“Alice, come to me right now!”
Oh, here we go again! I have just come up with a good idea for one of the scenes for the book that I am writing. But if I talked to my mother, everything would get out of my head. I did not even get to take a couple of notes not to forget anything and to write something thanks to them. I believe this idea is really wonderful, even if I got it absolutely, suddenly. And I actually think ideas that come to us out of nowhere may sometimes be much better than those that you are reflecting on for hours, weeks, or even months. So, I am going to make it come true and finish one more chapter of my work.
By the way, I have already written half of the story so far. The further, the more interesting. I came up with just a dizzying storyline for my fantasy book that my followers on Wattpad really love. I have already published a few books that they are actively commenting on and recommending to their friends. Yes, my fan base is not as large as many other writers’ ones. But I am already happy I have reached so much. Of course, it took some time to get at least one reader, but it was actually worth it. I met many good friends, with who I communicate on social networks and even share some secrets of my works.
“Alice, can you hear me?” I hear the loud voice of my mother, who is definitely unhappy with something, somewhere far from here.
“Now, Mom!” I exclaim loudly. “One minute!”
Okay, okay, I have to write this moment… I have to complete this chapter in a very interesting place… Being inspired, I am typing text with a smile on my face and silently pronouncing it. My eyes do not almost look at the keyboard, and my fingers literally remember where all the keys are placed. However, it’s not amazing because I have loved writing for so many years. I started with short stories and came to long books, for which I literally created the whole world from the beginning. And I really love it! Reading and writing is my passion. The greatest love in my life. While people of my age still doubt which profession they should choose and change their minds literally every week, I have already decided I would become a writer after growing up.
Now I am as inspired as never ever. This book is definitely going to become one of my favorite ones. I have been working on this one for a long enough time. But that’s what makes it better. My readers also agree with it. They literally beg me to publish updates as frequently as possible. And I cannot betray them. They help me support my motivation to keep reaching for my dream. The dream that will come true one beautiful day.
“Alice!” My mother’s loud shout gets me out of the magic world of my dreams again.
“Now!” I pronounce a little irritably and keep typing text on the keyboard much harder and faster before the idea gets out of my mind and still keeps me inspired.
My gosh, even when I have a free day, I cannot stay in my room and quietly work on my book, lying on the bed with a small laptop. It’s very old, and I would hardly be able to run some modern games that some of my friends are playing. But it’s enough for me to write something. I need only a text editor. No more. And one friend of mine creates covers for my books. She dreams of becoming an artist and never stops improving her skills. That girl clearly knows what I need and makes me delighted by what she eventually gets. And my friend also adores my works and believes I could build a brilliant career as a fantasy writer.
At some moment, I get too busy with my book and forget that my mother asked me to come down to her. I do not want to let this idea get out of my head so badly. So, I am typing text without a stop and trying not to pay too much attention to some little typos and mistakes because I will be reading it again, fixing everything, adding something, and deleting something. Making my idea real and doing my best for my readers to be happy and continue to discuss my characters and their actions is much more important to me now.
But unfortunately, I have to leave my magic world full of mythical creatures that I come up with or read about on some open sources. The door of my room sharply opens, and my mother enters it without a warning, looking kind of unhappy with something. Her eyebrows are frowned strongly, her lips are pursed, and her widely open eyes full of some evil are literally making a hole on my forehead. Even from here, I can hear her heavy breath and feel how tense every single muscle of the body of this woman is.
“Alice, why don’t you answer me back?” my mother resents. “I am calling you, but you are not coming!”
“Sorry, Mom…” I apologize a little excitedly, not moving my eyes off the screen and still typing text on the keyboard. “Sorry…”
“Are you playing with a computer again? Getting your vision worse and doing some nonsense things!”
“Please, Mom, don’t start it…”
“What do you mean don’t start it? What do you mean?”
“For your information, I have a free day! And I have a right to have a rest.”
“What you are talking about!”
“And actually, before you go to my room, you should knock.”
“I'm at my home and can go anywhere I want!”
“Yeah?” I sharply stop typing text and move my eyes to my mother. “Why do I have to knock at your room while you enter mine without my permission? What kind of injustice! As you’re making me follow your stupid rules, be pleased to follow them, too.”
“Oh, how insolent you are! You have grown the hell up!” My mother puts her hands on her hips. “Idler! You want to do nothing! You are only lying on your bed and playing with your computer that I will throw off someday.”
“Mom, please… Let’s not fight again…”
“Yeah? You are doing everything to get me mad. Everything to make me more disappointed in you every single day.”
“What did I do this time?” I sharply close the lid of my laptop and move it aside. “What’s my fault this time?”
Yes, my relationship with my mother has always been tense enough. I tried to be a good daughter for some time, but later, I just gave a damn about it because she did not get the love for me. Every time something happens, my mother blames me for everything. Even if I do not have to do with it. That’s why I sometimes really want to run away from home and never come back here. But as I have no place to go and am not able to provide for myself, I have to take it. To take and fight with this woman, who has never noticed my successes but always shouted and waved her hands because of my little failures.
