Missing In Action: A Story Of A Concrete Angel, chapter 4
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Through the wind and the rain
She stands hard as a stone
In a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings
And she flies to a place where she's loved
Concrete angel
Lilliana walked over to Billie and Adie. Billie picked her up and set her down on the table.
"What Biwwie want to show me?" she asked.
"Adie and I got you a present for you birthday," he stated.
"Me no want pwesent. I already got it fwom you," she said, looking at the ground.
"And what would that be?" he asked, curious.
"You made me feel loved for once," she said, a single tear running down her face and landing on her small hand.
"Awww," Billie said. He hugged her tight.
Joey was sitting from afar looking on at the scene with happiness and for a reason unknown to him, jealousy. Then the thought struck him; he was jealous because Lilliana was reciving affection from his dad when he rarely recived any at all, with his dad being gone most of the time. Joey pushed the thought out of his head by thinking of how much Lilliana deserved the attention.
"But we, as in Adie, Joey, Jakob, and I, got you something I think you will like for your birthday," Billie said, holding Lilliana an arms leanth away from him.
"What is it?" she asked, courious as to what the present could be. She was getting excited; she had never really gotten anything for her birthday or any other celebration that it was costomary to give loved ones a gift. That was just it; Lilliana Preztere was unloved in this world! Well, not entirely. She was definitely loved by The Armstrongs.
"Before we give it to you, we need to explain why we are giving it to you and what it means," Adie said, picking Lilliana up and taking her over to her desk. She sat her down and got out a small black box. "Inside this box is a locket. Not just any locket, but one that means so much to me," Adie said, opening the box to show Lilliana a small, beautiful, silver locket on a silver chain. Engraved into the front of the silver, heart-shaped locket was a small flower; a Lilly. "You see," Adie continued. "My Great-great-great-great-great-great Grandma Lilliana traveled from England to America on a ship. That ship happened to be the Titanic, do you know of it?"
Lilliana nodded feriously. "I wove it!" she said in a cute voice.
"Well, then you know that it sank on April 14, 1912. I was told that my Great-great-great-great-great-great Grandpa gave my Great-great-great-great-great-great Grandma this locket the night before it sank. They both survived and from that time on it has been a tradition to pass down this locket throughout the grenerations to each mothers first daughter the day she turns seven. Because I don't have any daughters, I have decided to pass this onto you. You are the closest thing to a daughter me and Billie have," Adie explained in a tone that was very common when one goes on to tell a long story about one's family history.
"But won't that break the family tradition?" Lilliana asked.
"Yes, but Billie and I are not going to have anymore kids," Adie said. "But there is another family tradition that goes along with it," she said, going back into her story-mode voice. "Everytime you pass this down, you have to put a picture of the family in it. Since we don't have a family picture of all of us, we were thinking that we could go outside, right now, and take one. How does that sound?" she asked.
"Yeah!" Joey piped up from behind Lilliana, who jumped because she didn't know he was there.
"Cool."
So, they went outside and got the picture taken. They had one of the other teachers take it. Billie and Adie sat in the back with Jake on their lap on the school rock that had been there since the time the school was built, which was back in 1943, and Joey and Lilliana were sitting in front of them, on the green grass. Joey was holding Lillana's hand and Billie had his left hand on Joey's right shoulder. They all smiled and looked like a very happy family, cept on problem; they were not all family.
After a few days, Billie and Adie gave the locket to Lilliana with the picture inside at lunch. Lilliana looked at the picture and smiled. She wished that she could have been born into that family instead of the one she was born into.
This thought got her thinking. Maybe this was all meant to be. Maybe I was meant to meet this family. Maybe this was my destiny, my fate.
Lilliana dreded what her father would do if he found the locket. Sometimes she feared to go home at night because she knew her father would be there in a drunken rage. Be there waiting to give her her daily punishment. Be there to order her to clean the permently dirty house till she could not no more. Be there to make sure she payed for her non-existant sins.
But she knew that if she didn't face what was coming, she would have to pay latter. And that was never good.
So, like everyother school day, Lilliana truged home. Once she got to the place she was forced to call home, she slowly walked up the dirty pathway that, at one point in time, used to be a brand new, stone walkway. Lilliana steped onto the landing in front of the door and stood on her toes to reach the door handel. You see, despite her age, she was extreamly short and very small. Sometimes she would be mistaken for a baby. This really annoyed her.
She walked inside the fithy home and down the hall to the only clean room in the house, her room. She opened the door and put her school things away. She then started on the daily chores she was given. She tried to work quietly but failed teribally. Luckily, her father was not home. He was most likely at the bar down town drinking himself into a state of crazyness.
Unfortunately, he came home earlier than expected; expecting all of the chores to be done and a hot plate of food on the table ready to eat.
