"Come on, get ready, we'll have breakfast outside and then go shopping" "But, the malls and shops don't open yet.""We can just wander around till then, go to some museums and stuff, get ready!""Okay" Lily smiled widely and went to her room to get ready. She wore a white A line frock with little black hearts all over it with her hair open. She loved modest fashion and always wore something eye catching, though it was not blingy or any thing but simple and cute looking. Clarissa and Lily stopped by at a cafe to have their breakfast and then went to some parks and art mueseums to pass their time. When the shopping malls and shops opened, Clarissa took Lily to all kinds of shops, they went to the biggest brand's shops and Clarissa made Lily try every thing she picked for her, from clothes to bags and heels and make up and what not. All the workers and managers in those shops knew Clarissa and treated her really well. Lily was trying one of Clarissa's chosen pair of skirt and top whic
Clarissa loved the outfit she was wearing, she clicked a ton of pictures in it and this was the first time she clicked her pictures, she's never believed she was beautiful enough to have her pictures clicked. She loved tweed outfits but never had the courage to try it on, she thought it would never look good on her but now that she was wearing it, she loved it. Clarissa and Lily arrived at Knightsbridge and entered the house as they saw Zared standing in the middle of the living room, he haulted his steps when he saw both of them, it was around 5 pm. "Hi, you're home ? ""Yeah.... I needed to get ready for the party, where were you?""Shopping, can't you see" Clarissa said looking at her workers who was placing the shopping bags inside the house. Zared nodded looking at the bags. "Had to give your wife a little makeover, how is she looking? " She asked pulling Lily forward. Zared's eyes widened and his brows raised as he noticed Lily. His gaze was fixed on her face, she didn't l
Before Zared could proceed someone turned him around and pushed him aside, it was Clarissa. "You'll take hours doing a simple thing." She tied the knots one by one swiftly. Zared and Lily's faces were flushed and they couldn't meet their eyes. "Come on dear, let's get you ready.""There's more?" Zared asked paralyzed. "Of course, her make up is to be done, hair is to be made and-""Okayyyy, just let me know when you all are ready, I'll wait downstairs."Zared left the room as the hair stylist and makeup artist entered the room. Soon, Clarissa and Lily were ready, Lily had maroon eyeshadow on, her cheeks flushed and maroon rose like lip shade on. The middle part if her hair was held by a clutcher at the back as the wavy strands hung on either sides of her face. Clarissa wore a classy off shoulder black gown which suited her very well in every way. Both of them faced Zared as they were ready to leave, waiting for him to call the car for them. Zared lifted his gaze from his phone
For the first time, Lily didn't feel ugly or unnoticed or neglected. She felt confident, she felt beautiful and liked it. Every one if the ladies she met complimented her and her exceptional choice of jewelry. "Meet her, she is the only daughter of-""Linchesters" Lily completee Clarissa's sentence, she knew most of the people here since they were so famous and also once upon a time business partners with her father. Clarissa nodded smiling proud of Lily. "Hi, Nice to meet you miss...?" said the Linchesters' daughter."Lily, Lily Williams" Clarissa said before Lily could say anything. "Nice to meet you too, Emily." Lily said smiling at her. Emily's eyes were widened but not much, it would be noticeable for the ones who knew she was after Zared. The colour of her face was now paler than before, she had dark hair and dark eyes, she was wearing a silver dress which ended at her calves and a slit around her chest. Emily looked at Lily up and down, she scoffed and looked away. Clarissa
"Well, neither is Zared a child nor is he attracted to anything, but what can I say about the cheap stuff displaying itself so someone gets attracted." Clarissa said coming from behind Emily straightened and her face tightened, she looked at Clarissa and then Lily. "If you don't mind sweetheart, we would like to have a bit of a family time here." Clarissa scrunched her nose while smiling slyly. Emily turned around and left from there on Clarissa's sharp yet polite request. The party went on with the Williams family and Knight family meeting and hosting every one. It was coming to an end, everyone started to leave wishing the couple and their company well. Everyone left except the Knight Family and The Williams. Zared sighed and turned to Aaron and his mother, Gloria. "It was great giving our friendship another meaning once again." Gloria smiled holding Clarissa's hand. Both of the families knew each other since ages and were very good friends ever since. Clarissa smiled t
Zared warned Lily to not open her mouth since she always used to say "Goodnight" to Zared before they slept. Lily sighed and turned the other way hearing Zared. A few days went by and it was the day Clarissa was going to leave. Clarissa was bidding Lily a good bye hugging her. She approached Zared. "Take care of her, I'll be calling every day to check up on her and if I get to know you haven't been taking care of her, you'll regret it." Clarissa warned Zared as she was leaving. Zared nodded smiling at her. She left leaving Lily and Zared alone in the room. Zared turned to Lily. "I can't believe this." Lily looked at him. "You've made my mom go against me....and to the extinct that she didn't even ask me to take care of myself while leaving, but did remember to ask me to take care of you.""I didn't do anyth-""I didn't do anything Zared, I didn't tell her to do it, I didn't ask her to buy it, I didn't do it on purpose, I love you, I care about you, oh please Lily, for God's sake