“I just received a call from your school!” my mother says loudly.
“And what?” I smile innocently.
“You’ve got very serious problems, young lady.”
“Come on?”
“I was told you got great problems with your scores. You have only a “D” and an “F”! And you did actually get a few F’s in mathematics in a row!”
“I have told you millions of times that I do not understand mathematics. And I will never do this.”
“What don’t you understand? What’s hard with it?”
“Seriously?” I get surprised by my mother’s words, opening my eyes widely. “When did you open a book the last time? Twenty or thirty years ago? Do you know we no longer add two to two? We got some letters and other nonsense!”
“When I was studying at school, I had only A’s and a few B’s for the whole time.”
“My God, why do you care about mathematics so much?” I sigh tiredly. “I don’t understand it!” I don’t un-der-stand!”
“You must understand it!” my mother shouts.
“Mother!”
“And your teachers complain about your disgusting behavior. You don’t listen to them, you are mean to them, you think they are nobody…”
“I wasn’t mean to anyone.”
“You must respect your teachers and listen to everything they say! Instead of sitting in the back rows with some idiots and laughing at stupid jokes.”
“Oh, Mom, how annoying you are…”
“Watch your mouth when talking to your mother!”
“What did I do?”
“How could you get so worse at studies? How? You have only F’s! You’ve become literally the worst student in the school!”
“Oh, c’mon! The worst student! I have just a few bad scores, but you’ve got a hysteria as if I’ve got tons of them!”
“You will ask for trouble, Alice!” my mother threatens with a finger. “If you do not improve your scores and start to study well, the school staff will be discussing your elimination from school.”
“Don’t say it as if I’ve got F’s in all subjects!”
“All subjects!”
“Yeah? By the way, I’ve got only A’s in literature! And I am one of the best at English.”
“Why would I need your A’s in the literature? They would not help you get a good education, get a prestigious job and earn much money.”
“What you are talking about!”
“You must fix your F’s in mathematics! Your teachers would be happy to help you if you began to study. I made them sure that I would make you work hard and learn everything you do not know.”
“How would I learn everything when I understand nothing?”
“You must study!”
“How?”
“First, you should stop doing some stupid things and being lazy. Open a book, examine the material and solve problems. Some effort before you remember everything!”
“Oh, how easy everything is for you!”
“There is nothing hard that you cannot understand!”
“Serious?”
I laugh loudly, being surprised by the ability of my mother to ignore everything I try to tell her. As if she does not want to hear me when I say I do not understand mathematics. Because I do not really do. Yes, something was easy when we just added, subtracted, multiplied, and divided numbers. But then we got some fractions, percent, and unclear letters… And then everything got much worse…
“It would be much easier to learn Chinese characters than understand this fucking mathematics!”
“Watch your mouth when you are talking to me!” my mother shouts.
“I say again, I don’t understand it! I don’t understand!”
“If you were not a brainless and lazy chicken but a hard-working and smart girl, you would be an A-student and understand everything.”
“I am sorry I did not meet your expectations!” I roll my eyes theatrically. “I am sorry about not being nominated for ‘Your favorite daughter’ prize!”
“Alright, I am no longer going to get blushed for your teachers and get ashamed of my daughter. If you do not fix all your scores in the nearest two weeks, I will take your computer and phone.”
“What?”
“I am not kidding, lady. Either you start to study well or you will never see your gadgets again. Which are the reason why you became stupid and lazy.”
“You can only insult and humiliate! You don’t even wanna notice any of my successes.”
“When you get a good job, I will say something good to you.”
“I doubt it.”
“But having such terrible scores, you will not get a good job. In the best case, you will become a cashier and will be scanning purchases or working as a cleaning person for pennies and live from salary to salary. And you have to deserve to get this job. Such idlers like you, who are too lazy to get up from the bed and do just something good, would not work there for a long time.”
“Oh, yeah, but if I improve my scores in mathematics, I am gonna have a chance to become a director of an oil company.”
“You will! You will be able to work as a financier, an engineer, an economist, an architect, an analyst… You will have a great choice!”
“Yeah, what if I don’t want to be an economist and an engineer?”
“Do you want to eat well? Dress up well? Buy expressive things? You don’t think about when you ask me to get you new clothes or something else!”
“There are many good jobs that you could get much money for.”
“Yeah?” My mother simpers loudly. “Do you still hope you would get money for your writings that nobody needs? That get you so busy for a whole day! Instead of focusing on your studies and doing what you are told.”
“Someday, it will happen so!” I say with my head proudly up. “Someday, I shall become a famous writer and will be earning money thanks to my favorite thing.”
“Don’t say stupid things, Alice!” my mother throws gloomily.
