"Excuse me, Miss?" Someone shook her. Blinking her eyes open, she was greeted by a man in a white coat. She was a little dazed."Huh?"The light was encircling the place when she came to her senses completely and moved her neck which hurt. Sleeping in a chair and that too on a cold night with no blanket made her body freeze in some places.Albeit the area she was in was a secluded corner– away from the hospital, still, she could hear the faint bustling of people, the stomping of their hurried feet, and the sounds of wheelchairs screeching on the floor.Last night it was all too quiet that she forgot she was in a hospital and slept. One short nap became a thorough sleep and the long night evolved into a day.Her phone buzzed.Mumbling an 'excuse me', she checked her phone to see 6 missed calls from home and got worried."Hello?""Ria, we're trying to reach out to you but you weren't answering." Nanny Mary's voice filled with concern greeted her. "Is everything alright there?""Yes, yes
"Sofia, so you have finally decided to leave this house for good?" A loud voice sounded in the room, and soon the smashing of objects followed. Her little sister, Abigail winced. To her, it was a norm. Her mother's hysteria, coercion, and in the end, her guilt. Abigail sighed. She knew what the outcome would be if she let it continue. "Yes, I want to leave, and I will leave." Sofia was hell-bent. One of the reasons she wanted to escape was this. Ever since he left, her mother was never the same. For years, she tried to get her mother to accept reality. That she had to learn to live without him. However, it all went in vain. Her mom never understood. He was her everything to the point that her daughters had no value in her eyes. Everything started with him. Everything also ended with him. "You aren't going anywhere! I dare you to leave!" "Watch me." Sofia shrugged. "No! You can't leave. You will not leave." Helene Roderick grabbed her daughter's arm. A hysteric glint flashed i
"Wake up, sleeping beauty!" The birds chirped outside the glass window of the room of Anderson mansion which belonged to none other than, Zaria Smith. The rays from the hot sun glazed the window glass, greatly. Too shiny! It made her stir in her sleep as she quickly yanked the light pink quilt over her head. She was seconds away to close her eyes again when she heard her maidservant, Elizabeth Jones, commonly known as Lisa in her friends, called her out. "Ria, come on, get up! It's afternoon already." Of course, it was a lie. Madam Anderson had told Lisa to wake Zaria early today. Lisa knew Zaria would not awaken that easily. Elizabeth and Zaria were the best of friends of the same age. They did not care about the master-servant relation between them. What mattered to them the most was their strong friendship which had been built
As Zaria made her way to the kitchen, she saw the kitchen maids hurriedly working like machines. She was baffled. It was not like that the maids slacked off usually, but it was strange today. What was going on? "Hey, Felicia, what's going on?" She asked another maid who she considered her friend, but Zaria's relation with her was not that strong as that of hers with Lisa as they were bosom friends. Felicia, a sweet little girl with bright orange hair and chubby cheeks full of freckles, was seventeen years old, working as a part-time servant at Anderson's mansion to unhinged the economic burden of her parents. She was a high school student, but her hard work still could not be compared with most people. She worked hard to earn with good and fair means. Felicia was startled to see the young miss up so close. Not that her young miss looked like a creep wh
When Aunt Mia refused to tell her anything with a smile, Zaria guessed that the person coming at the Anderson mansion was not that much of a significant figure in Mia Anderson's eyes. After all, only some people could catch her aunt's eyes. In her mind, Zaria simply just did not want to pay attention to that stranger because she was growing green with envy as she kept looking around. She could not bear anyone receiving the treatment as her. Because of that person, everyone was playing riddles with her! She hated riddles. She liked everything easygoing. That was one of the qualities of her Elian. He was easygoing, so she also loved easygoing things. Easy to have her hands-on, easy to read, easy to understand, easy to see, and easy to get along with. 'If that whosoever guest were to be a pers
She reached the man in no time. Hell hath no fury as a woman scorned. She now believed it was all true. What she felt right at this moment was like a mother whose child was being bullied by the big wicked monster! "What a daring person you are! You, strange guy, what have you done to my baby!? Don't you know you can't touch someone's possessions? I must say you dare to do this. Wait, just let me call someone here." The man was flabbergasted to see a girl dashing toward him with puffed cheeks. It was normal for him to receive proposals from the foreign girls whether the adults or younger ones when he was abroad studying and would be approached with peculiar strategies which could make any male have shivers, but this time this girl's eyes had nothing but wrath for him. He felt addled for a moment, but then he realized the little flower pot in his h
He stood there, dazed. He did not expect the spoilt girl he thought would apologize to him this easily. No girl could ask for forgiveness this easily, or admit that she was at fault. He could proudly say that he was experienced in this department. Seeing her embarrassed expression was an amusement for him. He wanted to see that more often in the future. Would that be called bullying? He realized he was still grinning. Perhaps, that was because he had come back after so many years? He shook his head and took steps near to his haven. Thousands of memories came by in his mind about this place. Nothing had changed. It was all the same. The familiar air, the familiar feeling. It was the place where he took his first steps, the place where he learnt to go to school from; th
Was he her Elian? Her Elian Anderson? Were uncle and aunt joking? She flipped her head right and left to see some kind of a hidden camera, but found none. So, it was true. It was her Elian. She was floating in the air in her mind. Now that she knew it was him, she found this man more charming than before. It would not be called cheating anymore. Because this man was her knight. Not only his face she was attracted to, but also to his aura. An easygoing, understanding, and calm aura which she adored most in people around her. All the menacing intentions she had for him, turned into a pure blissful smile, bringing the angel in her out. She still remembered how scared she was when she entered here, and how he teased her calling her a crybaby.
