Water flows down like a curtain from the shower head. I struggle with my clothes, the rips in my bodice making it hard to take the dress off swiftly. As I pull at the material, tears stab at my eyes.
“Agh!” I cry out and fling the tattered dress away from me.
Nestling under the warm jet of water, I slide to the floor and let the drops envelop me. They mingle with my tears until I can no longer differentiate which is which.
It took less than a second for my facade to crumble, but at least Nykander did not see me like this. A pathetic mess.
I don’t think I would have been able to deal with the pity in his eyes then.
Today was supposed to be just another normal day. Instead I woke up with my mother rummaging through my room, searching for any hidden coins. And she did find them. The money I’ve saved up for over ten years through my other jobs.
I’d known about our financial struggles at the restaurant for a while but I never thought they would be so dire as to rob their own daughter.
If they had asked me, I would have gladly given it to them.
I didn’t fight her. It was just money at the end of the day, even though I was indescribably disappointed, not only because she’d resort to theft, but also because those coins signified my hard work over the years—the ups and downs I suffered in silence. They might not have been much—certainly not enough to cover the debt—but they weremine. My security for the future since I knew I would never get married. And once my brother got married; once my parents died, I knew I would have to rely on myself.
Like a dutiful daughter, I let them have the money, thinking it would save the restaurant.
The entire family went to Mr. Denos to pay some of the debt and ask for some relief until my parents raised the rest of the funds.
Instead, Mr. Denos laughed in our faces, declaring that a lifetime of work wouldneverpay off the debt.
That’s when the second disappointment of the day occurred. To call it a disappointment is already not enough. It was pure heartbreak.
Without prompting, my father asked if anything else could make up for the debt, his eyes on me the entire time. Mr. Denos immediately understood his meaning, then laughed. I was too old. Not to his taste. But he would take me as payment for the interest: the rest of the debt still had to be paid.
I cried and begged my parents not to do it. But they did not budge.
“Think about your brother. He needs to get married and take over the restaurant. If not, our entire family is done for.”
What about me then? What about myownfuture?
But they did not care. I was not their heir. I was not that important, and therefore I was expendable.
The transaction done, my parents left. I tried to run, to scream, to fight. But it was all in vain. Mr. Denos’ guards easily restrained me.
If Nykander had not showed up when he did…
More tears fall down my cheeks, my sobs becoming uncontrollable.
Why would they do this to me? My own family… Why would they sell me as if I did not matter at all?
How come a stranger cared more about my safety than my own blood?
And to my eternal shame, no matter how thankful I am for his actions, I cannot bring myself to fully trust him. What if he hasotherthings in mind? What if he wants to take advantage of me, too? Especially now that I’m living in his house.
Yet what is the alternative? I have nowhere else to go.
If he tries something… I don’t know if I can stop him.
No, no!Don’t think like that, Moe! He saved you, he wouldn’t…
But he’s a male, too. Not only that, but he is an immortal. With one snap of his fingers, he could have everything he wanted from me, and I would be helpless to do anything.
I should… I should leave. Yes. I need to leave. Find a job. The coins I kept should last me a fortnight for food and lodgings and in that time I could find employment.
For a moment, a spear of pain tears through me as I think of Nykander. He’s beensokind to me, and he’s going to be so disappointed in me. The thought of his reaction when he finds me gone makes me want to reconsider it.
