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The Doll

It was exactly a week away from Christmas. The streets were covered in thick layers of ice. My breath was easily seen in the cold. The whole town was black and white just like an old photo. It was beautiful but it seemed dead.
My mommy and I nearly ran into the good will, when we played these little game I was the one who always won. My mom said that we had to come here because the old men on TV were stupid, so they lost our money. I didn’t mind being poor, but it made my mom unhappy so I try not to ask for much. Like when Santa forgot to come to our house last Christmas, I didn’t complain. She said he must have missed our house because it was so small. This year she promised that Santa would come.
The store smelled like old people and mints. It hurt my nose. The store was so big and had a bunch of funky colors like a rainbow threw up. I stood as close to my mom as I could, this place was scary. She looked down at me, “ Don’t worry snow it’s going to be fine.” And she took a step forward.
I didn’t like my name. Why would I want to be snow? It was so dead and cold and after a few seconds of holding it, it was gone. I agued about it for my seven years of life, but still no one listens to a seven year old. How unfair.
I planted my feet on the ground and shook my head, being the stubborn girl I was. She raised her eyebrows at me and came to my level.
“Okay” she said and turn to look at the coupons. I looked around the room realizing I was alone. I uncrossed my arms and went to fallow my mother but then I saw a big sign that said TOYS. I froze in my tracks. I debating on what to do. I haven’t touched a toy in a year. But what would be the right thing to do? Would mom be mad at me if I just looked at them? I decided that she would most likely hide it then be upset at her that she couldn’t buy me what I wanted. So, I turned to her direction and she was gone. No one to be seen, so I headed to the toy section. It was like faith.
The toy section was amazingly vast. It had a numerous number of books, a large collection of Dr. Seuss. The toys weren’t grand, it looked bland and boring. It seemed that everything looked brown. I was extremely disappointed. Then I came across a patch of white, it was as white as snow. It was a porcelain doll.
She stood all by herself. Her hair was a curly light pale blonde, it was extremely tangled. Her skin was as white as the moon. Her cheeks had some pink blended into them. Her lips were in a small smile, and as red as a tomato. She wore a little sky blue hat and a dress to match. Her eyes where a shade darker then the hat and they cried out for help. The thing that made her unwanted there was large cracks going down the right side of her body. Their was one fairly big scar that came from the bottom of her eye to the edge of her jaw. It made her imperfect, just like me. Although, she seemed frozen in her own world, and I was stuck out here.
I felt like I knew her, like she needed my help. I wanted her, but I could not buy it. I did not even try to look at her again, as I turned I sighed. Then straight in my face was my mom ugly bright green sweatshirt. I gasped and jumped back into the shelf and knocked down the doll. I turned quickly to get her back up again. The doll seemed unchanged, but I tried to fix he up as much as I could as quickly as I could.
“ She is beautiful isn’t she?” My mom stated, “She remind me of you.”
That was odd. I didn’t look anything like her. My eyes are an emerald like color and my hair was a woodsy brown and distressed in many ways.
“ Why?” I asked as curiosity took me over.
“ You both look innocent.” She said with a smile. I noted that she said look instead of are, because I’m far from innocent. I walked away from the doll. And we drove away.
By the time we were home I had forgotten about the doll and worried about what was for dinner. The week went by as planned. Then December 24 came, I was so excited it was a little pathetic. I said to myself many times that I would stay up the whole time, but once I went into my bed, that dream was gone. I passed out as soon as I closed my eyes.
I was rudely awakened to Jingle Bell and my mom singing it out of key. At first I was angry then I remembered what day it was. My brother Alec was already under our fake Christmas tree we made with newspapers and green paint. He was crying and screaming about that I got a better present. At first I was confused, then I saw the porcelain doll laying on her side. With her hat on the side and her stand was crooked, and her eyes screamed, help me.
That was the first fit I ever I had, I think. I was so angry, I didn’t feel like myself. I slapped him in the face. My baby brother! After that I felt so ashamed of myself. I locked myself in my room and held my doll as tight as I could, until my mother left me and took my brother to daycare. When she left I let the tears fall that Ruby, my porcelain doll would only see. That night, I read to ruby and taught her manners. I told every secret I had, and some about my father, that I never talked to anyone alive. He left us with nothing. He took all our money and my mothers heart. He had no right, I don’t understand what kind of person could do that? He left us all alone.
My Christmas was spent crying to Ruby until the sun was far behind the mountains lit the candle that I light each night. When I put Ruby down a part of her back caught into the side of my hand and went down to the skin of my thumb. That part of my hand was drowning itself in blood. I tried not to scream so I bit my hand to stop it and I taste blood. I put Ruby on the table near the candle, and felt angry at the doll. Then I heard the door squeak open. Then my mom with tired eyes and in her night gown walked in. Her eyes popped open when she took in all the blood.
“ Oh my God! Honey what happened.” she nearly yelled. My tears were still flowing and I wasn’t ready to talk yet. So I just shook my head and tried to fight the pain.
She put a towel over my hand and tied it very quickly, and ran into the bathroom to get rubbing alcohol. I really hated this stuff. It only adds more pain. Once she even tricked my that vodka was water. That hurt so bad I ran to the bathtub and tried to rinse it out.
When she came back with the alcohol, I clenched my teeth together and squinted my eyes and held my arm out. She unwrapped it and cleaned it out a little to thoroughly. It hurt like a b***h. I went to sleep, to escape the pain.
In the morning I woke up. I saw that Ruby had blood on her. I went to our bathroom and got paper towels socked with water. When I cleaned her I was careful to not get the water on her dress. What seemed to have hurt me was a nail stick out of her back, and the blood would not come off it.
Alec’s perspective
I hate out life. I hate being poor. All the kids in my class have cool stuff and I get ******** Pokemon cards. Oh! My sister trying to be little miss perfect. Who does she think she is, she is only like a year older then me. I stood in her room in front of that stupid doll.
I started to talk to it. “ Oh, do you think you’re the best do you. Since Snow loves you so much, how would you like to take a trip down the toilet.” I grabbed the doll and headed to the bathroom. I threw it headfirst into the bottom of the toilet and flush it. I closed the lid of the toilet and walked away with a smile on my face, knowing nothing of the mess I just made.
Snow’s Perspective
I ran to the market, to get some milk for mommy because we ran out. I hope Alec will be okay by himself? I wondered. Then when I was walking on the far side of the frozen river I heard a humming. Or a song.
Come little children
The world is your play
My world has so much more to offer

