your sister would never do something like this. Sophia has always known how to conduct herself with dignity."

My mouth hung open but it was Sophia that planned everything but the words won't come out.

"We held both of you up as examples," Mom said bitterly. "Our beautiful twin daughters. Everyone knows about your scholarships, your grades. And Sophia's achievements, her beauty, her grace. And now? Now you're the joke of the town while your sister has to live with the shame of being associated with you."

Dad clasped his hands behind his back. "We can't have you here."

"What?"

"You need to leave."

"You're kicking me out?"

"Don't come to church. Don't come to family events. Sophia will represent the family from now on. You've lost that privilege. Until we figure out how to handle this, you're not welcome here."

"I'm your daughter-"

"Right now, we have one daughter. The one who didn't humiliate us."

Dad looked at me coldly. "We're ashamed of you. Sophia is everything we hoped for in a daughter. You... you're a mistake."

I ran to him, knelt, and grabbed his legs. "Please don't do this to me."

"You should have thought of that before."

He walked out. Each step felt like a nail in my heart.

Mom pointed to the door. "Leave. Now."

I stumbled toward the door, crying. My mom threw my bag at me, and it hit my chest before falling on the ground.

"I don't even want to see you. I don't have a whore as a daughter. From today on, you are dead to me." she sneered, "Sophia is my only daughter."

The door closed behind me with finality and I stood on the porch, shaking, the snow coming down heavily, like it was mocking me too.

I had nowhere to go. The sky was darkened. Even the moon wasn't out to shine light. The night was as dark as my world right now.

My world was crushed like the snow under my feet.

I didn't know how many hours passed as I stood outside in the pouring snow, staring at my parents' house as the light of the room went out. One by one, the windows went dark

Kira came. "Rosie? How did it go? You're freezing," she said the obvious, because I was already covered with snow. My face was white and pale. My lips were trembling and my nose was blocked. Frostbite.

My legs gave out as she wrapped her arms around my cold body and crouched down to my level. My body trembled as I cried harder than ever.

Not crying. Sobbing. The kind of sobs that tore through my chest, that made my whole body shake, that felt like they'd rip me apart from the inside out.

"They kicked me out," I gasped between sobs, my words barely coherent. "They didn't-they didn't believe me-"

"Everything will be okay," but I didn't believe her. How could anything be okay ever again?

After seeing I'd calmed down, Kira pulled me to her car, ushered me inside and turned up the heater, removed my soaked gloves, and handed me a coat as I shivered.

As Kira drove in silence, I just stared out of the window. I felt completely empty. Tears had dried on my face. My chest felt heavy, like there was a blockage. I just felt numb.