He walked into the kichen to see a small lump on the floor. The lump was dressed in rags and was scrubbing the floor feriously, trying to get the three inch grime off of it.
"You!" he sneered drunkenly. "You are a pethetic excuse of a human! I said I wanted supper hot and ready for me to eat by the time I got home!"
He marched over to the quivering lump and picked it up off of the floor by her hair. She didn't scream or make a sound for fear she might get hurt worse.
He threw her onto the stove and yelled, "Get supper done by six and not a second later!"
He stomped to his room leaving the small lump shaking badly on the stove. She crawled onto the counter and stood up to find something easy to make her father.
*Lilliana's P.O.V.*
I opened the cubbard to find food. Plates, glasses, a bag ofPork Rinds, a box of Angel Hair Noodles, a can of sauce, two small cans of meatballs, a bottle of vegtable oil, an assortment of spices, and some pots and pans.
I poundered for a second, then mad up my mind. Father was going to have Pasta Puntenestca. (Authors Note: Pasta Puntenestca is the Pasta dish that the Baudelaire Orphans made for Count Olaf and his theatical troup in The Bad Beginning.)
I grabbed what I would need and set them on the counter. I jumped down and landed on my back side. I got up, wincing from the fall, and grabbed a stool from the dinning room. I set the stool in front of the counter where the ingredients were placed and climbed on it.
I began making the dish, hoping that Father would except it and eat it.
When the Pasta Puntenestca was finished, I cleaned up quickly and served it onto a large plate I had gotten from the cubbord earlier. I set up the table and quickly headed down the hall twords Father's room.
Once outside the door, I nocked lightly, hoping that he would answer and eat it so I could go to bed.
"What!" he yelled from the other side.
"Supper is ready, Sir," I said.
Father opened the door and walked to the dinning room. He sat down and stared at the steaming plate of food that was in front of him.
"What is this!?" Father yelled at me.
"Pasta Puntenestca," I relplied, hopping to God that I would be dissmissed.
"What did you call me?!" Father raged, hovering over me.
When I didn't answer, Father picked me up by my hair and threw me into the wall. I hit it with such a force, I was shocked to still be alive.
Father picked up the plate of food and threw it at the wall above me head. It splattered everywhere. All of the shards landed on top of me along with most of the food. It was extreamly hot.
No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't hold back the tears.
Father saw the tears and stomped over to me. He grabbed the front of my filthy dress and...
She stands hard as a stone
In a world that she can't rise above
But her dreams give her wings
And she flies to a place where she's loved
Concrete angel
Lilliana walked over to Billie and Adie. Billie picked her up and set her down on the table.
"What Biwwie want to show me?" she asked.
"Adie and I got you a present for you birthday," he stated.
"Me no want pwesent. I already got it fwom you," she said, looking at the ground.
"And what would that be?" he asked, curious.
"You made me feel loved for once," she said, a single tear running down her face and landing on her small hand.
"Awww," Billie said. He hugged her tight.
Joey was sitting from afar looking on at the scene with happiness and for a reason unknown to him, jealousy. Then the thought struck him; he was jealous because Lilliana was reciving affection from his dad when he rarely recived any at all, with his dad being gone most of the time. Joey pushed the thought out of his head by thinking of how much Lilliana deserved the attention.
"But we, as in Adie, Joey, Jakob, and I, got you something I think you will like for your birthday," Billie said, holding Lilliana an arms leanth away from him.
"What is it?" she asked, courious as to what the present could be. She was getting excited; she had never really gotten anything for her birthday or any other celebration that it was costomary to give loved ones a gift. That was just it; Lilliana Preztere was unloved in this world! Well, not entirely. She was definitely loved by The Armstrongs.
"Before we give it to you, we need to explain why we are giving it to you and what it means," Adie said, picking Lilliana up and taking her over to her desk. She sat her down and got out a small black box. "Inside this box is a locket. Not just any locket, but one that means so much to me," Adie said, opening the box to show Lilliana a small, beautiful, silver locket on a silver chain. Engraved into the front of the silver, heart-shaped locket was a small flower; a Lilly. "You see," Adie continued. "My Great-great-great-great-great-great Grandma Lilliana traveled from England to America on a ship. That ship happened to be the Titanic, do you know of it?"
Lilliana nodded feriously. "I wove it!" she said in a cute voice.
"Well, then you know that it sank on April 14, 1912. I was told that my Great-great-great-great-great-great Grandpa gave my Great-great-great-great-great-great Grandma this locket the night before it sank. They both survived and from that time on it has been a tradition to pass down this locket throughout the grenerations to each mothers first daughter the day she turns seven. Because I don't have any daughters, I have decided to pass this onto you. You are the closest thing to a daughter me and Billie have," Adie explained in a tone that was very common when one goes on to tell a long story about one's family history.
