A new routine
798 Words
The following morning, Maple woke up before her alarm.
For a moment, she lay still, staring at the unfamiliar ceiling.
The room was quiet, and soft morning light filtered through the curtains.
Then reality slowly returned.
She was in Devon Kingston’s mansion.
She was married.
Maple sighed and sat up slowly.
Her eyes moved toward the small table beside her bed. The wooden box containing her mother’s belongings was still there.
She reached for it and touched the lid briefly.
For a moment, she thought about opening it again, but decided against it.
She didn’t want to spend another morning thinking about everything that had happened.
The past two days had already been overwhelming enough.
She had graduated, found out she was being forced into a marriage, married a man she barely knew, moved into his house, and then returned to her father’s home only to be slapped by the same man who was supposed to protect her.
It was too much to process before breakfast.
Maple pushed the thoughts aside and got out of bed.
After getting dressed, she glanced at herself in the mirror before leaving the room.
The mansion was already awake.
Staff members moved quietly through the hallways, carrying out their morning duties.
Maple exchanged polite greetings as she made her way downstairs.
When she entered the dining room, she found Devon already seated at the breakfast table.
He was dressed in a dark suit, his attention focused on something displayed on his tablet.
He looked up when she entered.
“Good morning.”
“Good morning.”
Maple took the seat opposite him.
A staff member immediately approached and served her breakfast.
She thanked her before picking up her fork.
For a while, neither of them spoke.
Maple was actually grateful for the silence.
She still wasn’t sure how she was supposed to behave around Devon.
They were married, but they barely knew each other.
There were no long conversations, no shared history, and certainly no romantic connection.
They were simply two people trying to figure out how to live under the same roof.
Maple quietly ate her breakfast while Devon continued reading something on his tablet.
She occasionally glanced at him.
He looked completely focused, occasionally scrolling through whatever he was reading.
After a few minutes, Devon placed the tablet on the table.
“I’m going to work.”
Maple looked up.
“Okay.”
He stood from his chair and adjusted his jacket.
He walked toward the door but stopped before leaving.
“Tell Fedro to drive you if you need to go anywhere.”
Maple nodded.
“Okay.”
Devon gave her a brief look before walking out.
A few seconds later, she heard the front door close.
Maple looked back at her breakfast.
For some reason, the house felt quieter after he left.
She quickly finished eating before standing.
She wasn’t going to spend the entire day sitting around with nothing to do.
She headed upstairs to the room where she had placed the things brought back from her father’s house.
She had barely had time to arrange anything since coming here.
Too much had happened over the past two days.
She opened the door and looked at the bags and boxes scattered around the room.
“Finally,” she muttered.
She walked over to one of the bags and began unpacking.
Her clothes were folded and arranged inside the wardrobe. Some books were placed neatly on the shelves, while a few personal belongings sat inside boxes.
She took her time arranging everything.
As she worked, she found herself slowly relaxing.
There was something comforting about putting her own things in their proper places.
For the first time since she arrived at the mansion, she felt like she was doing something because she wanted to.
She wasn’t being ordered around.
She wasn’t being forced into a conversation.
She wasn’t being reminded about her marriage.
She was simply organizing her things.
After arranging most of her clothes, Maple sat on the edge of the bed and looked around.
Maybe she could make this place feel a little more like home.
Not because she had chosen this life.
She hadn’t.
But she was here now.
And she couldn’t spend every day wishing she were somewhere else.
Maple stood up and continued unpacking.
For now, she decided, she would establish her own routine.
She wouldn’t wait around for Devon.
She wouldn’t try to force a friendship with him.
And she certainly wouldn’t pretend their marriage was something it wasn’t.
They were strangers.
They simply happened to share a home now.
Maybe, with time, things would become easier.
Or maybe they wouldn’t.
Either way, Maple knew one thing.
She needed to learn how to live this new life without losing herself in it.
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