CHAPTER 3: HOME OF THE HEIRESS
1128 Words
I walked without knowing where I was going.
The park disappeared behind me, replaced by crowded sidewalks and impatient traffic.
Someone brushed past my shoulder.
I didn't even apologize.
Couples walked hand in hand across the pedestrian lane. A florist arranged fresh bouquets outside his shop. A child tugged at her father's sleeve, begging for ice cream.
Somewhere across the street, someone laughed so loudly that people turned to look.
Life continued exactly as it always had.
Mine didn't.
It was strange.
Just an hour ago, my biggest concern had been whether we'd run out of cheesecake before lunch.
Now...someone had asked me to marry one of the most powerful men in the country.
My head was still stuck on the same sentence.
Will you marry Connor Luciano for me?
It sounded ridiculous. Impossible, coompletely insane.
Yet no matter how many times I repeated those words inside my head...
...I couldn't stop hearing them.
No.
I'm not doing it.
Czarina will find another way. She has to.
A giant LED screen above a nearby building changed advertisements.
A man in a black suit appeared.
Connor Luciano.
The headline beneath his photograph read:
LUCIANO GROUP ACQUIRES THREE INTERNATIONAL COMPANIES.
Even through a screen, he looked intimidating.
Sharp jaw. Dark eyes. No smile.
Just looking at him made my chest tighten.
"Absolutely not," I muttered.
There was no universe where I would marry that man.
-
Before I could noticed, I was already opening the door of my apartment with my keys.
The whole apartment wasn't much. One bedroom, tiny kitchen, old wooden floor.
But everything inside belonged to me.
The chipped mug, the secondhand bookshelf, the curtains I'd sewn myself.
It wasn't perfect. But it was my freedom.
I changed into an old oversized shirt and tied my hair into a messy bun.
The apartment was quiet.
Usually I liked that.
After spending all day surrounded by customers, silence felt comforting.
Tonight...it only gave my thoughts more room to wander.
I opened the refrigerator.
Eggs. Leftover vegetables. Half a carton of milk. Nothing special.
I smiled anyway.
I liked knowing every meal inside this apartment had been earned by my own hands.
I was busy cleaning my room when I noticed my phone buzzed.
It was a notification. A text from Czarina.
Czarina:
I'm sorry.
I ignored it.
Then another text came.
Czarina:
Please don't hate me.
And I refused to reply again. Then another text from her.
Czarina:
Thank you for listening.
I sighed and turned my phone off. I still don't understand how she could ask me to marry that man for her.
She's lost her mind. I'm not doing it.
She knows me. My freedom isn't something I'd toss away for someone else.
No matter how close we were. Not even if I consider her my family.
I watered the plants as usual. When I finished, I collected all my washed clothes and folded them nicely before going to bed.
-
The next morning at the café, everything seems unnatural. I messed up the orders. Couldn't wait properly. Had to repeat the orders twice.
I bit my lower lip as Jeremy approached me at the counter after he fixes the wrong order that I served.
"You've made the same cappuccino three times." He joked.
I forced a laugh. Then he asked.
"Are you okay?"
I nodded, in an instant. "I am."
"Are you sure?" He asked.
I smiled at him assuringly and nodded again.
"Did your best friend asked you to rob a bank? You're too distracted."
I wish it was that simple. But it wasn't
Last night, I had trouble sleeping.
Everytime I closed my eyes, I'd hear her voice.
"You're the only one I trust."
Then her face would show. Devastated and pleading.
No... I can't just give up my freedom for someone.
Marrying means getting tied up to someone. It is a lifetime commitment.
How can she easlily asked me to take her place?
I rubbed my temples and let out a long breath.
Maybe Jeremy was right.
I was distracted. The customers noticed it. My coworkers noticed it.
Even I couldn't recognize myself today.
Every few minutes, my eyes drifted toward my phone resting beside the register.
Dark screen. No new messages. Good, that's how it should be.
The conversation at the park should have ended there.
I had already given her my answer.
No. Yet for some reason... it didn't feel over.
The café became quieter as the afternoon rush faded.
I wiped down another table, trying to focus on the circles left behind by half-empty coffee cups.
It didn't work.
I sighed.
"I'm taking my lunch break."
Jeremy looked up.
"You're taking it early."
"Yeah."
"Everything okay?"
"I just need some air."
I didn't know where I was going until I found myself standing outside Czarina's condominium building.
I stared at the entrance.
What am I even doing here?
I wasn't here to change my mind.I wasn't here to say yes.
I just...needed to make sure she was okay.
I rang the doorbell and Czarina opens the door.
Instead of being alone...I saw a man standing behind her.
"Oh..."
Words suddenly seems foreign to me.
"Jade..."
I could see her shocked to see me there. I am too.
Not because I came here, but because I am seeing who might Franco be.
"Come in," she said.
"Glad to finally meet you, Jade." The man greeted and offered his hand on me.
I smiled a bit and accepted his hand—feelinf awkward to see them both now.
"I'm Franco." He politely introduced himself.
I watched them as they busied themself together to prepare for our lunch.
I saw how each of them glanced at each other from time to time.
Sometimes, Franco would joke and Czarina would laugh hartily.
While Franco cooked, Czarina washes the dishes.
They looked simply in love.
There's no hint of Schuet Heiress in the way Czarina carried herself in front of the one she loves.
My eyes wandered around the apartment.
It wasn't luxurious. It was warm. Books stacked on one shelf. A guitar leaning against the wall. Framed photographs. Fresh flowers on the dining table.
It looked lived in. Happy and ordinary.
Seeing them together...I somehow understand what she means when she told me he was her home.
I have never seen her this happy.
As we finished eating, Czarina reached for Franco's hand.
Their fingers intertwined naturally.
She smiled through tears.
"There's something else you don't know."
My chest tightened. After having that conversation with her yesterday, I can't help but get anxious whenever she wanted to tell me something.
She looked at him before looking back at me.
Franco squeezed her hand.
She placed her free hand over her stomach.
"I'm pregnant."
- Writer
