My parents adored me, raising me like their precious princess. They bought me countless beautiful dresses and hair clips. Every holiday, they’d take me on trips and adventures. I always thought I was the happiest child in the world. Until my dad passed away, and his friend’s daughter came to stay with us. I picked up her discarded, half-eaten popsicle and put it to my lips. That’s when she burst into an earth-shattering wail. Without a single question, Mom roughly shoved me to the ground. “You’ve had everything your whole life! Why do you *have* to snatch the popsicle right out of Bella’s hand?” “A child like you, always picking on someone weaker, needs to be taught a serious lesson!” And just like that, Mom *threw* me into the freezer. “So you love popsicles, huh?! Well, then you can eat your fill in there before you come out!” With that, Mom took Bella out to buy an apology gift. No one noticed Bella secretly plug the freezer back in, then casually flip the child lock. “Chloe, *I’m* the little princess of this house now.” An icy cold instantly enveloped my entire body, feeling like all my blood had frozen solid. I hugged my small body, trying desperately not to make a sound. Just a little longer. Maybe Mom wouldn’t be angry anymore.
I tumbled headfirst into the freezer. The chill rushed up from my lower body, making me shiver uncontrollably. My clothes instantly soaked in frigid water, clinging to my skin, an agonizing, bone-deep cold seeping into me. I tried to push open the freezer door and climb out, but my feet kept slipping. After falling several times, I started to panic. “Mom, I’m so cold!” “Please, let me out! I know I was wrong!” I desperately pounded on the freezer walls, trying to get someone’s attention. “Mom! Chloe’s legs are freezing!” “Help me! I’m sorry, Mom, Chloe really knows she was wrong!” My limbs were already numb, gradually losing all sensation. I watched, horrified, as my body slowly turned to ice, starting from the outside, creeping inward. It reminded me of a time Mom and I were out playing. Suddenly, it started raining, drenching us both. The rain felt cold against my skin, but as soon as we got home, Mom drew me a warm bath. Even though she was still soaking wet herself, she bustled around, putting me in warm, dry clothes and even making me ginger tea. Mom loved me so fiercely; there’s no way she’d actually let me freeze, right? I just had to hold on a little longer, and Mom would surely come to take me out! I tried to cheer myself up, hoping Mom would forgive me soon. The air in the freezer was getting thin. Each desperate breath felt like tearing open my lungs. Frost coated my lips, my eyelashes brittle with ice. My limbs were stiff, completely unable to move. I could distinctly feel my body temperature plummeting, even my breathing slowing down. I wanted to call for Mom to save me, but when I opened my mouth, I couldn’t make a sound. Just before I lost consciousness, I saw them. Mom and Dad, holding me tight in their arms. “My sweet girl, you’re our family’s little princess!” “Mom and Dad will love you forever and ever!” When I next became aware, I was lying on the living room floor. Had I escaped the freezer? I wanted to go to the kitchen to see how I’d opened the door. But my hand went right through the kitchen door before I could even touch it. I stood before the freezer; its door was tightly shut. I tried to open it, but my hand passed straight through the metal. It turns out I couldn’t touch anything solid anymore. Had I become a ghost? Just as I felt a wave of sadness, I heard someone unlocking the front door. I rushed to the entrance, waiting. It was my Grandma Eleanor, coming to visit me! “Chloe! Grandma’s here!” “Come out and see what yummy treats Grandma brought you!” Grandma muttered as she changed her shoes. “Chloe is really quiet today. Usually, she’d be rushing to hug me!” “I’m right here! Grandma!” “Chloe’s right here at the door, waiting for you!” I shouted for Grandma, but she couldn’t hear me at all. She walked straight through my transparent body. Grandma called my name as she walked through the living room and bedrooms. Not finding me, she finally stood at the kitchen doorway. Her hand rested on the kitchen doorknob. Just then, the front door opened again. Mom, Dad, and Bella walked in, carrying several large bags filled with toys. Grandma looked past them, not seeing me. “Where were you all? And where’s Chloe?”