“Whatever you say, I will be aiming to make my dream come true and working hard to become an author of a bestseller one beautiful day.”
“You would better work hard to improve your terrible scores in all subjects and get a profession that would really give you much money.”
“I am not going to work like crazy for twenty hours per day, get pennies and curse everything in the world when going to work to the place that I hate.”
“Who likes their job?” my mother wonders loudly, throwing her hands up. “Everyone wants to get much money and do nothing or go to work like it’s a party! But it doesn’t happen! I hate my job, too, but I go to work because I have to feed you and me.”
“I am not going to live like this!” I say confidently. “I’ve already decided who I will become and will do my best to make it real.”
“No, Alice, you will not be doing these stupid things! I will not let you die from hunger and die as a beggar!”
“Stop, Mom, please…”
“Shut your computer down now and go to do your homework!”
“I’ve got a free day!”
“Don’t dare to tell me you didn’t get any homework! I closely check your electronic journal and see everything clearly.”
“I did, but I don’t know how to do it!”
“Work your brains to understand it! As you’re working on your writings with such enthusiasm, use your energy for the subjects that you get only F’s for!”
“Yeah? Don’t you wanna help me? As you’re so smart and say there’s nothing hard with it!”
“Come on!” my mother laughs loudly. “I have too much to do, and I have to work with you!”
“Then don’t hope on what you’re expecting from me. And don’t make me the one you didn’t get to become.”
“I do wish you happiness, idiot! I am showing you the right way and not letting you ruin your whole life!”
“If you really wished me happiness, you would support any of my goals and wishes and wouldn’t criticize everything I do.”
“Alright, go to do your homework!” my mother orders in a general’s tone. “Stop lying on the bed and doing nothing!”
“I am busy with something and finishing a chapter of my book.”
“Stop doing this stupid thing! You’re just wasting your time on this bullshit! You could spend it on something much better. Your studies… Or at least homework. Is it so hard for you to help your mother and have a cleaning? Or at least grab a rag and wipe dust? Clean your room, after all…” My mother looks around my whole room with a disapproving look. “Look how dirty it is! What a mess around! Do you really like living in this jungle?”
“Huh, you wouldn't even say ‘thank you’ to me for that and would take it for granted! You never praise me for what I am doing and notice only bad things. You don’t even try to help me fix something and think I should do this on my own.”
“You are talking too much, girl!” my mother exclaims loudly. “Too much! You went out of my control! You are mean to teachers, you are mean to your mother… Do I grab a belt and kick you enough to teach you good manners?”
“Oh, as always…” I roll my eyes with an irritated sigh.
My gosh, why is my mother like this? Why doesn’t she wanna understand and hear me and believes I should do what she thinks is right? Because of the way she treats me, I want to do something nice for her less and less every day. I would say I want to do something bad on purpose.
“Hey, don’t roll your eyes!” my mother throws coldly. “Don’t you like to listen to it? I don’t like many things, either! But I say NOTHING and go to DO it!”
“Mom, please, leave me alone…” I make a tired moan. “Don’t read me lectures about how to live at least now.”
“Stop showing off! Shut your computer down now, open a book and start to study right now!”
“I will not do this bullshit!”
“You will do!” my mother shouts. “When I say to do something, you go and do it! Without any protests!”
“Stop, I’m begging you…”
“Until you begin to study well and stop wasting your time on some freaking writings, I will not calm down.”
“I will not stop writing books!” I say with my head proudly up. “I will not stop doing what I like just because you don’t like it.”
“You are an idiot! Do you want to live your whole life in poverty and wear ripped clothes?”
“I will become famous and be earning so much that it will be enough for my whole life.”
“Stop believing in this stupid tale, Alice! Stop believing you would earn something thanks to your writings! You are not living in the tale you dreamed up! Life is not as wonderful and careless as you think. You’ve gotta work much to live until tomorrow.”
“I do believe! I believe my dream will come true someday.”
“Moreover, what could a sixteen-year-old stupid girl, who has not lived enough, actually write? Who would need the writings of a little gal that is still wet behind the ears? When you live until you are eighty or ninety, you will be able to tell something about life and write your books. Now you should care about only how to improve your terrible scores. And think of going to a good university.”
“Yeah, but those, who read my books on Wattpad, think differently. They don’t care about my age and my experience.”
“Right! Because your readers are the same stupid little girls that don’t the fuck understand anything about this life and would admire anything!”
“Wrong, Mommy! Even adults read my books and really love them.”
“What you are talking about! How many people do read your nonsense? One? Two? Two little girls, who praised you so much that you became too insolent and gave a damn about your studies?”
“You don’t understand anything…”
“No, Alice, you don’t understand! I am trying to wash your brains and make you understand you are doing a stupid thing. You will later say ‘thank you’ to me for showing you the right way.”
“Do you think you would make me stop doing this and dance to your tune by criticizing my books and me? Do you think I would begin to study well and work on your freaking mathematics that you care about literally much more than anything?”
