RED RAGE

The clock struck 2 am in the morning. A girl could be seen moving around in a building surrounded by trees, closing windows that had been left open by her relatives. Rain was pouring hard outside, and she couldn't help but wonder how her family could sleep through it. Exhausted from running around, she dragged her feet up the steps leading to the attic.

Inside the small attic, there was a small bed against the wall with a little stool next to it. On the other side of the room, there was a pile of cartons, making the room look even smaller.

She looked around the room and thought, 'No matter how long I've lived here, I can't really call it home.'

Since she moved into this house, life has been really difficult for her. Every day, she tries to do what is expected of her, not what she really wants. Life wasn't always like this for her until the death of her parents. Even then, life was bearable with her uncle Erik around. She moved in with him after the death of her parents, and he never failed to treat her like his daughter. But he had also died a couple of years back.

She was left with his family, and they never ceased to blame her for his death. She was then moved to the attic with all her belongings.

Lying on the bed to rest, she was reminded of how uncomfortable the bed was as it creaked as if to complain about her weight, but it was better than nothing. She laid down and shut her mind from all the memories running through it.

---

"Sage, Sage, Sage." Sage flinched as her name was called loudly, making her fall off the bed and land on her right hip.

"Sage," Ericka said, making Sage panic.

Usually, Sage would be awake before anyone in the house; it had become a normal thing for her. So she couldn't help but panic when Ericka called her.

She quickly ran down the stairs to meet her caller, feeling the more time she wasted, the angrier Ericka would become.

Ericka was a woman that Sage had seen smile a few times, and that was when her husband was alive. Her eyes were always squinted like it was difficult for her to see, adding to the features that made her scary.

"Where is my breakfast?" Ericka questioned. Sage was about to remind her she was an hour early from her usual wake-up time but bit her lips together. She knew Ericka was aware of the time, so she kept quiet.

"I'm sorry, ma," Sage apologized with her head bowed.

"Why are you still here? Go get me something to eat," Ericka barked, causing Sage to lean back a little.

'Sometimes I feel like she could eat me raw, even with just her gaze,' Sage thought.

Looking at the duo, one would think the relationship between them was master and slave, but in truth, they were relatives, and a close one at that.

---

"Ma, your breakfast is all set," Sage said, not minding the fact that Ericka was on a call.

"I'll have my breakfast in my office," she said after placing her hand at the end of the telephone.

"Okay, ma," Sage replied before leaving.

"Ericka, this is big, we can't lose it," a male voice was heard at the other end of the call. Setting the breakfast down carefully, Sage quickly walked out of the room.

Ericka had changed her name from Kate after getting married to Sage's uncle, Erik, but when Erik was alive, he still called her Kate; he never got used to the whole Ericka thing.

Sage went back to the kitchen, trying to make breakfast for her cousins because she didn't have the energy to put up with their crap today. Singing, she sluggishly made them waffles like they requested.

After a while, two blonde females could be seen walking side by side as they approached the kitchen counter. They were so identical it was difficult to tell them apart.

"What is this?" one of the twins asked while the other looked at her plate with disgust. Most times, Sage would wonder if they just woke up bored and made plans on how to make her life miserable.

She looked at Clara, who was the meanest, and she was the one to always annoy her first.