Before I came here, I had thought that Karen would welcome me with open arms. I had hoped my academic performance might elicit even a trace of their affection. I had put aside the fact that they had left me in that far-off countryside, where I had to get up at 4:00 am daily to feed the pigs, trek three hours through the mountains to get to school, and had almost died from malnutrition. 

I never held any of that against them. I always thought that I was somehow at fault and that if I just behaved better and achieved more in my life, they would eventually accept me into the family. Yet, no matter what my actions were, they would always view me as the inherently flawed one. 

I remembered when I was first sent to that mountain village, Tina didn’t go as Tina Johnson. She was known as Tina White. She was the cherished only daughter of the White family, the ones who sheltered me back then. 

I initially believed that I was just staying in the countryside for a little while, but then I realized that my parents never intended to bring me back with them. They planned to leave me in that mountain village, where school was a grueling three-hour walk away. 

The day I arrived in the mountain village, Tina beckoned me to the pond, telling me that only by retrieving the most stunning iris in the pond would my mother recognize my feelings for her and, consequently, reciprocate my affection. 

I never sensed any ill intent from her. I simply slipped off my shoes and waded in. Yet, for some unknown reason, Tina joined me in the water as well. She then started to drown, gripping my waist relentlessly, which destabilized me. I ultimately lost consciousness from her relentless dragging.