She was a bundle of joy, with apple cheeks, large doe-like eyes and all. "God’s gift to me", Marilyn thought, stroking the soft crown of hair gently. And so, she named her Joy.

 

Joy turned out to be the daughter every mother could wish for. She was the epitome of elegance, a genuine classic beauty. Even at the tender age of nine, she attracted uncountable stares from strangers, males and females alike. They usually stood aside, in awe of her, occasionally speaking in hushed tones while looking admiringly at her.

 

Young as she was, Joy however, knew how to turn on the charm. A slight toss of that thick, luscious hair, a flutter of those deliciously long lashes, she was definitely not unfamiliar with these tricks of the trade. Nevertheless, being the foolish woman that she was, Marilyn never bothered to stop her daughter. Instead, she dolled her up in the flashiest clothes, often applying thick layers of makeup on her. Together, they lapped up the attention they received, Marilyn being totally unaware of the danger she was putting Joy into. When she finally did, it was all already too late.

 

Humming to her all-time favourite song, Marilyn slowly made her way towards Joy’s primary school. Picking her up after lessons had long became Marilyn’s daily routine. In fact, she enjoyed doing it, secretly relishing in the fact that both mother and daughter were able to bask in their much envied glory. Pushing open the school gate, Marilyn waited patiently, expecting Joy to emerge from her classroom in just a moment or so.

 

Thirty minutes passed. Convinced that there was something weird going on, Marilyn entered Joy’s classroom, only to find it empty. She panicked. Alarm bells going off in her head, Marilyn rushed to the teachers’ office, whereby she shouted at the top of her voice, demanding to see Joy’s teacher immediately. When the teacher appeared, she hurriedly tried to explain things to the now hysterical Marilyn.

 

When she was finally calm enough to hear out the whole story, Marilyn freaked out. An unidentified man had arrived a mere five minutes before her, claiming that he was Joy’s father and had taken her away. But ever since Joy’s father died from an overdose of drugs only two years into their marriage, she never had let any man into her life again. Emotions now in a whirl, Marilyn struggled to think if she had offended anyone recently, but could hardly manage to collect her thoughts. Clutching her head in agony, she bent over, in a daze. The next thing she knew, she blacked out.

 

When she came to, Marilyn was lying on a hospital bed, with policemen all around her. Still disoriented, she shook her head vigorously. Then it all came back to her. Joy was missing. Just as she was about to open her mouth to enquire about Joy, one of the policemen broke the bad news to her. Two hours earlier, they had found Joy in a ditch along a deserted road, dead. She had been naked and most definitely, raped.

 

Grief overwhelmed Marilyn. She could hardly bear to face the thought of her lovely, lovely daughter lying cold, all alone and no longer pure. Why, out of the millions of girls available, did her daughter have to be the one? Perhaps, she had only herself to blame. If only she had spent less time fixing her makeup, and had reached the school five minutes earlier. If only she had not been that flamboyant of her perfect little daughter. If only… She broke down, sobbing inconsolably.

 

Whatever it was, Joy was no more.

 

 

see? i told you i liked matching beginnings and endings. emoticon that was written in secondary 4.

 

p.s: erotica entry will be later! i have to redo a newswriting article so it has to be put off for now. i know, bleah. emoticon  blame my tutor please.