“Maybe, this is how you would understand you should do what really matters in life. What would help you earn much money.”
“Stop, Mother!” I throw loudly. “I am getting sick of this!”
“My God, I don’t understand… I don’t understand how you can play with a computer all day long and write this bullshit. And publish it somewhere on the Internet…” My mother puts a hand on her forehead with a theatrical sigh. “My God… Aren’t you ashamed at all?”
“You’ve never even read my books! How could you judge them when you don’t know what I am writing?”
“I don’t need to read anything! I already know you’re writing nonsense! Nonsense that you must not publish anywhere.”
“Writing is my hobby! What I love with all my heart! I’ve loved reading and writing something since childhood. I love falling into a fictional world and creating my own. You can’t imagine how cool it is!”
“My God, who made you so headstrong and stupid?” my mother shakes her head. “You’re ruining your life! And you will do this if you keep doing stupid things.”
“That’s what you think!”
“Look at your older sister! She is smart, obedient, shy, careful… She studied well, had only A’s, graduated from school with a gold medal, got a red diploma at the university… She is just a dream of any mother!”
“Here we go again…” I sigh resignedly. “Let’s listen to the story about the most beloved and favorite daughter of my mommy.”
“Natasha is my favorite daughter because she is better than you in everything!” my mother says confidently. “Your sister is the daughter that I always dreamed about. Who did everything I told her and studied where I wanted.”
“But is she happy after our mother ruined all her dreams at the root? As well as she’s trying to ruin mine?”
“She is very happy! She is working as a deputy director at the bank and earning much money, got married to a man with his own business, and gave birth to three wonderful children. Natasha has time to do everything! Your sister complains about nothing and has thanked me millions of times for not letting her earn money thanks to knitting. She understands she would be begging somewhere outside and die in hunger and poverty if not for me.”
“Yeah, you chose her life and are proud of you after you ruined it.”
“I am proud of my daughter! And I will do my best for you not to even think about these stupid things and to aim to live a provided life. For you to forget about your writings forever and get a good profession.”
“No, Mother!” I sharply get up from the bed and come to my mother. “You will not decide everything for me! I will not let you choose my life and make me forget about my dreams.”
“I will decide!” my mother exclaims harshly. “Because I am your mother! And I know what would be better for you!”
“You will not ruin my dreams the way you did it to Natasha’s ones. As she didn’t have enough courage to fight and protest, I will not stand in her way. I will surely reach for my dream. In any way.”
“While you’re living at my home, you will do everything I tell you. Silently. Without protests.”
“No!” I proudly raise my head up. “I will not be silent!”
“Don’t dare to snap at me, Alice.”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if someday Natasha went our home and said you ruined her whole life.”
“If you don’t close your mouth now, I will take your computer.” My mother starts to threaten me with a finger, starting to breathe heavily enough and getting literally green from the anger she is obsessed with. “Or I will actually throw it off to hell! Alongside your writings! For you not to write anything again!”
“Alright, throw it!” I cry. “But I will not stop writing! I will be always be writing and everywhere. On everything I’d see on my way. Because I do like it, and my readers are waiting for new works from me.”
“Shut up!”
“It’s my life! I am the only one to decide what it would be like!”
“You decide nothing! While you’re living with me, I accept all decisions. When you grow up, get an education, get a job, get married and give birth to children, you will give orders and act like an adult. But now you are a brainless, little lady that must listen to her mother.”
“STOP!” my mother yells so loudly that I literally jump with my eyes widely open. “Close your mouth now!”
“Mother!”
“I am giving orders here! And everything will happen as I want!” My mother sharply, quickly comes to my laptop that is lying on the bed and takes it.
“No, Mom, don’t take it!” I sharply reach my hands to my laptop that my mother refuses to give me.
“As you don’t want to do everything at your wish, I have to take some measures. I am taking your computer and phone right now!”
“What?”
“When you start to study better and stop showing off, I will let you play for two hours. But if you need to find something for school projects, you will be doing this under my personal control.”
“It’s unfair!” I protest, feeling like my eyes are getting slowly wet because of tears. “You can’t take my things off!”
“I can do everything! And I will do this because your scores got so worse, and you became absolutely lazy because of your cursed writings. I am sure you would get a good lesson and do everything I tell you.”
“Never!”
“But if your scores do not get better in the nearest month, I will sell this thing.”
“No, Mother, don’t dare!”
“You think I am kidding? No, Alice, joking with me is bad! As I said I would sell it, I will go and do this.”
“I hate you, I HATE YOU!” I yell with tears in my eyes. “You want to ruin my life, too! You want to ruin my dreams and make me unhappy!”
“It’s okay, it’s okay, you can yell as much as you want. Natasha also cried, yelled, and threatened to leave home or kill herself when I banned her from kitting. But later, she calmed down and understood she would better do what I wanted. And now she is a successful woman with a big family.”
