Chapter 9
1524 Words
SARAPHINA'S POV
After Cassian left, I was shown to my room by a maid. For hours, I stayed inside, feeling nervous and scared about coming outside. I can't tell if the maids recognized me, but even if they did, they did an excellent job at hiding it.
Cassian had said he wouldn't be back early, and I have absolutely no idea what to do with my time. I couldn't stop turning on the bed, feeling so restless. A sudden grumble in my stomach made me sigh heavily.
I sat up, resting my back on the headboard of the bed. Now this is the part I dread the most, going downstairs and speaking to the maids. I wouldn't mind not having dinner, but my stomach kept grumbling, and my hunger soon became unbearable.
"f**k it.'' I muttered. I got out of bed, wore the flip flops the maid had given to me earlier and left the room. Since I haven't had a tour around the mansion, I could only hope I won't get lost finding my way to the kitchen.
When I got downstairs, I could only guess my way to the kitchen. As I approached the place, I had some voices coming from there. I cautiously made my way there, being careful not to make a sound. I know I shouldn't be eavesdropping, but my curiosity got the best of me.
"Do you think she's the one? She looks so much like her, Saraphina Quinn." One said.
"Hold on." Another replied. I have no idea what happened next, but I guessed she must have pulled out her phone to show a photo of me because she suddenly asked the other maid if I was the one in the photo.
"I knew it! I knew it was her." The other confirmed.
My heart was pounding in my chest, a feeling of worry gripped my chest tightly. I should go, I shouldn't stay and hear what more they have to say, but my legs refused to move, I was rooted to the spot. I know how much their criticism would hurt me, but I still didn't leave.
"Why would Sir be with her in the first place? Isn't she his older brother's ex fiance? Why is she here?"
"I have no idea, but one thing I'm sure of is that women like her are always up to no good. She's such a snake." The maid spat, her voice dripping with malice and venom. "She's ruined her chances with one brother, and now she's onto the next. I wonder if she has no shame. Stealing from her father, cheating on her fiance, and now she's with his brother. How desperate can she be? Shouldn't she be off somewhere trying to kill herself after everything she's done. Honestly, I hope Sir comes to his senses immediately, otherwise she's going to do the exact same thing to him and then move on to her next victim."
"You're right." The other agreed. "She sure isn't using that pretty face for good. If I had her life, I wouldn't dare do anything to ruin it. She's lost all her money, now she's trying to scam our Sir. I hope she gets caught before she achieves her goal. She's such a snake and a gold digger. I hope karma gets to her and she pays for everything she's done." She scoffed.
"Say less, I believe sooner or later, she'll be made to pay for her crimes."
"I hope that time comes fast." The other replied. "Anyways, let's continue making dinner before Sir returns."
Tears filled my eyes, their words were like knives being pierced through my heart. I can't believe how quick people are to judge a person, but I couldn't blame them, people would only believe what they see, and Ciara excused her plan so perfectly. Still, it didn't make the pain in my chest any less. I turned and ran away as fast as I could, heading back to my room.
When I got to my room, I dropped to my knees and sobbed bitterly. The words those maids said kept echoing in my ears, intensifying the pain in my heart.
I have no idea how long I cried, but I cried until I had no strength in me, and eventually fell asleep on the floor.
When I woke up, I was confused to find myself on the floor, then I remembered everything that happened. I had laid on the floor for so long that I got really cold. I hurriedly stood up and went to grab a sweater, instantly putting it on.
My stomach growled again, reminding me of how hungry I am. I didn't want to go downstairs and run into those maids again, but I was so hungry. I went to check the time and saw it's 1am, hopefully, no one is awake. I thought about Cassian and wondered if he's back home.
I heaved a deep breath and decided to just go for it. I left my room, quietly walking down the hallway. When I got to the kitchen, I was lucky not to find anyone there. The maids did make dinner, but I doubt they would have any leftovers. I managed to locate the pantry and saw a large amount of food stuffs in there, my eyes scanned everything, searching for a particular food. When I saw the noddles neatly arranged on a shelf, I smiled. I grabbed a pack in happiness, then I closed the pantry door.
Now I just need to locate the pots. I was still thinking of where they could possibly be when someone walked into the kitchen.
I didn't even noticed until I heard Cassian's voice.
"Saraphina?" He called, a hint of surprise in his voice.
I sharply turned to face him. "Cassian." I whispered. What could he possibly be doing here? Why isn't he asleep?
Cassian had a small frown on his face, his gaze went to the pack of noodles in my hand and he raised a questioning brow at me.
"I...I slept off so I didn't have dinner." I explained, immediately hating myself for how nervous I sounded.
Cassian simply nodded. "Do you know how to make that?"
I bit my bottom lip, staring at the pack of noodles in my hand. Growing up, I've always had things done for me since we had helpers, so I didn't even bother learning how to cook. If I had known my life would turn out like this, I would have paid more attention to those basic things.
"Have a sit.'' Cassian said, interrupting my thoughts.
I looked at him in surprise, but I didn't say nothing and did as he said.
Cassian effortlessly located where the pots were kept, it's his house after all, of course he should know everything.
"You're going to cook for me? Do you know how to?" I asked after he came to take the noodles from me.
Cassian simply smirked, not answering my question.
I watched Cassian cook, surprised he knew anything about cooking, but then I remembered he's been out of the country for years, he must have learned to do things on his own.
I didn't expect him to go all out on the noodles, adding vegetables and some proteins. It was meant to be a simple meal, but Cassian turned it into a five star meal. When he was done, he served it and placed it in front of me, the aroma filling the air, making my stomach growl even more.
My mouth watered at the sight. I was about to devour the meal when I saw Cassian heading to do the dishes, I immediately got down from the chair and went to stop him. "Please, let me do it. You helped me cook and I can't bother you even more."
"It's fine, just have your meal." Cassian replied.
I shook my head. "No, please let me do it. I'll do them when I'm done."
"You don't know how to cook, and I doubt you'll know anything about doing dishes, what if you end up breaking the plates." Cassian teased.
I rolled my eyes hard at him. "I'm not that useless, Cassian. Give me a break." I scoffed.
Cassian chuckled softly, a sound I found weirdly amusing.
"Okay, I'll leave you to it then." He replied, then he went to grab a bottle of water in the fridge.
As he was about to leave, I realized I haven't even thanked him for the meal. "Cassian." I called, and he turned to look at me.
"Thank you."
"Mmm." He said before leaving.
After Cassian left, I went back to my seat, as I stared at the food in front of me, I realized I've never had a moment like this with Lucien. I managed to push the thought out of my head, picked up the fork and took a bit, the food was way better than I expected.
I happily finished my food and did the dishes, I made sure they were sparkling clean. And when I went back to bed, I had the most amazing sleep I've ever had in days.
- Writer
