Trapped By Freedom

The Night Begins

Victoria

The black silk cover slid gracefully to the ground.

My eyes widened.

"Dad..."

It was impossible.

Standing right in front of everyone...

...was a limited-edition white Ferrari.

A Ferrari.

My fingers curled tightly into my palms.

Seriously?

After everything Stacey and I had carefully planned...

After every scheme meant to ruin her birthday...

Sophia still ended the night smiling.

The paint.

The ruined heels.

The embarrassment.

Every single plan had failed.

And now?

Grandpa had just gifted her a limited-edition Ferrari.

A girl who barely knew how to drive.

Why?

Why did Sophia always get everything?

The applause echoing around the courtyard felt like needles piercing my ears.

I forced a smile and clapped along with everyone else, but inside, I was burning.

Our eyes met briefly.

Sophia smiled faintly before looking away.

Something wasn't right.

Vanessa.

She had been watching me all evening with that irritating look on her face.

Almost as if...

she knew something.

Or worse...

she had done something.

I noticed a few unfamiliar faces lingering around her, the same loud, classless friends she always surrounded herself with.

Typical.

The celebration dragged on for another hour before guests gradually began leaving.

Finally.

I slipped away and headed toward my room.

As I rounded the hallway, I spotted two maids whispering near the staircase.

"What are you two whispering about?" I snapped.

"Is this your duty post?"

"Do you think you're being paid to gossip?"

"Get out of my sight!"

The maids hurried away without saying a word.

Good.

At least someone would receive my frustration tonight.

Maybe I'd had one glass of champagne too many.

The hallway seemed unusually long as I made my way to my room.

Finally...

My bed.

I smiled tiredly as I pushed the door open.

The room was completely dark.

I didn't even bother turning on the lights.

I was far too exhausted to remove my dress.

"Lily would've helped me," I muttered, throwing myself onto the mattress.

The moment my body touched the bed...

"AHHHHHHH!"

I shot upright immediately.

Something cold...

Wet...

And unbelievably disgusting soaked through my dress.

"What is this?!"

My heart pounded wildly.

"Siri, turn on the lights."

The room lit up instantly.

I froze.

Red paint.

It covered my dress.

My hands.

My arms.

Even my face.

A horrible smell hit me, making my stomach churn.

"This isn't fair!"

I screamed, tears of frustration stinging my eyes.

"My bed..."

The expensive white sheets were completely ruined.

"Sophia..."

I gritted my teeth.

"You won't get away with this."

Fuming, I stormed toward the bathroom to wash the paint off.

Just then...

Something caught my eye.

A tiny tuft of white faux fur lay beside the laundry basket.

I bent down and picked it up.

Wait...

I'd seen this before.

Vanessa's purse.

My eyes widened.

"So it was you..."

A bitter laugh escaped my lips.

She had paid me back.

Nobody came running despite my screams.

The music downstairs was still blasting.

The party hadn't ended yet.

"Fine."

I clenched the piece of fur tightly in my hand.

"I'll remember this."

Sophia

"Are you sure Victoria won't suspect we're going out?" I asked nervously as I glanced around my room.

After everything that had happened today, I wasn't eager to become the victim of another prank.

Vanessa didn't even look up from the mirror as she applied her lipstick.

"Relax."

"I can assure you she's very busy right now."

The mischievous smile on her face instantly made me suspicious.

"Vanessa..."

I dragged out her name.

"What did you do?"

She blinked innocently.

"Nothing."

"Nessa."

"Are you sure?"

She sighed dramatically before raising both hands in surrender.

"Fine."

"I may have given her a tiny taste of her own medicine."

I folded my arms.

"What exactly does 'tiny' mean?"

She grinned.

"I was kind enough not to embarrass her in front of everyone."

"She's probably busy cleaning up her room by now."

Realisation slowly dawned on me.

"Oh..."

"Mhmm."

She pointed the makeup brush at me.

"And before you start feeling guilty, don't."

"She started this."

"So quit worrying about killjoys and finish getting dressed."

I couldn't help smiling.

I still couldn't get over Grandpa's gift.

A white Ferrari.

I honestly hadn't seen that coming.

I barely knew how to drive, which was exactly why we were taking Stanley's car instead.

Downstairs, the party was still going strong, making it the perfect distraction.

Mum and Dad had already retired after such a long day.

Thankfully, Mum had found out about our little outing earlier.

Surprisingly, she didn't stop us.

She simply reminded us to stay together, be careful, and return before midnight.

At least we didn't have to sneak out anymore.

"I still think this dress is too..."

I searched for the right word.

"...revealing."

Vanessa held it up with a grin.

The black satin dress hugged my waist perfectly before ending several inches above my knees. Thin straps rested on my shoulders, while the sweetheart neckline revealed far more skin than I was used to.

But the open back...

That nearly gave me a heart attack.

I stared at it in disbelief.

"Vanessa!"

"Where exactly is the rest of this dress?"

She rolled her eyes dramatically.

"Sophia."

"That's literally the design."

Then she slapped my hands away as I tried pulling the hem lower.

"Stop dragging it."

"It's a club outfit, not a church dress."

"It has absolutely no business reaching your knees."

"Only your thighs."

"Okay, Mum."

Vanessa burst into laughter.

"You'll survive."

I wasn't so sure.