Chapter 28: Silvia (2)
[12/07/2018]
[Now I have moved up to third grade. Tomorrow is the day I start transferring and attending an elementary school with mixed-gender students again. I am so excited to meet new friends!]
[Unlike when I was in second grade and Mom forcibly transferred me to an all-girls elementary school. Now Mom has enrolled me in a mixed-gender elementary school again!]
[I am going to sleep early so tomorrow comes faster!]
That night, eight-year-old Silvia wrote with a small, adorable smile on her face. Her legs dangled from the chair that was still too tall for her. After that, she jumped onto her bed with her small body and fell asleep with a melting smile.
The next day, Silvia was driven to the new school by her mother. She hummed all the way there because she was so excited.
After a journey that felt quite long for Silvia, her mother finally arrived at her new school. The school was quite large for an elementary school meant only for children.
From the car window, Silvia could see children her age wearing beige vests. She let out a small "woah" in amazement.
After that, her mother, who was sitting beside her, reached out to open the car door where Silvia was sitting.
Silvia was about to get out immediately, but her mother suddenly grabbed her shoulder. Silvia turned her head and saw her mother’s serious face.
Her little heart beat fast when she heard her mother speak.
"Do not befriend any boys." Her mother said in a commanding and firm voice.
Little Silvia’s face fell open. Her eyes turned slightly red as she held back tears. However, she remembered that this was the first rule her mother had set in her life.
"Okay, Mom..." Her voice sounded gloomy.
After that, her mother withdrew the hand that was on Silvia’s shoulder.
"Now, go. Study diligently." Her mother said, gripping the steering wheel again.
With her head lowered, Silvia got out of the car. Her mother immediately drove away after seeing Silvia start walking toward the school gate.
At that moment, the thought of defying her mother crossed little Silvia’s mind. But in the end, she pushed that thought far away.
Because her mother would definitely threaten to die in front of her if she resisted.
Still, Silvia forced herself to look a little cheerful. At least she could still make friends, even if it was only with girls her own age.
That day, Silvia introduced herself in front of her new classmates. The other children were amazed at how well Silvia carried herself in class. Even though she was still young, she always showed excellent manners and politeness.
When the break bell rang, many of her classmates immediately crowded around her.
Most of them were girls who were curious about her.
"Woah... you look very pretty!" One girl said in admiration beside her, making Silvia feel a little shy.
"How did you manage to string your words together so beautifully during the introduction earlier? It sounded really impressive." A girl with glasses said. Silvia immediately guessed that she was the smartest student in the class.
Lively chatter, questions, and laughter surrounded Silvia. She answered her new friends questions one by one and sometimes let out small giggles when she heard what her classmates said.
Then PE class began. The children were told to do exercises in their sports uniforms. Silvia followed the teacher’s movements diligently. After the exercises ended, the children were free to play whatever they wanted on the field.
Instead of joining her friends to play hide and seek or tag, Silvia chose to read a book on a shaded bench on the field.
It was a slightly calming moment after being surrounded by her new friends all morning.
She was now very focused on reading a romance novel. Her liking for romance novels might have grown because of the lack of attention she received from those closest to her.
Her fondness for romance novels had also grown back when she attended her previous elementary school, when she met her first friend, a boy she encountered at that time.
However, her mother immediately transferred her to another school after finding out that Silvia had befriended that boy. Silvia still clearly remembered how her mother’s face twitched violently when she saw that boy.
At that time, Silvia threw a huge tantrum when she was separated from the boy. And that was also when her mother began to change and set strict rules that restrained Silvia.
At first Silvia strongly resisted those rules, until suddenly her mother took her to a beach, carried her into the wavy sea together, and walked slowly until they were almost submerged.
Fortunately, Silvia immediately apologized and promised to follow her mother’s rules.
That was the beginning of how her mother began to control Silvia’s life.
She really missed how her life was before her mother restrained her. She really missed being able to make friends like other children her age.
She also missed her childhood friend from first grade. And the friend who, for some reason, made her mother extremely angry and became the catalyst for the change in Silvia’s life.
She still remembered his name. It was carved deeply in her mind.
Liam Kent.
She missed that childhood friend of hers.
***
[11/05/2025]
[Today at school I attended classes as usual, got a perfect score in discrete mathematics, and also helped the teacher organize a document.]
[My study group went smoothly too. Even though the members of my study group had some difficulties learning, I always taught them so they could gain a deeper understanding of the material. Just like Mom said, teaching someone something is the highest level of understanding.]
The sound of Silvia’s pen scratching echoed in her ears. Her eyes were focused, but there was no spirit in them at all.
Writing the diary, which was of course her mother’s order, and then submitting its contents to her mother afterward.
Even if she lied in the diary, her mother would always know.
The pen Silvia was holding trembled violently. Her eyes became slightly teary.
Sniff...
I don’t want to keep living like this...
I need help from someone else.
I can’t do it on my own.
Then a name crossed her mind.
Liam Kent.
Her first friend from elementary school. Maybe Liam did not remember her now, since Silvia had only mentioned his name once in front of him when they were little.
During the study session earlier, Liam had been amazed by her emoji drawings. He had no idea that long ago Liam had also shown her similar expressive emoji drawings. She had simply copied how he drew them.
"I always draw these expressive emojis. You know, my mom always laughs when she sees my drawings." That was what little Liam had said to Silvia.
When Silvia heard that, she eventually followed what he said. She also drew expressive emojis next to every note in her lessons, hoping her mother would notice and at least smile.
But her mother had instead said, "Why are you drawing this? It takes up too much space, when you could write more notes here."
From then on, Silvia felt even more hurt. The desire to be free from her mother’s control grew stronger. Until now, when her mother found out again that she was friends with Liam. From her mother’s current expression, she was threatening Silvia not to be friends with him.
Or maybe she would be transferred to another school again.
’I just want to be free.’ Silvia thought sadly.
Without realizing it, after finishing her diary, she took out a piece of paper and started writing something.
A plan to be free from the restraints.
For the first time, Silvia tried to resist her mother.
She scribbled on the paper. Ink filled the once-white sheet. After thinking and writing for quite a while.
A rather radical plan was laid out on the paper.
Silvia circled a certain name on the paper with exhausted, heavy breaths.
Liam Kent.
Only you can save me.
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