The sun's rays were falling through the window in a shimmering cascade. Even beyond the window, the sun brightened every newly budding flower and the long grass, which was in need of a cut. A breeze passed over the garden and the tree's nimble branches swayed in harmony.

        Emerald was still lost in her thoughts of years past and how she had become a lonely person. The photo she kept close to her heart all those years had given her the courage to live. That dreadful incident that took everything from her. She could see the world through her eyes, but inside her heart, it was a dark, faded place. The melody of birds singing and the voice of the moving leaves, she could only feel them. She could not hear their gloriously simple sounds until she moved closer to them. The world she lived in was dark and horrifying. She knew that, no matter what happened, the past could never change and life would always go on the same.

        It was 1991 in the Netherlands and Mr. Morgan, Emerald's father, was appointed as a political leader for the Dutch government. It was the middle of November and after winning his place, he soon became an important member.

        "I can't believe it, honey! Our days are turning and we are going to be a happy family at last," said Mrs. Morgan, placing a kiss on Morgan's cheek as the little girl hiding behind the table looked at her parents.

        "Emerald! My love, when did you wake up? We are going to a new house, and your dad is now going to be in news and a widely known man," she said gently to Emerald, who was a five-year-old little girl. Emerald was the only daughter of the Morgans and they loved her very much. She was the little angel of the family and was treated as the princess.

        "Yes, Mama, I want to see Daddy in the newspaper. Are we going to a new house now, Mama?" Her eyes sparkled with joy upon hearing about her father's place. Mr. Morgan and his family soon moved to Amsterdam. Mr. Morgan became involved with the country's internal affairs so much that he had no time for his daughter and wife.

        "Andrew, I know your work is important, but look at Emerald; she is small and she needs you! She waits for you every day!" Mrs. Morgan snorted with anger as she saw Emerald sleeping, waiting for her dad.

        "I am sorry, my little angel. Daddy will take you to Wonderland tomorrow," he gently kissed her forehead. This day was the worst for the Morgan family. The darkest days of their family had just begun.

        Mrs. Morgan was the only person Emerald was attached to and she loved her mother deeply. The beauty of her mother could simply not be explained in words. She was tall with dark brown hair that fell over her shoulders and hazel eyes lit up a perfectly pointed face. She had sugary sweet lips, with a wonderful, bubbly, protective, loving character.

        Emerald was just like, and even more, charming and beautiful than her mother was. The girl had long, straight, light brown hair with a fair skin tone and a smooth, charming face. Though she was still but a child, her features were even more promising than her mother's had been when she was young.

                             ***

       "Here we go!" Mr. Morgan shouted as they all sat in the car to head off to Wonderland. The road to the city was rather hilly and rocky. Precautions were to be taken while driving in that area. The weather was rough and rain had started but it was slow rain; enough to make the road slippery and make the windows nearly impossible to look out. Thankfully the windshield wipers were working and Mr.Morgan could at least see a bit in front of the car.

        "Honey, be careful!" Mrs. Morgan told her husband even as he drove safely. Emerald was oblivious and sat in the back seat enjoying the kid's show playing on the radio.

        The road had become slick and Mr. Morgan was starting to lose control. The wheels of the car were sliding and it looked like it was impossible to stop the car. The back wheels kicked out to the side and they began to turn, with no hope of regaining control.

        "Andrew, look out!" Mrs. Morgan screamed as a heavy truck loaded with coal came barreling through the rain and towards the car. Mr. Morgan was unable to stop the car from sliding closer to the other side of the road; right into the path of the truck.

        Time stood still for Emerald's parents, but she was busy bouncing around in the backseat, smiling with her eyes closed as she listened to the goofy tunes playing through her radio. 

        The truck driver didn't have time to slow down. He plowed right into the side of the Morgan's car which had slid right in his way. A sound imitating thunder erupted as metal clashed and scraped and brakes worked to a halt. The car jolted horribly and was knocked twenty feet away with the force of the impact. 
        
        Emerald couldn't hear her mother's screams. She couldn't hear anything. 

        The car had flipped onto its back and gotten wedged between a tree and a ditch. Emerald lay limp on the floor of the back seat, her radio still playing in the silence. The entire right side of the car had been crushed and crumpled. The hood was smoking and had been smashed from the collision with the trees. The roof had dented inward from rolling. 