“Now I understand why my dad left us many years ago,” I sniff quietly. “Because he couldn’t take it anymore. He couldn’t live with a general in a skirt, who is used to controlling everyone and deciding everything. You always decided what he should’ve put on, what he should’ve eaten, where he should’ve worked, what he should’ve said… He never had a right to his opinion. Dad always listened to you. As well as Natasha and I did it. But it’s clear he lost his patience. And he ran away from a vixen like you.”
“How do you dare to talk to your mother like this?” my mother resents.
“One beautiful day, I will also get out of this home and live as I want.”
“Alright, kid, go to do the homework that you got. And solve problems in a draft. You have one hour to do this! In one hour, I will come and check everything. And If I find at least one mistake, you will solve problems again and again until you understand what your teachers explained during a lesson.”
“Serious?” I laugh loudly. “How could I solve something when I don’t the hell understand anything?”
“Why do you need books? Everything is explained very well in them! If you read everything once, you will understand it! Or are you so stupid that you can’t even read a couple of sentences and memorize some simple rules?”
“As if you don’t hear me.”
“Alright, close your mouth! I want to hear nothing! From today, you will think only of your studies. For me not to get calls from your teachers and not to hear them saying how bad everything is about you. For me not to be ashamed of hearing my daughter literally being included in the list of the worst students.”
“I should’ve taken my stuff and gone to live with my dad a long time ago. He would never reproach me for bad scores at school. And he wouldn’t ruin my dreams at the root. Which my daddy, to your information, has always supported.”
“It’s clear you took after him! That brainless idler that wanted to do nothing and lived some unreal dreams. He dreamed of billions of dollars and his own business, but he wanted to do nothing for that.”
“You can only insult, humiliate and criticize. As if you are perfect! As if you have never had any goals and dreams.”
“All my life, I have lived for my family! I am doing everything for it! I have always given a damn about myself and thought only of the well-being of my children and my former husband. But Natasha is the only one to thank me. You and your daddy are thankless pigs.”
“Oh, oh, oh, you sacrificed yourself! You’re our martyr! Sufferer! Why we didn’t even notice it before.”
“Shut up now and run to do your homework! NOW!”
“Go to the fuck! You annoyed everybody with ordering and shouting! Fucking general! You’re telling everyone how to live and what to do…”
“What did you say?”
Being sick of this senseless confrontation, I sharply turn around, leave my room and leave my mother alone. While she gets much angrier and starts to shout loudly as I go:
“Thankless pig! I am feeding and dressing you up, but is this how you are thanking me? Are you not too insolent, sweetie? I swear I will grab a belt and kick you so hard that you will regret it. You will really ask for trouble, Alice! I can easily kick you out of home with all your things. For you to live on the streets and understand what would happen to you if you didn’t do what I tell you. The Internet destroyed you! Your writings destroyed you! You went out of control! You learned to do stupid things from your brainless friends! But it’s alright, I will turn your brains on! I will do it… You will be obedient! You will be even afraid to pronounce a word! I promise, girl! And you will never see your computer again! I will not get it back! And I will not buy a new one!”
Even after leaving my room and going to the kitchen, I continue to hear the lecture of my mother about me. About how bad, thankless, egoistic I am… About how I must get kicked with a belt enough… About how the present youth went out of control… And many other things that the woman shouts, not thinking she might lose her voice. I exhale slowly with my eyes rolled up, fill a glass with water and quietly drink it. Every day, I am starting to understand my dad, who has said many times that living with my mother was like a volcano. He is actually a very calm and collected man, who is used to solving conflicts and problems in a peaceful and safe way. And my dad does not let me forget what the support of a parent is. While my mother always criticizes and humiliates me, he does not stop encouraging me, never yells at me, and does not press on me. I love him very much and cried for a few hours on the day he took his stuff and left home when Natasha and I were kids.
Moreover, my dad approves of my hobby of writing and says I should not give up if I really want to reach something. I am going to say more, I somehow let him read some books of mine. He was nicely surprised and praised me, saying my writing style was just incredible, and my words are thought up to the smallest details. I got his blessing to continue to do my favorite thing and a few pieces of advice that helped me make my works a little better. I would say my daddy is my greatest fan that examines my works first before my followers on Wattpad read them. This wonderful man is one more reason why I don’t even think of refusing to fight for my dream of becoming a famous writer.
Yes, my mother can criticize me as much as she wants and say I am doing a worthless thing that would never give me money. She can reproach me for my terrible scores at school and make me solve problems that I do not understand. That I will never be able to solve. She will not break me down and make me give up on what I have been aiming for since childhood. Because I am very stubborn and not used to giving up so easily. Moreover, there are many people that support me. So many people do not doubt I can reach much if I really want it. My mother is the only one to shower me with mud so openly. Yes, of course, there were some people on Wattpad, who criticized my books to hell and said I should have stopped writing. But I did not listen to them. Because there were much more people that loved my works. So… Why should I have left everything just because someone did not appreciate it? And yeah, my books are loved by quite adult people, not little children, as my mother wants to think.