Zared started approaching Lily, his ocean blue eyes were now a shade darker than before. His steps were slow. Lily was finding it hard to stand still at one place, her period cramps kicked in and she closed her eyes in the pain but couldn't make it obvious. She forwarded her steps in order to lighten her pain through the movement in her body. He didn't break the eye contact he was holding with Lily. She was confused, she didn't know why he was coming towards her, she tried to recall everything she did during the day, thinking what would make him angry this time, what did she do. He stopped right in front of her, she felt a sharp pain in her scalps as he pulled her hair and dragged her by it behind him. She screamed, asked him to leave, asked what did she do this time, but, nothing, not a thing worked on him, not a thing she said or asked made him utter a word.Her eyes were wet, the tears didn't leave her eyes, they were not of sorrow but out of pain, the pain caused in her scalps b
She saw her reflection in the mirror in front, the bags under her eyes, her cheeks sucked in, her color paler than before, her cheeks red and dry. She turned a little bit just to see blood stains on the back of her shirt, she gasped, the wounds did pain alot but she didn't know they would be this bad, she realized the wet feeling she was feeling earlier on her back wasn't sweat, it was blood from the wounds Zared made with his belt. She went to Zared's room to get water from the jug he had in his room since she had no stamina to go down stairs, she chugged the water in one go and laid back on her bed, she spent the night somehow managing everything. She didn't cry, she was too low on energy to cry, she drifted to sleep earlier than usual because of the tiredness present in her. It was bright outside, the sun shone brightly and the wind blew softly. Zared came home around midnight last night. He still got up at his usual time to get ready and head to the company. On arriving near the
There she was-sitting on the floor by the window, knees drawn to her chest, her arms wrapped tightly around them. Her caramel hair was unkempt, strands falling over her pale face. The moonlight washed over her frail figure, making her look even smaller, more fragile. “Lily…” Aaron’s voice was soft, cautious. She didn’t move, didn’t look at him. He stepped inside, his chest aching at the sight of her. Slowly, he lowered himself to sit beside her on the floor, his shoulder barely brushing hers. His heart ached, ached that the man who had caused her nothing but pain is still continuing to do it even after his death and Aaron couldn't do anything about it. “You don’t have to say anything,” he murmured, staring out at the same moonlit view she seemed fixated on. “But I’m here. I’ll always be here. I just want you to know." For a moment, it seemed like she might respond, her lips parting slightly, but then she closed them again, her gaze dropping to her knees, it made Aaron tak
He couldn’t shake the feeling, couldn’t silence the voice in the back of his mind screaming that Zared wasn’t gone. Zared was sharp, calculating, a man who wouldn’t fall so easily. But Aaron had no proof, no real reason to believe it-only a gnawing instinct buried deep in his chest. "He’s alive," the thought whispered again. But Aaron forced the thought away, shaking his head slightly before turning his attention back to Lily. She was still sitting there, small and fragile in the dim light, and he realized she needed comfort more than he needed answers to the questions clawing at his mind. “Hey,” he said softly, nudging her knee with his. “How about some hot chocolate? It won’t fix everything, but it might make this night feel a little less heavy.” Lily looked up at him, a ghost of a smile flickering across her lips for the first time that night. “Sure, thanks.” Aaron stood, his movements careful as if not to disturb the fragile calm that had settled between them. A few
For one fleeting moment, Lily felt him there-with her, surrounding her, a warmth that would linger in her heart long after she walked away from his home for the last time. "Oh, what have you done Zared." She said aloud. "Why did you have to do it, it was all your fault for turning your fate, why make me suffer by doing this." She sat on the couch with her head in her hands. Clara's home was dim when Lily returned, the faint glow of a lamp spilling light into the hallway. Her steps were slow, almost hesitant, as she pushed the door open and stepped inside. Aaron was pacing near the window, his phone clutched tightly in his hand, while Clara sat curled on the edge of the couch, her head snapping up the moment the door creaked. “Lily!” Aaron’s voice cut through the silence as he rushed towards her. “Where have you been? Do you have any idea how worried we’ve been?” Clara stood, her eyes wide with concern. “You didn’t answer your phone. We thought… we thought something happ