        Police and ambulance reached the spot of the collision in about fifteen minutes. Mr. Morgan was heavily injured and had been found bent over the steering wheel. Mrs. Morgan was found a couple of feet away from the car; she had gone through the windshield. She was declared dead on sight. Emerald, miraculously, only had a head injury. One of the EMT's had been so sorrow stricken that he gave Emerald his heavy jacket for her trip to the hospital. 

        Both widower and daughter were taken to ICU and there was nothing but sorrow and pain waiting for them. Mr. Morgan was saved but unable to recover quickly because of the deep cuts and other near-fatal injuries he had gotten from the crash. Emerald was still in extensive care but was taken by her uncle to live while her father recovered. 

         "Where is Diane? My Emerald? What happened?" Mr. Morgan began to shout as a wild man as he woke from unconsciousness in a sudden fury. 

        "Diane is no more," his brother told him with tears falling from his eyes.

        "What?! Diane? No, this can't be! Emerald?" he was now out of control; all he wanted to do was see Emerald. 

        
        A few weeks later, Dr. David exclaimed, "Emerald, look; Daddy is here!"

        Mr. Morgan cried as he watched his daughter who was still in shock and crying and looking for her mother. He was standing at the door trying to talk to his daughter but the child was unable to respond. He came near to her and hugged her tightly in his arms. She was still unresponsive and the only thing was that she was feeling but was speaking or saying.

        "Why isn't she talking to me, Doctor?" he asked fervently but Dr. David was silent, looking down.

        "I am afraid but I think...according to our reports and observations, your daughter has suffered 26-40 dB hearing loss which means she can only hear up to a certain extent. She is unresponsive due to a shock which she will, we suppose, recover from," he explained to Mr. Morgan who could not believe what he was saying.

        "What are you saying, David? This can't be! She is normal, my daughter! No!" he cried, but he looked utterly helpless. Emerald was taken to many doctors but everyone said the same thing. Mr. Morgan didn't know what to do.

        "You should leave her with us. We will take good care of her. If you'll stay with her you will have to give up your seat as a leader and that means to live the life you lived before. I'll suggest to you not to destroy your life because of this girl. What will you tell the world when she grows up? My daughter is partly disabled? What will be of your reputation? Besides, you can come and visit her when you want," Mr. Morgan's step brother tried to convince him.

        "But she is going to be lonely," Mr. Morgan said in a low tone, looking at his beautiful daughter who was sleeping.

        "She won't! We will take care of her!"

        He placed his hands on his shoulder and at last he agreed. He left his only daughter, how selfish he was being! The girl looked at her father leaving her forever but the only thing she could do was hold her mother's picture and cry.

        Emerald was taken in by her step-uncle. The pain of not being able to hear things was worst of all. The world seemed to be like a hell to her. The sound of birds chirping, water dripping after the rainfall, the noise of the cars and all that seemed to be faded. She could only feel them and try to remember them from before. She had locked herself up in her room and cried for her mother. She could only hear voices near her but they seemed to be unclear.

       
        In a memory as soft as silk, Emerald recalled a precious moment she'd shared with her mother when she was little. "Momma, do you like the cuckoo's voice? Isn't it beautiful?" Emerald asked her mother while lying on her lap.

        "Yes it is lovely, this is the only thing I like about summers, the voice of the cuckoo," she explained to her, gently brushing her hair.
        
       Returning to the present, Emerald was forced to deal with the pain of being lonely, with no parents and no friends, and had locked her heart in a cold cage in response to the pain. She had closed her emotions off and the only thing she could feel was pain and agony. Seeing children walking back to school laughing made her heart ache. All these tragic events had made her worse and stubborn.

        Though the day was now the second of April, 2005, the past was still on Emerald's mind but she could not forget what her father did to her. 

        "Did you wash the plates? You dumb girl! Why did your father even leave you here?!" Mia scowled at her.

        Mia was George's wife and treated Emerald like a piece of trash. The words were familiar to hear though she could not make them out properly but living in this house had made her used to it. She could do well in lip reading and learned how to talk to people. She remained quiet, most of the time drawing and painting. It had been 12 years since her father had left her like this. She hated everyone and wanted to take revenge on her father.

