TheDrawing

The Drawing

“The most beautiful child I have ever seen,” Grandma said as she look down at her newly born grandchild. Tears fell from her worn cheeks as she watched the child sleep peacefully in her arms. The baby belonged to her now, for the biological mother was not strong enough to give birth. The child was an unusually beautiful child and her eyes were amazingly bright.

The baby’s mother died two hours after the baby was born and the father, a mysterious man of no particular trade, departed when he heard the news, leaving the baby with her grandma. The baby was loved very much, but she had no name and grandma had no ideas of what to name her. She had thought about the mother’s name, but that would only remind her of her dear daughter’s death. Grandma had always called her beautiful and so she decided to name her Beauty. As the child grew she became more and more beautiful. This little child had looks that were indefinable. Beauty had a face of perfection, almost too perfect, like a porcelain doll. Looks can influence how people are treated and when people looked upon Beauty they saw a pureness in her eyes and an envied perfection.

“Grandma, may I go outside?” A six year old Beauty stood on her tip toes as she bent over the couch eagerly. She had long, thick, chestnut hair that rested on her shoulders and went to the middle of her back. Her eyes were large and continuously thoughtful, her voice was soft, yet not like a child’s.

“Yes, go, but don’t get muddy. Oh, and remember just the back yard,” Grandma said as she sat in her recliner reading a novel. Beauty ran outside and started to play by herself. She didn’t listen to her grandma and stood in front of her house watching people drive and walk, she was fascinated with other people and as she played she would pretend that she was ruler of them all and would watch them. As people would pass buy they felt her stare and shivers ran up their backs. She was seen as beautiful, but very strange.

“Darling, how about you come inside now,” Grandma said as she wondered about her precious child.

“I wish I had someone to pretend with me, someone that I could rule over, even just for fun,” Beauty spoke with passion and, though she was a little girl, not even ten, she made quite the impression on her own Grandma.

“Well, now, don’t get carried away with your pretending,” Grandma advised, as she patted Beauty‘s head.

That night as Beauty lay in her bed, she found it hard for her to close her eyes and she sat up and looked out her window. What she saw was something, even she didn’t expect. There were tiny people walking around and small houses, it was like she was surveying a living doll house. Beauty quite frightened laid back in her bed and fell asleep.

“Grandma, I had a strange dream, a dream stranger than me and I wasn’t even sleeping,” Beauty said that morning.

“Well, that is odd. But no time to tell me now, I have to take you to school,” Grandma stood up as she put Beauty’s jacket on.

“School?” Beauty looked at her grandma with her big blackish eyes.

“Oh, child, you know the weekend is over and school will help you learn things way beyond your imagination,” Grandma spoke animatedly.

If Grandma only knew what Beauty went through when she walked into that school; children would run away from her and teachers would favor her. One thing Beauty never had was a friend, she had tried to get friends, but they seemed to be different than her, or actually she was much different than them.

As Beauty walked into the small private school, the children gave ignored her, as though she didn’t exist, and the teacher smiled.

“Beauty how was your weekend?” Her teacher, Mrs. Burnett asked.

“It was wonderful,” Beauty said truthfully. Beauty took her seat in the left corner and took out a piece of paper to doodle. She started to draw what she had seen that night and it flowed out of her until the whole page was covered in it and it was a perfect drawing of her vision.

“Beauty, answer my question please,” Mrs. Burnett ordered.

“Three,” Beauty answered, she somehow never needed to listen, for she always knew the answer.

“See children, Beauty is a perfect example of a good listener. Now Samson what would happen if I took fifteen marbles out of the jar?” Beauty knew the answer and she smiled at the boy who had no clue.

“Why can’t any of these children be like me?” Beauty wondered and she looked down at her drawing and saw something unusual, the people started walking and color began to show. There were blue, yellow, brown, purple, and red houses and flowers began to pop up. Beauty seemed to be getting closer and closer to the people and houses. It was as if she was being pulled to the people.

“Beauty!” Mrs. Burnett slammed a book on Beauty’s desk and the children giggled.

“The answer is zero,” Beauty said as she looked up at her teacher.

“Um, well, correct,” Mrs. Burnett looked confused.

“Is there something wrong?” Beauty asked.

“You answered the question and I hadn’t even asked you, yet,” Mrs. Burnett said, “I need to look at her desk and make sure you’re not cheating.”

“Fine with me, but I wasn’t,” Beauty said as she stood up and closed her drawing book. Mrs. Burnett looking inside her desk and found nothing then asked for the drawing book and searched, but still found nothing.

Her teacher stared at Beauty in wonder and went back to her desk. Beauty was just a little girl, but she was special. As time went on Beauty proved to someone that didn’t need school, but she needed training. Eventually she was placed in higher grades, until she too surpassed that knowledge. She was a prodigy in knowledge and everyone around her was befuddled. She lacked everything else in her personality, for she never made friends. Even the teachers began to dislike her, because she too was smarter than them. And when she was around people she was quiet, knowing that they would not understand her, and she felt sad, alone, and curious as to why she had the gifts she had. Even as a child she pondered if her knowledge was a gift, or if it was a curse.

. Grandma loved Beauty, but Grandma always dreamed of having a girl who was normal and liked to dress up in dresses and play house, but Beauty would rather pretend she was a queen. Grandma was grateful that Beauty was smart, though, and she smiled as she remembered Beauty’s lovely face and amazing eyes.

“Okay, drawing show me what you are,” Beauty said as she sat in her bed and held her precious drawing book. She opened it and stared, but it seemed to be night time and all the people were gone from the streets and the houses were dark and the stores were closed.

“Well, I guess I shouldn’t wake them,” Beauty said as she closed her book.