Anyway, I swear I will be working on my books much harder and will do my best to become a famous writer and earn a lot of money. I shall prove to my mother that she is deeply wrong. Writing is the same hard work as, for example, Natasha’s work at the bank. This woman thinks it’s a waste of time. But I believe she will understand she was deeply wrong one beautiful day. Yes, I do not expect that my mother would say it aloud. Nevertheless, my dream will surely come true. I will prove that I am not lying in my bed and playing senseless games all day long. Prove that you do not have to know the Pythagorean theorem, Mendeleev’s table, or Newton's law to reach just something. Nobody can stop me. Nothing can make me give up and get out of the way I am going on. My name will surely get known to the whole world. I promise.
***
From that day, Alice really continued to work much harder and reflect on her storylines, characters, and worlds much better. She was writing literally everywhere and taking notes every time she came up with an idea. The girl was much more sure that her hard work would surely lead to something good and did not pay attention to her mother, who swore at her because of her scores at school, criticized her, and never stopped trying to make her daughter forget about her wish to become a writer. She did not even think of seeking the support of hers and counted only on those, who did not behave in that way.
After every single day at school that was very hard for her, Alice began to work on her books that she later published on Wattpad. Seeing positive comments from a small group of readers and the number of views that was growing in geometric progression, the girl was rejoicing like a little child, talking to them with pleasure and continuing to make them happy with new updates and some secrets. Thanks to promoting herself on social networks much harder, she got new readers some time later. Some people helped her get her works a little better for them to get the attention of much more people. Thus, she was getting more popular, and people were discussing her works on Wattpad and behind it.
Alice was working hard for two years and published a few more wonderful books that her readers liked. They were not similar to one another and told different stories that could get people involved in a breathtaking adventure to magical words. At some moment, the girl began to send her works to some publishing companies with the hope that someone would love to publish her books on paper. But nobody answered her for a long time, and that was what got her a little upset. All the time, her mother did not hide she was happy with it and never stopped hoping her daughter would change her mind someday and decide to choose the profession that would really give her much money.
But one beautiful day, Alice was checking her email and found a letter from one of the publishing companies that really wanted to publish one of her books. Being inspired by the success and not hiding her happiness, the girl accepted the proposal and was impatiently waiting for the moment when her books would be available for buying in book stores. And a long time later, the long-awaited day when her first novel was released in paper finally came. With a gorgeous cover made by professional artists, perfectly edited text, and her name written on the front with big, painted letters. By that moment, very many people discovered Alice’s works. That’s why she sold very many books on the first day. And she kept selling much on the following days. People were buying the first book of the young, talented author as well as hotcakes. That was a great success!
Thus, Alice began to get some part of the money from the sale of her novel and was later able to buy what she always lacked money for. When holding the money that she honestly earned, she could not believe her long-time dream came true, and her hard work eventually led to the result she wanted. Even despite the disapproval of her mother, the girl reached very much, The father of the young writer was madly proud of his beloved daughter and said he always believed in her many times. Even her older sister, Natasha, was nicely surprised by Alice’s successes and admired her determination and wish to openly go against her mother and choose her way.
Later, Alice released her second book, which was very popular and gave her not less money than the first one. And then her third book came to the world… The fourth… The fifth… She released very many books, many of which became bestsellers. The girl got the admiration and began to regularly give interviews and have autograph sessions, during which she had the pleasure to sign books, take photos with her fans and answer their questions. Her life changed for the better: she moved into a more spacious and better apartment, bought new clothes, and got everything she always dreamed about.
At first, Alice’s mother treated everything skeptically and was sure it was just an accident. It would not last kind of forever. Someday, people would stop buying books, and the girl would stop getting money in her account. And one beautiful day, she would have to think of getting a job and earn pennies. Because she missed a chance to fix her scores, go to a good university and get into a prestigious profession. But the more money Alice brought to home, the more categorically she treated it. The more books were released and became successful, the more she thought that writing was not such a worthless thing. In the end, the woman had to admit that her daughter did not waste her time writing her books because it led to amazing results. Somewhere at the bottom of her heart, the woman was happy for the young girl and even regretted not believing in her somehow. But she refused to talk about it aloud for a long time and showed no emotions.
Despite some offenses caused by everything her mother said for many years, Alice did not refuse to provide for her and bought her everything she needed. This woman is her mother. Her close person, who raised her. So, it would have been bad to leave her on her own. She could not refuse to help her when she had a chance to do it. Even though she did not get any kind of thank for a long time and understood her care was taken like granted. Someone just let her take care of them. Alice did not expect that her mother would say she was wrong and get a wish to ask her for forgiveness for everything that happened between them. She stopped hoping to hear at least one good word from her a long time ago.