        "I am not going to! Sorry, witch!" she declared and locked herself in her room. Every day was the same for her. Uncle George was a bit nice to her but she was still treated like trash from his wife.

        "Her father Andrew is coming to take her, Mia! Pack her things for tomorrow," George said, taking a full spoon of rice.

        "What?! Really? Is he really going to take that moron back?" Mia looked happy; at last she was going to get rid of Emerald.

        "Why is he coming back? Where was he all these years? Why is he coming? What about his second wife?" Mia inquired but George remained silent.

        "I don't know about any of that. According to media reports they are now divorced," he told her while getting up from the table.

        "At least we are going to have some peace around here!" Mia sighed.

        Emerald was listening to the conversation but the words were aggravatingly unclear to her. She could not understand what they were saying because of the hearing damage. But she was sure that someone was coming back and she wanted to know who.

***

       "Why are you packing my things? Are we going somewhere?" Emerald asked innocently.

       "Oh God! You are going back today! Your dad is taking you back!" Mia shouted so that she could hear.

        Mia repeated herself, "Do you understand? You are going back!" she said it loud enough so that it was even audible to the neighbor next door.

        "What? Dad?" Emerald was not happy to hear this. Through all of her life she hated one man and that was her father. "I won't! I won't ever!" she shouted and ran downstairs.

        Everything was packed and Emerald had locked herself inside her room. Mr. Morgan had arrived and wanted to see Emerald as soon as possible.

        "Please bring her down, I have to go back as soon as I can," he asked them.

        "We have called but she doesn't want to see you. She has locked herself away," Mia told him. Mr. Morgan went upstairs and knocked on the door.

        "Emerald, it's me, your father!" He knocked hard enough to make it audible for her.

        At last she came out looking at the man whom she had last seen 12 agonizingly long years ago.

        "Emy!" He lunged forward and hugged her tightly. All emotions flowed through his body and he could not stop himself from crying. Emerald suddenly pushed herself back and all he could see was hatred flaring in her eyes.

        "Who are you?" she pretended so that she could make him go away forever.

        "Please, Emerald, don't do this to me. I promise I won't leave you again. Emerald, you are my blood!" He tried to come closer but she crossed her arms and backed off.                                                            

        "That's why you left me here? Because I was a shame for you?! Where were you when I was suffering? You left me with all my pain to suffer alone! Your partially deaf daughter is nothing to you! Leave me and never come back!" Emerald let all her emotions out and cried.

        "I want to amend that! I want to repair the damage caused to you! Emerald, please, forgive me! You're my daughter! Your father is begging you! For your mother's sake." Mr. Morgan seemed to emotionally settle her. Emerald paused because the word 'Mother' made her stop for a minute.

        "Like you ever cared! You married another woman! You never loved her!" Emerald was being stubborn. After her mother's death, Mr. Morgan married another woman who was a famous lawyer.

        "That was the only thing I could do in those circumstances!" he cried. Emerald didn't think that was the best decision, but maybe her father really wanted her back.

        "I beg you to forgive your old father at this age. I want to come with you and see what the world is really like," Morgan tried to convince her and at last she agreed.

        "Okay, but I missed you so much, Dad!" she burst into tears and cried on her father's shoulder. There was something that had been aching in her heart for twelve years and she could finally let it out. The pain, tears, and darkness in her heart vanished by simply hugging her father; this man she had once adored, she now felt something much more pleasant than hate towards him.

        Later, as the reunited father and daughter were preparing to leave, Mr. Morgan said, "Thank you for taking care of Emerald," and bowed to George and Mia who looked, or pretended, that Emerald's departure was a true pain for them to endure.

        "Please visit us someday soon," Mia said gently, which pissed Emerald off. Soon they left with Emerald trying to forget all the past memories and start a new life.

        "Do you hear things clearly?" Mr. Morgan asked Emerald, who was desperately staring at the trees and hills on their way to Amsterdam.

        "I can hear voices near to me but a distant voice is not audible," she rolled her eyes.

        "I'll take you to somewhere where you can be treated. Don't worry, you have me now."

        Emerald shook her head as an infuriating smirk appeared on his face. They were almost to the city Amsterdam where she lived before. She was here again; the painful memories reappeared and she sighed.

        “This is the beginning! I have to start my life from where it stopped!” she said to herself, ready to begin a new life.

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