"Sofia, so you have finally decided to leave this house for good?" A loud voice sounded in the room, and soon the smashing of objects followed. Her little sister, Abigail winced. To her, it was a norm. Her mother's hysteria, coercion, and in the end, her guilt. Abigail sighed. She knew what the outcome would be if she let it continue. "Yes, I want to leave, and I will leave." Sofia was hell-bent. One of the reasons she wanted to escape was this. Ever since he left, her mother was never the same. For years, she tried to get her mother to accept reality. That she had to learn to live without him. However, it all went in vain. Her mom never understood. He was her everything to the point that her daughters had no value in her eyes. Everything started with him. Everything also ended with him. "You aren't going anywhere! I dare you to leave!" "Watch me." Sofia shrugged. "No! You can't leave. You will not leave." Helene Roderick grabbed her daughter's arm. A hysteric glint flashed i
"Excuse me, Miss?" Someone shook her. Blinking her eyes open, she was greeted by a man in a white coat. She was a little dazed."Huh?"The light was encircling the place when she came to her senses completely and moved her neck which hurt. Sleeping in a chair and that too on a cold night with no blanket made her body freeze in some places.Albeit the area she was in was a secluded corner– away from the hospital, still, she could hear the faint bustling of people, the stomping of their hurried feet, and the sounds of wheelchairs screeching on the floor.Last night it was all too quiet that she forgot she was in a hospital and slept. One short nap became a thorough sleep and the long night evolved into a day.Her phone buzzed.Mumbling an 'excuse me', she checked her phone to see 6 missed calls from home and got worried."Hello?""Ria, we're trying to reach out to you but you weren't answering." Nanny Mary's voice filled with concern greeted her. "Is everything alright there?""Yes, yes
2 Days Later.The City Hospital. 8:28 pm."Mom! Where's mom?"The doctors and patients who were in the hospital gazed at her strangely. Zaria Smith did not care about anything.The only words that were playing in her mind like a reel were that her mother-in-law collapsed. A mother-in-law who loved her more than anything in this world.And she could be- No, she was the reason she was in danger."Young Madam, you're here!" In the waiting room, an old woman stood up.Nanny Mary hugged Zaria. Slipping into a familiar embrace, Zaria felt calm and her breathing turned even. Her voice was very low, lacking energy."I don't see Dad here.""Old Master Anderson is with the doctor discussing Madam's tumour."Zaria sucked a breath."What happened to Mom, Nanny Mary? How could she collapse all of a sudden?"Nanny Mary's grip on Zaria loosened and she sighed."Old Madam... She was thinking very hard these past few days. Her expression was also not happy. Perhaps she was under some unknown stress."
