The Obsessive Villainess Vol. 1 ✔

4. We met in a funeral so what can you expect?

Chapter 4. We met in a funeral, so what do you expect from our fate?

I dreamt of Cassian again.

At night, as I sleep, I often get visions of Nora's past. I don't remember much once I wake up, but this wasn't the first time I'd dreamt of this scene.

Eleonora and Cassian's first meeting.

People wearing black crowded around in a cemetery. The sun was shining bright in the sky, and it was a day with great weather; a pleasant breeze accompanied by the sweet chirping of birds in trees. Perfect for a picnic with family.

It's as if the sky was celebrating the day of her mother's funeral.

Nora's mother wasn't particularly a popular woman, although she was a known beauty. She was the daughter of a commoner but wasn't exactly understanding or kind-hearted. She lived lavishly with the marquess after their marriage and was prone to throwing tantrums when she didn't get things her way.

"Are you looking down on me because of my blood?" Every time something didn't go her way, she used to say this to anyone who dared speak against her; be it a servant or even a noble.

But she wasn't a bad woman.

Behind her unpleasant personality was a woman who was kind in secret rather than showing it upfront. Her servants' families' needs were always tended to and she often donated parts of her possessions without her name given out.

"Being kind just for show feels so dirty. I can't stand such people!"

She said it often to Nora as she did her hair.

Nora never really understood her mother; after all, what's wrong with being kind and showing it? Isn't it better when people know it? They can be indebted, and the benefits go both ways.

But even so, Nora of course loved her mother. She thought her father did too but...

Three years was too little time.

Watching her new stepmother and sibling, she concluded he didn't love her mother after all.

And later realized she didn't love her either.

She was sitting in the greenhouse, where she often had tea with her mother. A carpet laid by the bed of multicoloured anemones; Nora sat with her arms around her knees as she stared at the love-lies-bleeding flowers hanging around her. She often cried silently here when she felt suffocated in the house with the new additions to her family.

But that day, she wasn't alone. A silver haired boy had joined her, introducing himself as the son of the Duke.

"You gave me these flowers that day as well," Nora mumbled, her voice soft as she brought them close to her nose, referring to the time when she'd met the boy in the funeral, three years ago.

"You remember..." He gave a gentle smile before turning away with a complicated face. "I'd hoped to comfort you, so I'd just picked them myself... although it was a silly thing to do."

Little Nora mildly shook her head, covering her lips with the flowers. "...I like them. Thank you."

The boy looked back at her with a little surprise that soon dissipated into a relieved grin.

"Then I'm glad I could have been of service to you, Lady Eleonora." He gave a tiny bow with his head, charmingly, and she noticed how his soft hair looked adorable when it bobbed gently with his playful gesture. Nora smiled at him.

It was her first smile in a while.

***

I opened my eyes with a sigh and rubbed my eyes as I stared at the beautiful lace above my head.