“Time seems to fly by when you’re doing something you actually don’t hate!” Riley thought to herself as she dusted whatever corner she could find in the house she now somewhat lives in.

Nick was always away and they hardly ever see each other, and that didn’t bother Riley. She knew that if she saw him more often, the more she is required to shy away and hide away the imperfections she had. She hated always having her hair covering half of her face, and with Nick always gone, she could tie her ponytail back to reveal the scar she had on her right cheek.

Her day usually consisted of some light dusting and vacuuming followed by some errands to do the some light grocery shopping and then cooking dinner for Nick. By 7:00 p.m. she has done most of her job and she sets out the table for Nick, with food all covered and just need to be heated up when Nick gets home and start to dig in to his food. When the grandfather clock in the main living room chimes for 7:00 p.m., Riley makes her way up to her bedroom and get ready for bed. By 8:30, she’s changed into her pyjamas and in bed as she flips through the channel on her own 27” Sharp television and VCR all connected to a small home theatre equipment that had been ordered and shifted from Europe that Nick had provided for her. The room that provided shelter for these wonderful entertainment systems was even more amazing.

The room was neither too big nor too small. The walls had a soft hue of pale yellow with borders of wallpapers with lilac designs on them all matched up with a beige carpet, a queen size bed, and a white lounge chair in one side of the room beside the semi-circle window that had a being see-through curtain hanging by it. That was Riley’s favourite spot in her bedroom. When nights come where sleeping for her was hard, she would curl up in her cushioned lounger and stare up at the dark sky while the cool warm breeze that the Floridian night often provided gently brushed away her hair in all directions, while she puts on the lingering sounds of “Cristofori’s Dream” on her CD player and envision herself wearing a beautiful flowing evening dress dancing with the man of her dreams up in one of the clouds.

It was a dream she knew would never happen but yet she didn’t let this stop her. It may have been an impracticable reverie but it matters not to her. “It may be childish and I may get laughed at, but we all have our own dreams and this is my dream. Silly or not, it’s still a dream!” she often comforted herself. She believed in miracles, she believed that a day will come when her true beauty will be allowed to shine and she no longer needs to hide herself and can forget about the torments she had endlessly received from those around her. She believed, she hoped, she longed.