But one beautiful day, it happened… Alice heard the apologies of her mother. Who said she should have given her a chance and at least tried to believe in her daughter and the fact that she could make her dream come true and become popular. That was very unexpected for the girl, but she was happy it happened so. This person finally understood that the girl was not lazy all those years and was working hard and much to make her dream come true and prove that even the impossible was possible. They had a heart-to-heart talk, which was very hard but eventually helped the mother and the daughter get much closer to each other. The ice was getting broken little by little. It took some time to forget all their offenses and reconcile. Anyway, from that moment, Alice’s mother never blamed her daughter for doing nothing and being lazy and even got love for some of her books that she let her read. The woman learned how to be truly happy for any success of the girl and support her when she doubted herself or got upset because of something.
***
A few years later.
Many people are coming together at one of the small book stores where an autograph session of the famous writer, Alice Miller, is taking place. She is an author of fantasy books that got love around the world. Her books have been translated into many languages and got not less popular than in her motherland where her fans are ready for anything to get a new copy and read it at home in a quiet place with a cup of tea or coffee. Now people are patiently standing in a long line and waiting for their favorite author to leave her signature on their books they bring here or take a couple of photos with them.
The woman with perfectly done dark brown hair is dressed in good-quality clothes that do not have to cost very much. She is now sitting on a small table in front of a large poster with a cover of her recently released novel on it. She gets pleasure from signing every single book with a black marker and gives attention to every single person that came to meet her personally and smiles at them truly and widely, behaving very friendly and not refusing to talk, leave an autograph, and take a photo. A couple of tough men are standing not far from her and closely watching what’s happening to make sure people behave quietly and do not start a fight and a scandal and immediately react if someone crosses all the lines. It’s also possible to see one adult woman and a man of almost the same age as hers and a younger woman standing aside shyly, sometimes saying something to each other and smiling slightly while watching Alice signing books and communicating with her fans.
“Thank you so much,” Alice smiles shyly after she leaves a little message on a book and has a small talk with her fan. “Next…”
A girl at the age of sixteen comes to Alice, tightly squeezing a book in a thick cover in her hands and reminding her of herself being a teenager.
“My God, Alice…” the girl pronounces with a slight smile. “Alice Miller… I can’t believe it… I’ve been waiting for a moment to meet you so badly…”
“Hi, sweetie,” Alice welcomes amicably. “What’s your name?”
“Mila… My name is Mila…”
“Okay, Mila…” Alice takes a copy of the book and glances at the cover of it. “M-m-m… My first novel that was released as a paper book…”
“I am delighted by it! I really loved the magnificent world that you created. Everything is described so well… All the details are thought up…”
“Thanks, I’m very happy you’re loving it,” Alice opens the book and starts writing something on the front endpaper with a black marker.
“I’ve read almost all your books and love every one of them. They’re so unique!”
“Even my latest novel?”
“Nope, I haven't read it yet. But I bought it on the first day of the sale.”
“I hope you’re gonna love it much, as well.”
“Say, how do you get to create words for every single book of yours? I guess it’s madly hard!”
“Yes, it’s hard to some extent, but it’s very interesting. Working on my characters and my words gives me much pleasure.”
“Are you going to release more books?”
“Of course, I will!” Alice laughs shyly. “I’ve got so many ideas that I’m gonna be writing books for ten more years!”
“Really?”
“So, you won’t stay without my new books. Don’t worry about it.”
“That’s awesome!”
“Follow my accounts on my social networks to be aware of all the pieces of news.”
“I’m following all the accounts you have. And I subscribed to your newsletter from your official website.”
“Excellent! So, you will miss nothing.” Alice writes the last words, closes the book, and gives it to the girl named Mila. “Ready. Please…”
“Oh, thank you so much…” Mila thanks with a wide smile. “You’re just a gem!”
“Thank you for coming to my autograph session.”
“Say, Alice… What do I need to do to start writing books?”
“You need a wish,” Alice replies confidently. “A wish to work much and reach for your goals, despite nothing.”
“Was it probably very hard for you?”
“Yes, it was hard, But luckily, I was surrounded by such wonderful people like my family and my first readers ever. Who believed in me and gave me a motivation to keep writing.”
“What do I do if someone says my works are terrible?”
“If someone doesn’t explain their opinion, you shouldn't listen to it. The one to wish to help you make your work better would not be rude to you and would just show you your bad sides.”
“What if someone doesn’t believe me and says I waste my time?”
“Just keep doing what you’re doing. And seek the support of those, who approve of your hobby and love your works. That’s how you would get a much stronger motivation.”
“You know, somehow I wrote one short story and let my parents read it. So, they started laughing at me and said I shouldn't have even thought of writing.”
“I understand you,” Alice smiles with sadness in her eyes. “Almost the same happened to me.”
“Really?”
“Really. My mother didn’t approve of my hobby for a long time and said I was wasting my time. But I didn’t give up because I was always quite a headstrong girl. I surely knew I wanted to become a writer and swore that nothing in the world would ruin my dream.”
