Ares' father firmly believed that his son's character was unchangeable. He had raised him to be heartless and strict from a young age. However, everything changed when his son fell in love with an ordinary girl. This girl had a profound impact on Ar...
The day has finally arrived. The day when the ball is supposed to be held. This day can also be called as the worst day of my life.
Right now, I'm in my room. I was dressed in a black suit. Zion is fixing his hair as he is staring in the mirror. At the same time, my mom is fixing my tie. I love my mom, and so does she, unlike my father, who adores only his younger son. But my mom adores us both.
"Are you still upset about your father's decision?" My mom finally speaks up in a low tone. "What do you think?" I mutter, not interested in discussing the topic my mom brought up. "Listen dear, as you know, your father will announce your and Claire's marriage. I don't want you to create any scene otherwise. You know your father very well" She warns me as she cups my face.
I don't say a word as I gaze at the floor sorrowfully. "Can't you convince him?" I ask her, now staring at my mom. "Oh, honey, I wish I could do something for you" She says, her eyes filled with sorrow. I'm sorry, Mom, but I can't let him decide my future.
I take a deep breath and walk towards the door, Zion follows me. We both descend the stairs together. "So, who's your dancing partner?" He asks, probably trying to distract me from my thoughts. "I don't know" I tell him. "What if your father tells you to choose Clair as your dancing partner?" He pauses in between, and do I. I throw him a disgusted look. "Retake her name, and I'll murder you" I glare at him and continue to walk.
He murmurs something to himself, which is probably about me, but I ignore it.
We reach the hall and enter inside. There are hundreds of people, and all belong to the mafia. My eyes land on my father holding a glass of wine and talking to Adonis and Zion's father, Mr.Jameson. Then my eyes light on Clair, She's wearing a red gown, and her hair is tied in a bun. She waves her hand at me, but I look in the other direction as if I didn't see her.
She is not the one I'm looking for.
Where is Leah?
I looked everywhere in the hall but didn't find her. I thought she'd join the ball. "Who are you looking for?" Zion enquires. Should I tell him? At last, he's my best friend; if I didn't tell him, he'd get mad at me.
"I'm-I'm looking for Leah" I tell him. He looks bemused. "Who's she?" He glares skeptically. "Uh....well, if you remember, a few days ago, we saw a girl with red hair" I said. He looks at the floor, trying to remember. "Oh yeah....!!!Wait, hold on, so why are you looking for her?" He stares at me.
Now how am I supposed to explain that?
Before I could answer his question, my father called out my name. I turn back. He's a few steps away from me. Adonis and Mr Jameson are standing behind him. I start to approach them while Zion follows me.
He had been following me like a lost duckling.
Anyway, I stand still in front of my dad. Within less than 5 seconds, my mother and brother also join us. "How are you, son?" Mr.Jameson asks playfully as he pats my back. "Good" I utter, not making eye contact. "Well, Ares I hope you're excited about the announcement your father will make shortly" Adonis says, with a wide grin. "Unfortunately, I'm not" I roll my eyes. His facial expressions drop while my father throws a nasty look at me.
"But Alfred told me you're ready for the marriage" Mr Jameson says confusingly. "No, it's not true" I inform him. "Like seriously who's going to marry such a girl whose father himself is a voracious type of person? He wants prosperity, power, and respect which he doesn't deserve" I said. I'm not being rude. I'm stating facts. Nobody utters a word after what I said. My father glances at Adonis, who has a nonplus look plastered on his face.
"Excuse me" My father says and grabs my arm, dragging me with him out of the hall. He takes me to his private room. Where he used to keep his weapons. I look around as my father locks the door. "I didn't say anything wrong" I say. He glares at me, clenching his fist. He punches me in the face. The punch is strong enough to make my lips bleed. I stumble. He then punches me in the stomach. I groan and fall to the floor.
"Have you lost your mind!" He snarls at me. I spit out blood and then stare at him. "Didn't your mother warn you!" He scowls. She did, but I deliberately disobeyed her order because this was wrong. "Do whatever you want to do because you have to obey anyway" He says and walks out of the room, slamming the door shut. I try to stand on my feet as I table the shelf next to me for support. My lips are still bleeding. I wince in pain as I struggle to walk out of the room.
I won't return to the hall. I walk out of the house and approach the garden. Then I take out the handkerchief in my pocket and fold it, pressing it against my bleeding lips. My eyes suddenly land on a girl sitting on the bench in front of the fountain.
Hold on, isn't that Leah?
Yeah, it's her.
Many girls were in the hall, but my eyes only searched for her. And there she is. I shove the handkerchief back into my pocket while I approach her.
"Leah?" I call out her name. She turns back, and as soon as she sees me she quickly stands up as if I'm her boss. "Ohh, hi" She says, tucking a strand behind her hair. I assume she does it only when she is nervous.
God, she's looking beautiful in the gown she's wearing.
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"Why didn't you join the ball?" I ask her as I sit beside her and pull her wrist to make her sit with me. She isn't wearing the blue dress my mother lent her. I thought that dress was for her.
Anyway. "I like to be here" She says as she glances at me. "Oh" I say and purse my lips. She suddenly grabs my face, forcing me to look at her. "What happened to your lips" She asks as she lays her thumb on my lips. "It's normal for me" I tell her. "What do you mean?" She asks again. I should tell her since she seems to be sympathetic.
"Ugh... My father punched me in the face, and -- Your father abuses you too?" She interrupts. "What do you mean by 'you too'?" I raise my eyebrows curiously. She again looks at the ground. "My father was abusive too" She tells me. How can someone be so cruel towards such an innocent girl? "And why he used to do that?"I ask, frowning my eyebrows. "Because he never wanted a daughter. He always wished to have a son. He considered me worthless and useless" She says as she she looks around to avoid the tear slip from her face, but it does anyway.
Oh no, no, no, no Don't cry Don't cry Please
"I tried so hard to prove myself to my father, but he didn't care at all" She says. I want to hug her and never let go. She doesn't deserve this. "He used to beat me a lot with his belt when I was 10" She says as she stares at the twinkling stars.
I have to do something to distract her from her thoughts.
I wipe away her tear and stand up from the bench. "So you don't wanna go inside, and I don't wanna go either" I said. She stares at me confusingly. "So, would you like to come with me?" I finally ask her, pulling a hand out. "Where?" She blinks. "Well, I won't tell you right now, but trust me" I said. She pulls out her hand and holds mine. I smile and take her with me.
There is another garden behind my house. Much bigger than this one. And more beautiful. There is also a pond and beautiful trees.
As soon as we reach there, her eyes widen with excitement. She gasps. "This is heaven" She says with a grin.
"I love this place"
"Can-can we stay here for a while?" She asks. "The ball will end at midnight, and it's still 9 pm, so yeah sure" I assure her as I glance at my watch, wrapped around my wrist.