"But won't that break the family tradition?" Lilliana asked.
"Yes, but Billie and I are not going to have anymore kids," Adie said. "But there is another family tradition that goes along with it," she said, going back into her story-mode voice. "Everytime you pass this down, you have to put a picture of the family in it. Since we don't have a family picture of all of us, we were thinking that we could go outside, right now, and take one. How does that sound?" she asked.
"Yeah!" Joey piped up from behind Lilliana, who jumped because she didn't know he was there.
"Cool."
So, they went outside and got the picture taken. They had one of the other teachers take it. Billie and Adie sat in the back with Jake on their lap on the school rock that had been there since the time the school was built, which was back in 1943, and Joey and Lilliana were sitting in front of them, on the green grass. Joey was holding Lillana's hand and Billie had his left hand on Joey's right shoulder. They all smiled and looked like a very happy family, cept on problem; they were not all family.
After a few days, Billie and Adie gave the locket to Lilliana with the picture inside at lunch. Lilliana looked at the picture and smiled. She wished that she could have been born into that family instead of the one she was born into.
This thought got her thinking. Maybe this was all meant to be. Maybe I was meant to meet this family. Maybe this was my destiny, my fate.
Lilliana dreded what her father would do if he found the locket. Sometimes she feared to go home at night because she knew her father would be there in a drunken rage. Be there waiting to give her her daily punishment. Be there to order her to clean the permently dirty house till she could not no more. Be there to make sure she payed for her non-existant sins.
But she knew that if she didn't face what was coming, she would have to pay latter. And that was never good.
So, like everyother school day, Lilliana truged home. Once she got to the place she was forced to call home, she slowly walked up the dirty pathway that, at one point in time, used to be a brand new, stone walkway. Lilliana steped onto the landing in front of the door and stood on her toes to reach the door handel. You see, despite her age, she was extreamly short and very small. Sometimes she would be mistaken for a baby. This really annoyed her.
She walked inside the fithy home and down the hall to the only clean room in the house, her room. She opened the door and put her school things away. She then started on the daily chores she was given. She tried to work quietly but failed teribally. Luckily, her father was not home. He was most likely at the bar down town drinking himself into a state of crazyness.
Unfortunately, he came home earlier than expected; expecting all of the chores to be done and a hot plate of food on the table ready to eat.
He walked into the kichen to see a small lump on the floor. The lump was dressed in rags and was scrubbing the floor feriously, trying to get the three inch grime off of it.
"You!" he sneered drunkenly. "You are a pethetic excuse of a human! I said I wanted supper hot and ready for me to eat by the time I got home!"
He marched over to the quivering lump and picked it up off of the floor by her hair. She didn't scream or make a sound for fear she might get hurt worse.
He threw her onto the stove and yelled, "Get supper done by six and not a second later!"
He stomped to his room leaving the small lump shaking badly on the stove. She crawled onto the counter and stood up to find something easy to make her father.
*Lilliana's P.O.V.*
I opened the cubbard to find food. Plates, glasses, a bag ofPork Rinds, a box of Angel Hair Noodles, a can of sauce, two small cans of meatballs, a bottle of vegtable oil, an assortment of spices, and some pots and pans.
I poundered for a second, then mad up my mind. Father was going to have Pasta Puntenestca. (Authors Note: Pasta Puntenestca is the Pasta dish that the Baudelaire Orphans made for Count Olaf and his theatical troup in The Bad Beginning.)
I grabbed what I would need and set them on the counter. I jumped down and landed on my back side. I got up, wincing from the fall, and grabbed a stool from the dinning room. I set the stool in front of the counter where the ingredients were placed and climbed on it.
I began making the dish, hoping that Father would except it and eat it.
When the Pasta Puntenestca was finished, I cleaned up quickly and served it onto a large plate I had gotten from the cubbord earlier. I set up the table and quickly headed down the hall twords Father's room.
Once outside the door, I nocked lightly, hoping that he would answer and eat it so I could go to bed.
"What!" he yelled from the other side.
"Supper is ready, Sir," I said.
Father opened the door and walked to the dinning room. He sat down and stared at the steaming plate of food that was in front of him.
"What is this!?" Father yelled at me.
"Pasta Puntenestca," I relplied, hopping to God that I would be dissmissed.
"What did you call me?!" Father raged, hovering over me.
When I didn't answer, Father picked me up by my hair and threw me into the wall. I hit it with such a force, I was shocked to still be alive.
Father picked up the plate of food and threw it at the wall above me head. It splattered everywhere. All of the shards landed on top of me along with most of the food. It was extreamly hot.
No matter how hard I tried, I just couldn't hold back the tears.
Father saw the tears and stomped over to me. He grabbed the front of my filthy dress and...
