After my parents got divorced, me and two of my sisters moved with our mama to Chinthalapudi. My other sister had some psychological problems, so she stayed with our papa … for a while, anyway. I guess she ran away from him eventually. Anyway, once we arrived in our new village, mama arranged for me and my sisters to stay in a welfare hostel there. The hostel was run by a bad man, though, and he sexually abused the girls staying in his hostel, including me and my sisters. Finally, I told the police what was happening, and they sent me back to my mama.
Mama sent me to work, because we needed more money, so I become a day laborer. That’s where I met Sreenu. He tricked me into marrying him, and then he abused me, so they took me away from him and placed me in a government home. I was scared because I wasn’t having my monthly cycle, so I thought I had become pregnant and l’m only 14. I didn’t have any idea how I would take care of a baby. But I was sent for a pregnancy test and it was negative. It turns out I had just become anemic and needed more iron, which the doctor prescribed for me.
After I left the government home, I was sent here to new horizons house. There were only a few other girls there when I arrived, and I didn’t trust anyone at first. But they gave me brand new clothes, and a bed that was all my own, and they continue to let me have as much hot food as I want. Sometimes there’s even cake! One of my favorite things is that we have a room full of sewing machines, so I can practice my tailoring all the time. Someday, when l’m ready to leave New Horizons House, I want to support myself by becoming a tailor, so l’m happy to learn as much as I can while l’m here.