Mom tossed the toys onto the couch, clearly still fuming. “That Chloe, she actually snatched a popsicle from Bella today.” “I told her before Bella even arrived that she had to be accommodating to her little cousin.” Dad, hands on his hips, looked just as furious. “Yeah, Mom, I never thought Chloe could be so manipulative, so malicious.” “They always say kids raised with love are supposed to be kind and understanding, right?” “We’ve been so good to her, but she still turned out so twisted.” “I saw Bella downstairs earlier and just found out Chloe bullied her. It’s despicable!” “Chloe, you come out here right now! I’m going to teach you a lesson today!” Dad yelled into my bedroom. I shook my head, frantically trying to explain to Dad. “It’s not like that, Dad! I didn’t snatch her popsicle at all!” “She said she didn’t want it, and it was the last one of my favorite flavor, so I just picked it up to eat!” But Mom, Dad, and Grandma couldn’t hear me speak. When no sound came from the bedroom, Mom immediately frowned. “Chloe, so now you’ve learned to play mute, have you?!” She moved to go into the bedroom to find me, but Grandma stopped her. “I looked everywhere, inside and out. Chloe isn’t home!” Mom took a deep breath, stunned. “Then where did that child go?” Bella immediately piped up. “Aunt Sarah, this morning I heard Chloe say she was going downstairs to play with her friend Ashley. She’s probably at Ashley’s house!” Ashley was my best friend from school, and also my neighbor, so I often went to her house to play. Dad scoffed. “She’s just a little kid, and she’s already pulling stunts like running away in a huff!” “Hmph, let her stay at Ashley’s house! We’re not going to pick her up.” Grandma sighed. “She’s still just a child, after all. Maybe go get her back soon.” “I’ll make dinner. Those chicken wings I bought for Chloe are still in the freezer, right?” “I’ll make her favorite Coke chicken wings!” My heart instantly leaped into my throat. Grandma was going to open the freezer. Would she see my body? Grandma was old and had high blood pressure. My frozen body must look horrifying. Please, don’t let her see it; don’t let it scare her! I tried to block Grandma with my body, but it was no use. Grandma passed right through me and walked toward the kitchen again. I watched Grandma enter the kitchen. “Mom, don’t cook tonight! Bella’s still here. Let’s just order pizza!” Dad opened his delivery app, stopping Grandma just as she was about to open the freezer door. Grandma nodded but still worried about me. “Call Chloe back for dinner. It’s not good for her to always eat at other people’s houses.” Mom waved her hand dismissively. “Mom, don’t even worry about her! I just sent her a SnapChat.” “I told her I was ordering her favorite cheesy shrimp pizza. That greedy kid will be back in less than ten minutes!” Mom’s reminder made me instinctively look at my wrist. My wrist was empty. Oh no! My smartwatch was frozen in the freezer too! That was my birthday gift last year, from Mom and Dad. Now I’d ruined it. Mom would definitely be even angrier with me! I really was a bad kid, always making Mom angry. Mom throwing me in the freezer was justified. I huddled in the corner of the couch, crying heartbrokenly. Half an hour later, the takeout arrived. Seeing I still wasn’t back, Mom gritted her teeth in anger. “That Chloe! I just said a few words to her, and she’s still pouting and refusing to come home!” Dad just opened the takeout bags. “We’re eating! We’re not waiting for her. She won’t starve at Ashley’s house!” Grandma tried to speak up for me, but Dad cut her off directly. “Mom, please don’t interfere when we’re disciplining Chloe!” “If she defies us today, who knows what serious trouble she’ll get into tomorrow!” “We’re going to eat! No one pays her any attention!” Bella took out the largest slice of pizza from the takeout bag. “Mark, Sarah, Chloe loves this one. Should we save it for her?” Mom and Dad’s eyes filled with satisfaction. They stroked Bella’s hair, praising her. “You’re so thoughtful.” “It’s okay, we’ll eat. Don’t mind her!” I watched Bella sit in my special chair. Mom, Dad, and Grandma gathered around her, happily eating my favorite pizza. It was as if they were a family all along, and I was the outsider. My heart ached with a sharp, wrenching pain, and the tears just wouldn’t stop falling. Why was I still hurting and crying as a ghost? Was this God’s punishment for a bad kid like me? I hid in the corner of the living room, trembling with sobs. Until Dad was about to put the leftover pizza in the freezer. I instantly held my breath.
