Chapter 1: The Woman in the Mirror

There was no turning back.

With fierce eyes, she was gazing at the mirror. Still in disbelief, she touched her cheek, then she moved a finger to her chin, her eyebrows, her eyelids, and caressing her nose line.

“Who would have thought that I will own this face?” she uttered these words while still stroking her facial contours.

It was undeniable. She looked like a goddess. Her charm and appeal exuded divinity. Her face radiated the allure of a glamorous film star combined with the sophistication of a top fashion model.

She just could not cease scrutinizing the reflection that continued to stare directly into her eyes. Those almond-shaped dark brown eyes may appear so delighted but seemed to hide the loneliness and despair of a woman.

“Ha! No one can tell who you truly are,” she muttered, trying to awaken that satisfaction from within but anguish still engulfed her.

The light in her glamorous makeup space began twitching. She looked at the incandescent bulb. It was starting to lose spark. But after a few seconds, it went back to usual. It was as if the luminescent was telling her to shun with that feeling of doubt and regain that composure she once lost – a year ago.

“It was not that long time. But I know, nobody will remember.” She kept convincing herself.

She began murmuring as if singing an original tune, “I…I am beautiful… I…am beautiful…” she began humming a melody, then stopped. “I am the most beautiful girl in the world, in the universe rather,” she gulped, swallowing her saliva.

“No one can bring you down, baby. No, not today or ever.” She was still talking to herself. Then she started chuckling as if a funny thought crossed her mind.

It was hilarious. That moment when she ran her fingertips on that shiny surface as if touching another person found on the other side.

“Are you my twin? Do you wish to be as beautiful as this woman standing in front of you?” She was definitely asking herself.

“You wish, bitch! You don’t stand a chance. Because I am the only one in this world. I am the one and only,” she declared.

She was gently fondling the moving image like a child. She was infatuated. She was mesmerized. She could not control her adoration on the face she was seeing.

“You are the most beautiful thing I have ever set my eyes on. No one is as gorgeous as you. No one is as lovely as you. No one is as sophisticated. Nobody! Nobody!” She began screaming at the top of her voice to prove her point.

Then she felt terrible. “I am sorry. I didn’t mean to shout at you. You gorgeous thing. I am sorry.” She felt apologetic to her own reflection.

Again, she began touching herself - her face, her chin, down to her long neck that resembled a statuesque swan. She looked at herself in the mirror. She paused. Then, she closed her eyes for about five seconds. She opened them again.

A fuzzy memory suddenly came across her mind. No. It was vivid. A memory of her past abruptly interrupted her beautiful introspection.

That past. If she had her way, she wanted everything to be forgotten. If only she could erase everything in her memory, she would do it. But then, she couldn’t. In her moment of adoration in front of her reflection, that past came up again like a thief in the night.

Her face became gloomy. It was a sad memory. More than sad. It was a painful one that she wanted to obliterate while she was still living. It tormented her.

And her eyes became swollen. She tried to close them but tears flowed to her cheeks. She shed a tear or two. And those tears reached her lips. The liquid was salty.

It was as salty as the ordeal she experienced that night. It was harrowing. It was deeply painful. It was so profound that it not only afflicted her physical fortitude but also the cavernous trench of her soul.

She slowly closed her eyes. Then, shards of that memory came flashing into her consciousness.

“Please don’t do this to me.” She was grousing.

A pair of sturdy hands were exploring every part of her body. She was drowsy. Her body was paralyzed. She couldn’t move in the uncomfortable mattress. She was merely lying on the center spot of the bed with a man on top of her.

She wanted to resist the advances being done to her chaste form but she was just too weak to even lift her fingers.

“Please I beg!” She was trying to plead to her assailant. “I know you are a good person so please I beg you to stop!” She continuously implored other means to escape this tormenting fate.

But the man was unrelenting. He became more aggressive as the woman tried to stop his hands from further stroking her. He acted like an animal who was deprived of food for so many days that when it came his way, he had no other means to consume such but to devour every bit and every piece of that flesh.

Then, she finally had her strength gathered and shouted, “Stop, please stop this!”

The man was stunned. But only for a few seconds as he continued ravaging the miserable woman. That woman’s face, her bosom, her shoulders, nothing escaped the cruel hands of that man.

He ripped the woman’s fancy dress to expose her body more. The man was too strong that the French laces that formed the embellishment in that now tattered number were shattered. And those tiny Swarovski crystal sequins scattered on the floor.

“Stop it,” she shouted again, but to no avail, the man did not listen. Instead, he punched the woman in her stomach. It was hard that it made her lose her remaining strength and fell into a deep slumber.

Then, she opened her eyes. She was still looking at the mirror. But she was full of tears. Tears incessantly flowed from her eyes – one after the other.

She rubbed her face vigorously causing her makeup to smudge.  Her mascara and her eye shadows smeared her rosy cheeks. The pinkish skin turned gray.

Her scarlet red lipstick was all over the bottom part of her face and her once lovely neck was smothered with red stains. It was unattractive. It brought back the ugly façade she had after that horrible episode of her life.

She looked hopeless. She felt wretched. She was miserable.

The woman once again gazed intently at her reflection.

“You are still beautiful! No matter what.” She consoled herself. The agony of that experience was too difficult to handle.

Sofia wanted to cease thinking about her past but it continued haunting her. Even though she already changed her name just to forget who she truly was, but she could not deny the truth that she was Clarissa Gonzales, the infamous beauty queen who was dethroned, maligned, and was defamed by the public due to a scandal that ruined everything about her.

In the midst of the scandal, she left the country to undergo cosmetic surgery. After her amazing transformation following her successful surgery in the United States, she decided to change her persona. From Clarissa Gonzales, she became the 'Sofia Villanueva.'

She returned to the country and she was ready to avenge herself from the people who caused her downfall.

“No, I will not cry. I will not cry anymore. I will take back what was taken away from me,” she angrily said while still staring at her mirror image.

Eventually, she wiped her tears with the back of her palm. There was a box of clean tissue right in front of her but she chose to use her hands.

She tried to remove the smudge on her face. But it wasn’t easy. She even looked much awful as she attempted to clear her skin of that makeup that has been on her face since morning.

“Look at you now. Look at that despicable face,” she was murmuring while still trying to get rid of the smear from the branded cosmetics that her face has become accustomed to. But at that moment, it seemed different.

Then, she stopped.

“All right, I know that behind this messy makeup, you know who you are. You are the most beautiful in the world. Haha!” She laughed a bit and became serious in a beat.

Then, she stroked her hair upwards. She seemed confused. Nevertheless, she scrutinized the image in that shiny thing in front of her and slurred, “With that face! You are going to take back everything that rightfully belongs to you! I promise that.”

Finally, she gave in and used the tissue paper that has been waiting for her to acknowledge. She wiped her face, making sure to clean every part and portion. She made certain that all the ugly spots were removed in order to reveal that lovely face again.

And she did. After a few minutes, that lovely but innocent and seemingly fresh look of a beauty can be seen in that mirror. Again.

She smiled. And she smiled even further which made her eyes closed. She opened them and she was happy.

“This is just the beginning,” she said to herself.

Suddenly she heard footsteps coming in the direction of her room. The sound of the footsteps became louder as they approached the entrance. She looked into the corner where her door was situated.

A voice of a man was calling her name. “Sofia!”

Then she heard him call her name again. “Sofia, are you there?”

And the door opened.