Breaking News: Rumour confirmed. The Male Lead of the highly anticipated adaption of the famous novel is Malcolm Augustus.Star Entertainment too has confirmed this news and requires lots of support from the fans and readers.The worst came true.The exhilaration and anticipation she had for the movie– it was as if someone had poured cold water on her head.Malcolm Augustus was the Male Lead of her favourite novel, the one she was looking forward to seeing in the movie theatre.Now she had to watch his annoying face on that big screen.A fierce and intense fight on the Internet began and Sofia Brown's phone buzzed crazily."Sh*t." Sofia cursed under her breath for the hundredth time and rubbed her head.Ever since Malcolm's scandal broke out, the entertainment industry and fan and anti-fan groups were in chaos. After Malcolm, lots of scandals appeared and many stars became the target of netizens and public hatred.However, Malcolm's scandal was the biggest of them all. The gentle pers
Zaria Smith knew the moment she saw this woman named Christina Norman, she was going to be a thorn in her relationship with Elian. For 3 days, Zaria did not see Elian and Christina. She had no idea what they were doing. As she passed by the hallway, she heard the low whispers of the servants, their eyes following her and observing her moves as if she were a criminal who had done a heinous crime. Were they blaming her for Christina's state? Was it Ria who forced Christina to eavesdrop on her conversation with her husband, Elian Anderson? Deep in her thoughts, she did not realise she had bumped into Sebastian. Startled, Zaria shook her head, her mind disturbed. "I wasn't looking clearly. Forgive me, Uncle Sebastian." "Young Madam, I..." "What is the matter, Uncle Sebastian? Why are you so pale?" Zaria was getting worried. Why was he so quiet? Butler Sebastian was silent as he kept his gaze low. "Is it about Elian?" "Young Madam, you have to promise me that you must stay calm
'I will finally talk to him! I can't tolerate her presence anymore. Humph, if she has no recollection of 2 years ago, she better make new memories if she can't recover the old ones.' Zaria was thinking when she stilled and watched the scene unfolding. "Elian, you're back!" Christina leapt into Elian's arms happily. "Mmh." "When are you planning to bring your friends here, Elian? I haven't seen them for a long time and I want to meet them." Zaria was in disbelief. This Christina had met them, but Zaria.. Elian had never introduced his friends to her. Not even a simple description of how they might have looked like. He always had dinner outside the house when he visited his friends. "They are busy nowadays," Elian answered and tried to separate himself from Christina but she would not budge. "Well, forget them. Do you feel the difference here?" "..." "Ugh, look around! I have changed everything." Only after that, Elian's dark eyes went to every corner. "The previous setting w
"Good grief!" The next morning when Butler Sebastian saw Zaria, he was flabbergasted. "What happened to you, Young Madam?" "Uncle Sebastian..." Zaria Smith could not get a single wink last night. The moment she would shut her eyes, she would see Elian together with that woman. She had black bags under her eyes and slightly puffed cheeks, giving a great impression of a panda. The torment she and her soul went through was intolerable. None of her friends was here. Who should she confide in? Past, he said. Was she truly just a past? Then why did he keep her here? Butler Sebastian was concerned. Was the task not successful? Since he could not get a word out from Zaria, he sighed. "Young Madam, have something first and then resolve the matter." "Resolve the matter? Will he let us do it?" Zaria muttered, a bitter face forming. "Yes?" "Oh, nothing." As she proceeded to go to the kitchen, she heard some maids speaking. "That guest staying in the room opposite the hallway, isn't she
The dinner ended in silence. Zaria waited for Elian to say something or start a conversation, but he did not. He seemed distracted. The atmosphere was romantic and dreamlike yet the tension and nervousness somehow kept coming in. Under the table, Zaria clenched her fists apprehensively. "Elian, I need to talk to you." Elian was brought back to reality as he sensed Ria's gaze on him. Blinking, he cleared his throat, "I have been meaning to tell you something for quite a while as well. I can only let this out today now that I have got the chance." Zaria's heartbeat accelerated. Was he too- She gratefully thanked her ancestors and the heavens for this moment. With a shy look, she shook her head, her voice soft and she gazed down. "You can speak first. I can wait." "Are you sure?" Elian asked seriously. "Mmh." After all, whether she said it or he said it, it was the same. Sighing, Elian made eye contact with Zaria. He was holding this girl for a long time knowing that she could h
2 Years Later: "Young Madam, all preparations have been carried out. Anything else that you require?" Zaria, who was watering the vibrant coloured flowers, stopped and turned around. Noticing Butler Sebastian, a smile took over her. So much had changed in these two years. Both Zaria and Butler Sebastian got to know each other and went along well. Butler Sebastian assisted her in many things which helped her become a perfect madam of the family. Sasha had begun to treat everyone softly. Although, sometimes she did lose control. The manor was peaceful and tranquil most of the time. Her relationship with her husband had become better and now they did not feel reluctant around each other. The Old Anderson couple would also visit them once a year and would return happily after seeing their children were happy. Her feelings had also somewhat become stabilised. "Nothing else other than him." "It's our second anniversary. He'll be on time, right?" "Young Madam..." Sebastian started h