“Mark! Don’t you dare save any for Chloe!” Mom snatched the pizza from Dad’s hand and threw it straight into the trash can. It was dark outside now, and Grandma had to go home. She put on her coat, trying to persuade Mom and Dad. “The child is still young. Go pick her up from the neighbor’s house soon; don’t keep bothering them.” “When Chloe comes back, don’t scold her anymore. I believe she didn’t do it on purpose.” Hearing Grandma’s words, my tears of grievance welled up again. Grandma believed me! I really wasn’t a bad kid who bullied others. But now Mom and Dad both thought I was, and they didn’t love me anymore. Thinking that, my heart started aching again. Mom sent a few more SnapChat messages to my smartwatch. After waiting a few minutes and getting no reply, she angrily kicked over the trash can. “That stubborn brat! Not a single reply!” “She’s seriously trying to cut us off, isn’t she?!” I quickly floated to Mom. “I’m sorry, Mom, I didn’t mean not to reply to you.” “My smartwatch and I are both frozen stiff in the freezer! I can’t reply to you!” “I’m sorry, Mom, please forgive me, okay?” But no matter how much I apologized, Mom couldn’t hear me. Dad was busy helping Bella with a craft project. “If she doesn’t want to come home, let her stay at Ashley’s house!” “I want to see how long she can be stubborn!” Dad was always busy with work. My school craft projects were always finished by myself. I had always wanted Dad to do a craft with me just once, a dream I couldn’t fulfill even in death, yet it was coming true for Bella right now. Dad gently reminded her to be careful with the scissors, patiently helping her arrange the tools. Little me sat next to Dad, pretending Dad was teaching me how to do crafts too. But Dad’s gaze passed right through me, looking only at Bella. He didn’t spare me a single glance. Bella suddenly grabbed Dad’s hand. Her eyes red-rimmed, she cautiously asked: “Uncle Mark, can I call you Dad?” Seeing Dad hesitate, Bella pitifully added. “Ever since my dad passed away, I miss him so much. I can’t sleep at night thinking about him.” “My dad used to be your best friend. Could you just… could you just say ‘Dad’ for him, just once?” “Dad!” This time, my dad didn’t hesitate. He pulled Bella into a hug. “Oh, honey! Dad’s right here, my sweet girl!” The scene pierced me deeply. “I’m right here, Dad! I’m your daughter, Dad!” “Dad, you don’t want me anymore either?” I frantically tried to separate them. But it was no use. Dad comforted her for a long time, and then told Bella. “From now on, you’re my second daughter. Come home whenever you want.” My heart ached again, making it hard to breathe. “Dad, didn’t you always say I was your *only* treasure?” I felt like nothing more than a stray kitten or puppy, thrown out on the street. That night, Mom saw I still hadn’t replied to her messages, so she locked the door. “I’ve really spoiled that stubborn brat rotten!” “She can come back or not for all I care!” Bella brought a basin of warm water and placed it at Mom’s feet. “Sarah, don’t be angry. Bella will wash your feet.” Mom was touched by Bella’s gesture. She took Bella’s hand. “You’re so thoughtful, Bella!” “If only Bella were my daughter! Let that awful child drop dead for all I care! And don’t you dare ever come back!” Mom, your wish came true. I really did die, just inside the house. Bella put on my pajamas and lay in my little bed, falling into a deep sleep in Mom’s arms. When Mom thought she was asleep and went back to her own bedroom, Bella jumped up, put on slippers, and walked straight to the kitchen. Bella stood in front of the freezer. “Chloe, are you dead yet?”
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