❝ The question is, are you worth your weight in gold? ❞
Reputation is a sacred sheet of parchment at Forteux Academy.
Handled carefully, it can become a bill of gold leading one to a life of riches. Yet a mere foot in the wrong direction can tear...
when the party's over - billie eilish recommended by gioxvibes
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As I write this, I'm uncertain whether I'll manage to give this to you in person or if this will be found in my bag and handed to you.
Either way, the message is the same; I'm truly and completely sorry. Before I explain any further, there are some things I want to tell you.
Ever since the first days when I understood language, I'd been told that reputation meant everything to a person.
It was the sacred essence of a person and the key that defined one's existence. The symbol of their dignity, their self-respect, their status and most importantly their power.
I'd been told that people who said otherwise were simply delusional and afraid of acknowledging the fact that they'd failed to make their mark in the world. Overcome by disappointment, they attempted to make themselves feel better by painting those that care about their reputation as vain and egoistic when in reality, that is far from the truth.
It probably sounds ridiculous to you how something so small can matter so much but it does. It always has in the aristocracy. That's how our section of the world works; by word of mouth. If you had been told something like this ever since you first breathed, you too would accept it without question.
I'd seen countless people have their life destroyed after any wrong decision of theirs had been exposed to the public's eye. The media and tabloid were like starved tigers, eager to rip into the flesh of influential people as soon as they slipped up. They seem to forget that we too are human.
Not superheroes but humans.
Think about how many newspaper stories you have read where individuals loved by thousands are suddenly painted out as a villain due to one mistake. Terrified and haunted by watching them ruin people, I quickly realised how important this sacred thread of reputation was. Not just in Forteaux but the real world.
With people watching your every move, the safest option was to ensure that any wrongdoing never got out. In a society where money didn't hold much meaning anymore, secrets become the next best thing. I've physically learnt the impact of when somebody gets to know something that should have been kept secret.
Having always been told by my parents and others that social status was worth more than the price of gold, I'd always vowed to myself that I'd do anything to protect it. The fact that Forteaux had placed me on a pedestal only meant that I had so much more to lose if any mistake of mine got out. I'd be destroyed.
This mindset had led to me doing some awful things. Not just the action itself but the choice to keep quiet about it and cover up my tracks.
