Chapter 2
Hazel's POV
The morning bell clanged like a cold hammer in the chill of dawn, jolting me awake. I rubbed my gritty eyes, my body stiff like wood from yesterday's torment. Slowly, I rose, putting my feet on the cold floor. In the dim light, I shuffled to the basin for my morning bath.
Water trickled like tears from the jug as I washed away sleep and pain. I scrubbed my skin raw, trying to scrub away the hurt too. Drops fell like tiny knives on my sore muscles. When I finished, I stood before the cracked mirror, water droplets on my skin like tiny diamonds.
I stared at myself in the mirror's dim truth. A girl with dark hair like night flowing down my back like shadows. Eyes like deep pools stared back—brown, haunted. Skin olive-toned with a hint of pallor from pain. Full lips pressed tight like they held secrets. My beauty was like a wildflower in shadows—fragile, fierce.
A tear broke free from my eye, tracking down my cheek like a tiny river. I touched my face, feeling pain in every inch. The mirror showed a girl broken by cruelty. Stepmom's words echoed: "Useless." "Broken." My eyes lingered on my reflection —shoulders drooping like they carried weights.
In the mirror, I saw contradictions. Beauty mixed with pain. Strength in my eyes fighting weakness in my stance. Like a bruised flower, I hurt yet existed. A tear dropped to my chest like a promise of something—maybe breaking, maybe fighting.
My gaze lingered on myself like I searched for something hidden. A spark of defiance maybe, or a crack in the pain. My breath hitched as I touched my own face again , cheeks hollow like shadows, eyes like dark pools. I whispered to myself in the mirror, "I see you."
The mirror held my truth—a girl in pain
with beauty like a weapon. A tear dried on my cheek like a mark of my story. I turned away from the mirror, ready for another day of fields and stepmom's cruelty. But in my eyes stayed a shadow of something unbroken.
I trudged into the kitchen, my body aching from the morning's work. My stepmom sat at the head of the table, her face like stone. My stepsisters Ava and Mia lounged beside her, sneering at me like I was trash.
"Useless girl," Stepmom spat, not looking up from her breakfast. "Can't even do simple tasks without complaining. You're a burden."
I kept my head down, eyes on the floor. "I-I'm trying, mother."
Ava snickered. "Trying? You call that trying? You're slow, clumsy. You make us look bad."
Mia chimed in, her voice like acid. "Yeah, like when you broke the hoe yesterday. Clumsy idiot."
Stepmom slammed her fist on the table. "Enough talk. You, Hazel, will work harder today. You'll pick twice as many weeds in the west field. And if you don't... you'll sleep outside tonight."
My heart shrank like a frightened animal. "Y-yes, mother."
Ava leaned forward, her eyes cruel. "And if you cry again today, we'll make you work in the sun all day without water. You'll beg to cry."
Mia giggled like a cruel child. "Yeah, we'll see how long you last."
Stepmom's face twisted into a cruel smile. "You'll do as you're told, Hazel. Or pay the price. You're nothing but a servant here."
I bit my lip till it bled, trying not to cry. I nodded quickly, knowing better than to argue. "I'll do it, mother."
The stepfamily laughed like they were watching a cruel game. Stepmom waved her hand dismissively. "Go. Get out there and work. Don't waste our time."
I turned to leave, my eyes stinging like I'd been slapped. As I walked out, Ava called out, "And don't forget, Hazel. You're worthless. Nobody wants you."
The words cut like knives into my skin. I walked faster, wanting to escape the kitchen's cruelty. Outside, the sun beat down like a hammer, waiting for me to toil.
In the fields, I bent double, weeds like green enemies around me. I pulled and pulled, tears trying to break free. Stepmom's words echoed in my head like cruel drums: "Useless." "Burden." "Worthless."
My hands bled from gripping the tools too tight. My back screamed in pain. But I didn't stop. I couldn't stop. Not with stepmom watching like a hawk.
As the sun climbed high like a cruel god, I labored on. In my mind, a tiny spark of defiance flickered like a candle in darkness. Someday... maybe...