Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 3 2018 | Page 124

Journey to the West
Harrow International School, Shanghai, Li, Yihamn - 12
M
y name is Millie. I Live in California.I have a family now I am bliss, I have my husband and two
other kids, one called Mandia and the other one Jassi. I do not have other family members, not
even my mom, dad or siblings. I was born in Vermont, how I got here was a very long story. I
will tell you from the beginning.
This was the year when I was thirteen. I was laying in my bed, listening to my parents talking. I didn’t
mean to listen to the conversation until I heard my mom, actually, my step-mother saying to my dad:
“ You know that many people got rich just because they went to California! They found gold! A lot of
gold! We can also get rich too! We should go. You know we can get rich! …”
Wait, what did she just say? Going to California? What? No! That is not happening! I just want to
stay here. I almost burst out of the door and I wanted to punch her. She is very mean to me and all she does
is spend money like she has burned a hole in her pocket. And now she wanted to get rich by finding gold!
I went to sleep with anger and confusion.
In the next morning as expected my dad told me that we are going to California, and he already prepared
all the things we need and we are ready to go. This shocked me because I was expecting to go like in a
week or so.
“Get on the wagon! Quick!” My mean step-mother shouted at me.
My dad stared at her, so she gave me a smile, a fake one. I went on the wagon and sat down, it was a
small one, I can not calm my self down. We started our way to California.
Days and days past, we still didn’t arrive at the next town. Our food and supplies got lesser and lesser.
Our bits of patience are also running out day by day. Until one day our nightmare became true, we really
ran out of food!
I got sicker and sicker every day. One day I fell like I am going to die, but surprisedly I lived through my
hardest time, meanwhile, someone was not very happy of my recoverability and was planning for my
death—my step-mother.
One day in the morning. It is quit a nice day, the sun was bright, the sky was blue and clear white clouds
were drifting through the sky. Everyone feels like this will be the day of their luck. But for me, it was a
nightmare.
My stepmother threw me out of the wagon and abandoned me. For the second I was like: This is a
dream! This can not be true! But it is real.
I was starving, I lied on the road and I asked people for food, but they just looked at me and gave me a
disgusting look. I felt so bad that I feel like I am going to die any moment. I closed my eyes and waited for
the god of death to come and pick me up.
“Are you okay? Can you hear me?” A soft voice talked to me. I thought to my self: am I already in
heaven, am I already dead?
I think it was because of the excitement and also fear, I just sat up and opened my eyes, I scanned around
and found a family all standing beside me.
“Who are you?”I inquired softly to the family. They all turned their head and looked at me.
“YOU ARE AWAKE!, finally! We thought you are dea…(here she wanted to say ‘dead’)”One of the
girl remarked, but the woman beside her covered her mouth at the last word. The girl was not very pleased.
“Sorry, umm, Mandi didn’t mean to say that. I am so sorry! Are you okay?” The woman explained and
asked me.
“I am okay…um, I guess.”I lied.
This was how I met my step-step-mother, my step-father, Jasmine my bigger sister which was sixteen
and my little sister Mandi, she was ten. I loved my new family, I cared about them, and you know what,
they also cared about me. I asked if I added trouble to them, but they said joyfully: “It was like I had bear a
son, I have always wanted one!” I spent my happiest days with them, but…
“You may not harm my children and my wife! I am not afraid. If you move one more step, take care!”
my father said angrily.
“HA! HA! HA! HA! Oh really! You can try!”The robber laughed.
My father raised the kitchen knife and ran to the robber. The robber just jumped aside, and he pulled out
a dagger and…