Come my angle
The pain is no more
Come and your wishes will be granted

I am your savoir
My world is your soul
So let your heart rest from it constant beating

It was intriguing, I found myself fallowing it. I couldn’t help myself. It was irresistible. I walked all the way to the edge of the ice river. It felt like death and it was dangerous. I snapped out of my trance, only to hear a scream coming from the lake, and I saw a girl trapped under the ice. I dropped the milk from my hands and screamed for help but no one was around to hear it.
I ran to her as carefully as I could hearing the ice crack from under me but not break. Then when I got close enough, I could see her face. Her blue eyes asking for help. Her pink cheeks. Her white skin. Her cracked face. It was a life sized Ruby.
“Ruby,” I screamed. She was knocking her hands against the ice, terror all over her face. I screamed for help and the song screamed louder in my head. The pain of failure and death was pinning me. She mouthed help and I heard a huge crack of ice break under my weight. She stopped moving and a smile broke across her face to expose her pointed teeth and I fell into the freezing water and Ruby was gone. The song was silent. All I could hear was the panic in my head, and the pounding of my heart. The current caught me and pushed me under more ice. The cold made all my muscles cramp and I could barely move. I was searching for air the best I could! I tried to swim back to the opening that I fell trough but I was only tumbling. I took in some water gasping for air, I started to feel very helpless and I was hitting against the ice as hard as I could, and I let out my last scream in hopes someone would hear it. Then the cold came and darkness overpowered and I saw ruby smiling at me, with her small pointed mouth stretched out as far as it could go and her eyes no longer innocent and blue but bright red. My heart then rested from it constant beating. The doll stayed in the toilet but it wore the same expression that Snow wore on her last breaths.