[WP] You just received a letter, and in it are details on why your biggest regret/missed opportunity/tragedy was actually intentionally created by your future self.

You always lived a comfortable life, maybe too comfortable. "Overbearing, over controlling, sheltered," was all you could hear from other people when they described your lifestyle to you and your family. You never really gave much thought to it though, nothing seemed wrong and you always got what you wanted. At least to a certain extent. The upper middle class home that you lived in kept shelter to the nine members of your family, including yourself. There was always food, always videogames, always entertainment and something to do. However, though you lived in an upperclass Western world, your family's culture restrained you from having a social life.

You didn't mind at first. Friends are boring, an effort, something that needed work and time and you were lazy and comfortable sitting at home. The older you got however, the more you realized that it was causing you to be empty and alone and feel resentment towards your family.

Before you could finally escape, or at least you planned to, to college, your life was torn apart. Your oldest sibling finally escaped the unbearable restraint of your family and because of that, you were being sent to a third world country to "teach" you manners and to punish you for your siblings doings.

The next three years of your life consisted of being surrounded by your strict culture and religion, where females weren't allowed to speak so much as look outside for more than a few minutes. This was even worse than being in the West without being able to go out.

In this country, it wasn't simple a rule by your parents. It was the culture itself.

Figuring that you had nothing to lose anymore after being torn away from your home and what you knew, in addition to slightly losing your mind from the unfairness of it all, your behavior and personality started to change.

"Bitch," your own mother muttered as you walked past her one morning.

Ignoring her with tears in your eyes, you excused the abuse for something as simple as "Its just the culture" that's stopping her from accepting your needs and wants to have a social life and make friends and get an education.

You were 19 after all and an arranged marriage was the last thing on your mind.

That same night you decided to form a new personality for yourself, one where words and actions no longer hurt you and you were no longer a victim. The parties that lasted well until morning, the lies, the "im at work" texts to your parents, the dating, the smoking, the drinking, all became part of your normal daily routine. It wasn't you, far from it actually. But it was something to hide the pain of being in a different place surrounded by family who blamed you for your siblings actions.

After abruptly moving back to the West when your behavior and new personality soon became unbearable to your parents, you were suddenly overcome with guilt and pain again. The anxiety attacks and depression came in waves, you realized how much of a monster you were and the things you did and said that were only done because you lost your sense of identity in a new place.

Trying to ignore your thoughts and guilt, you grabbed breakfast and your mail on the way to your room. Tearing open a letter, you were shocked to see it was handwritten and personally inviting you to read. *Dear ----, Being sent to the middle east for something you didn't do was a good thing. Yes, a good thing. Though the memories cause you pain and you seem terrified at the thought of the person you were while you were there, it helped you. You have a personality now, you know how to defend yourself, you're not sheltered. You have tragedy in your life and pain and sorrow, but you know who you are now and what people in your life really mean to you. You're not the same child who sat around locked away in her room all day in the suburbs and accepting abuse from all sides, you're yourself now. You know what you want in life and you know what you don't want, and you're willing to do anything to get it. If that means being a bitch, then I don't see an issue. The guilt you're feeling is misplaced, you're not a monster for being abused. They are.


*

You suddenly look up and realize your mother is watching you read from the doorway, snooping as usual. Before she could grab the letter, you crumple it up and toss it.

"Bitch," She sneers before walking off.

Suddenly you realize being a bitch has a nice ring to it.

/r/WritingPrompts Thread