“Have you never wanted to give up on it?”
“Of course, there were moments. But I just read comments of my fans on Wattpad. It helped me get my belief in myself back and get a motivation to keep moving on.”
“My God, Alice, I am so delighted by you!” Mila confesses with a wide smile. “Your sense of purpose gets me really overwhelmed! You didn’t break down and did get what you wanted.”
“And now I understand it was worth it,” the woman comes to Alice after standing aside along with another woman and a man. “My daughter proved that everything would come true if you really wanted and worked hard.”
Alice moves her eyes to the woman and caresses her hand with a slight smile.
“I was really criticizing Alice and even humiliating her,” the woman confesses with sadness in her eyes. “I was swearing at her for doing, as I thought, stupid things. Calling her an idler and said that writing would not give her money. But later, I realized how wrong I was. And now I am madly proud of my daughter.”
“My gosh, are you her mom?” Mila smiles shyly.
“Yes, it’s my mom,” Alice nods confidently. “Almost my whole family is here with me.”
Alice makes a calling gesture after she moves her eyes on the man and the woman that come close to her after standing aside all the time.
“They’re my beloved and close people,” Alice adds with pride and points at everybody to introduce them. “It’s my mother, Clara… My older sister, Natasha… And it’s my father, Phillip. I also have three niblings and a brother-in-law, but they stayed at home, unfortunately.”
“Nice to meet you,” Mila smiles shyly.
“We all are very proud of our Alice,” the dark-haired man named Phillip says confidently, slightly fixing his glasses and folding his hands in front of himself. “And we’re very happy she was fighting for her dream until the end.”
“Alice has always been a stubborn girl,” the adult woman with a short dark brown bob named Natasha, embracing her mother, Clara, around the shoulders. “I personally knew she would go against our mother and choose her way.”
“That’s great when close people support each other,” Mila notices. “When you know they would be by your side anyway.”
“If your parents don’t believe in you and want to decide who you want to be, don’t be upset,” Alice says confidently. “When they see you’re reaching many successes, your mother and father will understand they are deeply wrong one beautiful day.”
“Right,” Clara nods slightly. “If your heart belongs to writing, keep writing. Who knows, maybe, someday, you will become famous and meet many people that will wish to get your book with an autograph. Go your own way if you don’t want to regret missing a chance someday.”
“Don’t give up!” Natasha exclaims. “I personally came back to my old hobby of knitting and spend my free time on it. And I’m so happy to take spokes and knit something beautiful for my children.”
“I’m personally sure you can do this,” Phillip says confidently. “You should only work hard, improve your skills and do your best to get noticed by someone.”
“Thank you so much…” Mila thanks shyly. “You got me inspired… I… I will be trying to do this…”
“I wish every single parent always believed in their child,” Clara confesses and takes Alice’s hand. “I wish no more childhood dream was ruined at the root. We, parents, ruin the lives of our children when we ban them from doing something their heart belongs to. When we make them do something that would make them feel sick early or late. We think we know everything better… We believe the way we choose would make them happy.”
“You’re saying it right…”
“I got a very good lesson. Thanks to Alice, who opened my eyes and helped me understand that you should be a friend of your child. Instead of indisposing them towards you in all possible ways.”
“I’m so glad you understood it,” Alice smiles shyly. “Glad you understood that writing books is not a less hard work that may give you much money.”
Clara takes Alice in her tender hug with a much wider smile, and then Natasha and Phillip join them. It happens along with applauds of those, who are in the book store to get an autograph of their favorite writer.
“You’re the best, Alice Miller!” Mila exclaims happily.
“Alice Miller is the best!” some people pronounce.
Seeing what’s happening, Alice feels she gets tears in her eyes and barely holds herself down not to let her emotions go out. Although it’s been many years since she got popular around the world, she still cannot believe she reached what she wanted… Her hard work was worth it… And she kept the promise she gave her mother about getting noticed someday. What’s happening seems to be a magical dream that is about to stop at a very interesting moment. Anyway, Alice is not going to stop after what she reached. She has very many ideas for her new novels that she wants to make real at the nearest time. The love of the fans of her creativity and the support of her family keeps her wish to write more and more and not to retire when everything is getting better and better every day.
Sometimes parents truly believe they wish happiness for their children when they choose life for them. They decide where they should study, where they should work, who they should live with… They ban them from even thinking of their wishes and goals, which they often call some stupid things and a waste of time. But the choice made not by children themselves would not lead to anything good and would not give them happiness. Early or late, they will understand they are not happy with this life and get a wish to start to live in a different way and choose their own way. If you do not want to have your children as enemies, you should not make decisions for them and ban them from reaching for their greatest dreams. Support them, let them know that you would always be by their side and truly believe that they would reach great success one beautiful day. That they would prove the time they spent on one or another thing was not actually wasted.
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