The clock on the wall ticked loudly, each second stretching longer than the last. Clara sat on the couch, clutching her phone tightly in her hands, her thumbs hovering over the screen as if another call might suddenly bring an answer. “Aaron…” she said quietly, her voice trembling. “It’s been hours. She’s not picking up. Where could she have gone?” Aaron stood by the window, his back to her, his jaw clenched so tightly it ached. His phone was already gripped in his palm, the screen blank after too many unanswered calls. “She wouldn’t just disappear like this,” he said, his voice sharp, his frustration barely contained. “Not without telling someone. Not after everything that’s happened.” Clara’s eyes shone with worry as she whispered, “What if something happened to her, Aaron?” Aaron turned, his expression softer now as he looked at her. “Don’t think like that. She’s okay. She has to be.” But even as he said the words, doubt gnawed at him. Without another word, Aaro
Lily hesitated but eventually said, "Did you see how he did it?" She looked up at Aaron. "Did you see how he was found ? Laurent, the pictures on the news, they were so disgusting, he had...you must've seen." "I did." Aaron noticed the disgusted look on her face. He once again recalled how he had done it. How he had screamed like the goat when it is sacrificed, how his eyes went rolling behind showing only the white part. How he had joined his fingerless hands in front of him in order to be forgiven. "Maybe he deserved it...Zared, for what he did, Karma, they say?" She asked. Aaron nodded in response but remained silent. He knew he was betraying her, betraying her trust, taking advantage of the situation she was in, the trust she had at this vulnerable stage of her life. In the quiet of the room, Aaron’s guilt festered, hidden beneath the surface. Lily didn’t need to know the truth-not tonight, and maybe not ever. But that was for him to decide after. Aaron's mind was in t
His hand moved to the doorknob, twisting it slowly until the latch clicked open instead of knocking in case she was asleep. Peeking inside, he expected to see her resting, maybe curled up in the blankets. Instead, he found her awake, sitting stiffly on the edge of her bed. The moonlight cast a silvery glow across her features, making her appear ethereal and distant. She was staring out the window, her expression blank yet hauntingly sad, as though she were lost in a memory she couldn’t escape. She didn't deserve this, didn't deserve such a tragedy, she was way too nice for this world, for Zared. He didn't deserve her agony, her tears, her sleepless nights. Aaron hesitated again but finally stepped inside, giving a soft knock on the door to announce himself. The sound made her blink, breaking her trance. She glanced at him, her gaze piercing for the briefest second before it dulled again, returning to the view outside the window. Without waiting for an invitation, Aaron move
Lily didn’t respond to Clara. She stared out the window, her mind replaying every second she’d spent with Zared, searching for answers that would probably never come. She thought about what thoughts must have consumed Zared when he decided to end his life. Was he thinking about her? Was he blaming her? Was he guilty of what he did? Or he just couldn't bear the thought of her leaving him? But again, why would she hold so much importance in his life for him to give it all up. His family, the company, his friends-though Lily knew none. Maybe it was a punishment? From god ? Maybe he wanted Zared to die in exchange of Laurent, maybe because he killed him? Maybe this was his revenge? She shook her head shooing all the thoughts away. The three of them were now back at Clara's house, the silence was comfortable, no one wanted to talk, Aaron, however wanted to comfort Lily, make her believe that it wasn't her fault. He knew she must be blaming herself, she was the last person to t
Lily, Aaron, and Clara walked briskly down the sterile, cold hallways of the hospital, their footsteps echoing, at the end of the corridor, where Zared’s parents and Aaron’s parents were standing together, faces etched with grief. The moment they approached, Lily saw Zared’s mother, her tear-streaked face crumpling further. “He’s already been moved,” Zared’s father said, his voice hoarse. “To the freezer. They’re preparing him for the funeral.” Lily froze mid-step, her heart sinking. She hadn’t realized how desperately she’d wanted to see him one last time. Her lips parted, but no words came out. “Why so soon?” Aaron asked, his voice laced with disbelief. “It’s the procedure,” Aaron’s father said, his voice heavy. “Once the body is declared and cleared, there’s no waiting.” Lily clenched her fists at her sides, overwhelmed by a mixture of grief and frustration. The chance to say goodbye was ripped away. All she had now were the memories-and the haunting, unanswered qu
A single tear rolling down his cheek before he collapsed back onto the bed, lifeless. "No,no,no,no." The news anchor’s voice filled the silence. “Zared Williams, known for his innovative contributions to technology and his efforts towards hi company, was pronounced dead at 10:47 p.m. Doctors have confirmed that his death was caused by the disconnection of critical life-support machines. Despite being close to a full recovery, it appears Mr. Williams made the decision to end his life. What the doctors are calling an apparent suicide." Tears welled in Lily’s eyes as her chest tightened painfully. She turned to Clara, who was still frozen in place, her hand trembling against her lips. “This…this isn’t real,” Lily murmured, shaking her head as if trying to wake herself from a nightmare. “It can’t be.” Clara finally looked at her, her eyes glistening with tears. “It is, Lily,” she whispered. “He’s…he’s gone.” Lily stumbled back, her legs weak beneath her. The weight of the news c