𝐎𝐅 𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐑𝐒 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐒𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐒

CHAPTER THREE

𝙰𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚗

Just like every other morning, Aspen Berkshire suffered the repercussions of the night before. She had forgotten to eat yet again. But, it wasn't her fault. It was never her fault- at least that's what she continuously told herself, the sentence always on constant loop in the recesses of her mind.

Fear has taken a seat in the bottom of her stomach. Sometimes, he moves to her throat until he's all that she can taste and she tries to get rid of him by shoving her slender fingers inside her mouth. But, fear has already made a home inside of her and he'll never leave her behind.

The familiar burning sensation in her throat was what drove her to glide along the floor and into the adjoining bathroom, where she was currently retching her guts out over the toilet. Wiping the sheen of sweat on her forehead, she forced herself to stand up on her quivering feet. She walked back sluggishly to her master bedroom and frowned at her surroundings. Mother Nature seemed to not share her sour mood. The sun danced behind her curtains and the birds whistled a merry, ariose tune. And, for that moment, everything in her life seemed almost perfect aside from the aching hunger in her stomach.

Not wanting her mother to wander into her room and notice things amiss, Aspen hurriedly took a shower and brushed her teeth. Donned in her satin bathrobe, she sauntered into her walk-in closet. As she passed by, her fingers trailed the fabrics of the clothings hung, the material of them kissing the skin of her fingertips. Her fingers paused on a pleated skirt and cozy sweater.

This will have to do, she thought.

At her vanity mirror, she applied cherry lip gloss over her lips and pinched her cheeks until a rosy hue appeared. An idea popped into her mind and opened the drawer and pulled out twin dainty azure ribbons. She tied the ends of her braids with them and took one last look at the mirror.

A porcelain doll with wide doe eyes and a sad smile stared back at her.

What a pitiful sight.

She bounded the spiralling staircase and paused.

"Oh sweetheart," her mother, Lovelee Berkshire, appeared at the end of the staircase mid-conversation with one of the maids hustling around. She looked at her attire in approval. "You look lovely."

She smiled. "Thanks, mom."

Her mother came up to her and touched the ends of her hair, toying with the ribbons. "What a nice touch."

"I wanted to try something new."

Her mother nodded. "I like it. It's authentic. It shows you, the real you." She tightened one of the ribbons, crooning, "My sweet, precious girl."

Before Aspen could say anything else, her mother's head snapped to the maid beside her who was cowering away. "What is it? I told you, I wanted the assortment of tulips for the entrance, not orchids! Who orders orchids for a classy event?" Her voice spilled down corridors and ricocheted off walls.

Aspen failed to understand how someone who looked similar to her could be entirely different. While Aspen spoke flowery words that birds were attuned to, her mother—despite her name— threw sharp words like knives.

Aspen cleared her throat. "What are you talking about?"

Her mother waved the maid off and ushered her daughter into the dining room, her heels clacking on the wooden floor. "I can't believe you forgot. It's Founders Ball, sweetheart and this year I'm responsible for organizing the event. I simply can not fail. Octavia will only rub it in my face—that wrench!"

"If I fail, it will only serve as a disgrace for our family!" she continued. "Not only that, but there's a new family that came to town. I think they're called the Wolfes or Wolf. For heaven's sake, I don't know! But, can you believe it? New money! How atrocious!" Her words fell onto each other, her tone picking up volume and sped throughout her monologue.