Chapter 5 - Imperial Banquet (2)
If I never met you, would my ending be less heart-wrenching?
Esperanza's father, the Duke escorted her to the banquet hall. Before entering the hall, Esperanza glanced at her father. He wore a perfect matching outfit- a blue tuxedo with a white collar and patterns. But the blue didn't suit his features and it seemed funny. But that didn't matter to her.
"Duke Lýkos Ilamas Distruzione, and his daughter, Young Lady Esperanza Ilamas Distruzione are entering!" The knight announced at the top of his lungs as he opened the doors. Silence filled the hall and the nobles present cast us different kinds of glances - some curiosity, some indifference, some hostility, and some disgusted.
A knight came to the duke, informing him that the emperor was summoning him for the time being. A reluctant duke left the hall.
Esperanza as expected became a wallflower that nobody was interested to talk with. The pain in her leg was aching, but she had learned to endure just well. As she was about to doze off, the knight announced, "Young Duke Lev Letale Obscurité, along with his younger sister, young lady Précieuse Letale Obscurité is entering!"
Many of the noble ladies approached the blue-haired girl who arrived with a blonde boy. Esperanza squinted her eyes to make out his features and instantly, her body froze. She could hear her heart thumping with anxiety while adrenaline rushed in. Her everything turned numb- body, senses, the pain, and her soul. She couldn't think properly, and before she knew it, she was already out on the balcony.
The worst of her memories flashed by. She recalled the day when she first met him- alone, helpless, and trapped within in her fears while he was the first ever to reach out to her. He was the first one who took her as Qing Lin, not Qing Baozhai. He was the first-ever to differentiate between them. While he was the first-ever she relied on.
Unknowingly, tears escaped her eyes. But she didn't stop them. Because once again, she had returned to her sixteen-year-old past self, isolated helplessly in her fear, waiting for someone to comfort her. Waiting for someone to tell her, 'It will be alright.'
That time she met someone who shared the pain with her, but now? Nobody would comfort. Nobody would share the pain with her. And now, after stabilizing her soul in this world, she meets someone who looks just like him.
And that person was the original body owner's lover, the one who betrayed her.
Could it get any worse than this?
She remembered the moment when he laced his hands in hers and promised to protect her at all costs. He fulfilled the promise, but the price was too heavy.
It would've been better if he had just left me behind.
But along with them, other memories came back to her too. How Esperanza fell in love at first sight with the young duke, who requested to dance with her. He promised to be by her side forever and mercilessly threw her away while getting engaged with the real daughter. There was no comparison between her and Esperanza's former lover. Qing Lin's was loyal, while Esperanza's was heartless.
Still.... didn't we suffer the same pain?
She laughed when she recalled the moment when the man threw away the original body owner. How greatly different were both the men, yet how could they share the same face?
Again, many of her previous life's vague memories flashed by, but this time getting more clear. The time when he pushed her out of the way of the car on the road crossing, the time when the car hit him. She recalled her stupefied figure, who was paralyzed with fear and kept muttering the word, 'ambulance'. Thanks to some kind people, the ambulance arrived on time.
But it was too late.
It was too late for them to be together again. Zhang Wei, her previous lover, and her first love was indeed saved. But he woke up with amnesia. He couldn't remember anything of his life, after turning fourteen. Zhang Wei still treated her kindly after his amnesia, saying he felt a special bond with her. Hearing this, there was no longer any insecurity in her heart. She felt that there might be a chance for them to return to what they used to be. And they could've. If only it wasn't for her younger sister, who always stole away what belonged to her.
On her death day, she heard the most shocking news of her life- Zhang Wei and Qing Baozhai's engagement. She didn't care about hearing any explanation for him. Before she could see him again, she was already dead.
What was the use to love someone? To feel happy? Ridiculous. What was the use for him to pledge loyalty? To comfort me? When he only ended up betraying me. What was the use for her to call me here? Just because I was a lifeless doll she could control? That is indeed true, I'm too easily controlled by someone. Because I am ridiculously foolish- even now, holding onto a thin thread of hope.
YOU ARE READING
Oblivion Of The Heart
Historical Fiction[Ongoing] "Why is being myself harder than anything?" Qing Lin closed her eyes. A girl whose smile gave off the effulgence which seemed to light the diminished world around her. A girl who held such purity in a world surrounded by happiness. A girl...
