I’m Just Happy I’m Alive
My mom comes from a pretty large family. She is an identical twin, so they have been the family “favorites” for some time now; everyone being so mystified by twins and all. At some point, my mom and her twin gave birth to me and my cousin respectively by only six weeks apart.
They have several other siblings, but for simplicity’s sake, they are the second youngest of seven children. The youngest of the seven is the aunt I want to discuss. We will call her Aunt Anne. Aunt Anne is a lot younger than my mom and she was probably 18 at the time of this story.
When my cousin and I were both little, only a year or so out of diapers, my mom’s twin became pregnant again. Whilst out on a doctor’s trip for a routine checkup, my cousin and me were left in the care of Aunt Anne. The next events I remember WAY too clearly.
Aunt Anne had approached from the kitchen and had asked if we wanted cookies. We both said yes, so she left and came back moments later with her hands behind her back. She then grabbed my cousin and pulled him down on the ground, covering his head with a plastic grocery bag, and began to choke him.
I was super afraid and I began smacking her with my hands. She let my cousin go and grabbed me, doing the same to me. I remember kicking at her, unable to see anything other than that bag as she squeezed.
I couldn’t breathe and I was extremely terrified, not fully understanding what was happening to me, until…I wet myself. And I’m thankful I did because it’s what caused her to let me go. She got upset that I had gotten her pants wet and so she dragged us into the bathroom and locked us inside.
Thankfully, shortly after this, my mother and her twin came home. Aunt Anne had said my cousin and I locked ourselves into the bathroom and been playing in the sink all day. No one ever knew the truth. My cousin and I never discussed what happened to anyone but each other.
We were never left alone with Aunt Anne again after that, thankfully. We moved to another state entirely. We don’t know why she did that to us, but it’s left a bad taste in my mouth even now as an adult. I’m just happy I’m alive today.