Yor Regret is Too Late!

13

"Consider her invisible. Anyone who dares to talk to her, greet her, or even look at her... will have to answer to me directly. Understood?!"

Asher’s voice boomed, bouncing off the walls of the cafeteria, which instantly froze. Those words weren't just a bluff; they were the decree of a king at Garuda High School. He stood tall on a wooden chair, staring at the entire room with eagle eyes that left absolutely no room for defense. Beside him, Aileen lowered her head deeply, her shoulders shaking slightly—a performance of tears so convincing, as if her heart had just been ripped apart because her "expensive shoes were ruined" by me.

I stood frozen at the entrance of the cafeteria. Every single gaze was locked onto me, but within seconds, they all turned away at the exact same time. The silence that followed was far more painful than the harshest insults. My feet, covered only in thin socks—which were now dull and dusty because my worn-out shoes had been forcefully taken away yesterday—felt freezing against the porcelain floor. I felt like a living corpse being put on display in the middle of a crowd.

"Asher, stop... have pity on Aria. Maybe she didn't mean to," Aileen whispered. Her voice sounded soft and genuine, but I knew it was just bait to stoke the anger of the crowd even further.

"There is no pity for a thief and a vandal, Ai," Asher countered, without looking back at me even once. His voice was cold, piercing through to my bones. "And you, Aria... since you’ve caused Aileen trouble, you have to pay. You will restack every single book in the old library based on the newest codes. Alone. Until it’s done. If even one book is misplaced or if you dare run away before it's finished, I will make sure you won't be allowed to take the semester exams. Understood?!"

I didn't answer. My tongue felt completely numb, as if all the oxygen in the room had been sucked out by his ego. I could only look down, staring at my big toe which was starting to show through a small hole at the tip of my sock. Humiliating. Deeply humiliating.

*

Dust. That was the only thing I had been breathing for the past four hours.

The old library of Garuda High School was located at the very end of the furthest corridor—an old building rarely visited by students because of its bleak and suffocating atmosphere. Three-meter-tall teak bookshelves lined up like a row of giants ready to swallow me alive. The scent of aging, yellowed paper and a damp, musty odor invaded my nose, making my head—already swimming from hunger—throb with a sharp pain.

I climbed a metal stepladder that screeched every time I moved. My small hands, covered in fresh needle-prick wounds, were now coated in a thick layer of dust as I moved stacks of heavy encyclopedias. My stomach twisted violently, a sharp hunger pain crawling up to my chest as if my stomach were consuming itself. Since this morning, not a single piece of food had entered my body.

"Excuse me... may I get past?" I asked softly as a student council member walked in to retrieve some files from the corner of the room.

The girl didn't answer. She didn't even glance at me. She stepped past my shoulder as if I were nothing but empty, invisible air. As she left, she intentionally bumped into my stepladder, making it wobble dangerously.

"Watch out!" I called out instinctively.

Still, there was no sound. She walked out and slammed the heavy wooden library door shut, leaving me in a terrifying silence.

I wiped the sweat from my forehead with the back of my hand, leaving a black smudge across my dull skin. The thick glasses I wore slipped down my nose repeatedly because it was wet with sweat and the remnants of tears that hadn't dried.

Honk-honk!

The sound of a car horn from the parking lot below stopped my movements on the ladder. I dragged my feet toward the large library window, which was clouded with a thick layer of dust. I wiped the surface with the sleeve of my uniform, creating a small hole to peer out into the outside world.

Down below, beneath the dim streetlights, a glossy black Mercedes-Benz was parked arrogantly. Asher stood beside the open passenger door. From up here, he looked entirely perfect. His varsity jacket looked sharp on his broad frame. His face, which had been so cruel when judging me in the cafeteria, had now softened. A faint smile—completely genuine and full of affection—curled upon his lips.

Shortly after, Aileen walked out of the school building. She walked gracefully, her neatly styled hair shimmering beneath the lights. She carried a designer bag given to her by Papa, something I could never hope to own. Asher welcomed her, gently stroking the top of her head, and then helped her into the car as if she were the most expensive and fragile porcelain in the world.

I could see them laughing together before the car door closed. A laughter that stood in sharp contrast to the silence suffocating me up here.

My chest tightened. It felt as if a giant hand were squeezing my lungs until I couldn't draw any oxygen. The tears I had been trying to hold back finally spilled over, dripping onto the dirty window glass.

"It was supposed to be me, Asher..." I whispered hoarsely, my voice cracking against the silent bookshelves. "I was supposed to be the one out there... That hand was supposed to stroke my hair, not hers. She stole all of my stories."

I watched the car drive away slowly, leaving the school gates which were beginning to empty out. They were leaving toward luxury, toward a dining table filled with warm food, toward the warm embrace of parents who worshipped a lie more than the truth. And me? I was left behind here, rotting away amidst the dust and old papers that no longer held any value.

The night grew later. The large grandfather clock in the corner of the library showed eight o'clock. My entire body felt shattered; my feet could no longer feel the floor because they were so completely numb. With the last bit of strength I had left, I forced myself to finish the final shelf. I shoved the heavy books into their places with trembling fingers.

"It's finished..." I murmured softly to the empty space.

I picked up my dull fabric tote bag, slinging it over a slumped shoulder. I walked toward the large wooden door that was the only way out. My mind was already drifting toward home, imagining the feeling of warm water from the sink and a tiny scrap of bread in the back cottage that might stop my stomach from growling.

My hand reached for the cold wooden doorknob. I pressed it down.

Click.

The door didn't budge. I frowned, trying to press it down harder.

Click. Click. Click.

My heart began to hammer wildly, its sound booming loudly in my ears. I pulled the doorknob with all my might until my palm stung, but it was useless. The door was locked tight from the outside.

"Hello? Is anyone out there?!" I shouted, my voice bouncing off the high library ceiling, creating a terrifying echo.

I banged on the door repeatedly. "Help! Someone's inside! Security! Please open the door!"

Silence. There was no answer except for the tightening quiet. Someone had intentionally locked me in. Asher? Or one of his followers?

I panicked, reaching into my skirt pocket for my old phone. But my palm only touched empty fabric. I suddenly remembered—my phone, my only means of communication and the only possession I owned, had been forcefully snatched this morning by Shinta and her friends under Aileen’s quiet orders. They had probably thrown it in the trash or destroyed it.

The library lights suddenly flickered, and then...

Snap.

Total darkness instantly engulfed me. I gasped, taking a few steps back with shallow breaths until my back hit a hard bookshelf. The atmosphere that had been peaceful just moments ago now turned into a living horror. The towering bookshelves seemed to transform into silhouettes of black monsters ready to pounce on me from every side.

I slid down to the floor, tightly hugging my shaking knees against the freezing tile. I was entirely alone. Trapped in the pitch black with no way to call for help. At home, they definitely wouldn't look for me. My disappearance from their sight was nothing but a blessing, a peace they deeply craved.

"Asher... help me..." my sobs broke through the silent dark. My voice sounded incredibly pathetic, a plea directed at the very person who had thrown me into this hell.

I cried until my chest felt tight, until my eyes burned. I curled up on the floor, feeling the coldness begin to pierce through to my bones. At this exact second, I realized a bitter truth: No prince was going to come save me. My prince was busy giving his world to the wrong person, while I was left to die slowly in the place he hated most. I was just a shadow purposely forgotten by the light.