Chapter 6

[Cecilia]

Back then, little Cecilia Wang always thought her life was perfect.

How could it not be? She had many toys, loving parents, and a life like a princess.

Cecilia never felt jealous when her friends got new toys, because before they could buy them, Cecilia had already got the same ones. Her house was bigger than her friends’ houses. Her father was richer, her mother was prettier, and everything about Cecilia was always better.

Her life was perfect until one day, that girl came into her life.

At first, Cecilia didn’t realize how her mother had become distant toward her father. Or how her mother would secretly spend more time looking in the mirror and crying. Or when her mother was often seen with puffy eyes.

Perhaps, Cecilia was still too young to notice those details.

Until finally, Cecilia witnessed for herself how her father and mother had turned into people she didn’t recognize.

“I DON’T WANT HER HERE!”

“BUT SHE’S MY CHILD!”

Her parents had never yelled at each other before. Her mother had never thrown plates, and her father had never glared at her mother while pointing his finger at her.

And more importantly, they had never ordered Cecilia to go back to her room with a shout.

Cecilia wrote this in her diary as the worst day of her life.

But it turned out the next day was even worse.

When she came home from school, her mother wasn’t there. They said her mother had been taken to the hospital. They found her unconscious after she had cut her wrist with a knife.

At that time, her father promised through his tears that he would cancel his plans. “She won’t be staying in this house,” he said.

But her father was lying.

A year later, that girl stepped into Cecilia’s home. The days became worse and worse.

Cecilia’s mother, who used to be gentle and kind, had become so quiet. If Cecilia told a funny story, her mother didn’t laugh. If Cecilia asked, her mother didn’t answer. Cecilia no longer told her mother about her days at school because her mother didn’t look so interested in her stories anymore.

Every now and then, her mother was taken to the hospital even though she wasn’t sick. They said they were treating her wounded soul.

Whenever her mother spoke, the word that came out of her mouth was “divorce.” Cecilia heard that word from her friend. It meant her parents would separate, and Cecilia would have to choose whether to live with her father or her mother.

They wouldn’t be a perfect family anymore. Cecilia wouldn’t have a perfect life anymore.

Cecilia didn’t want that. Why did her family have to fall apart just because of that girl?

One day, Cecilia saw that girl playing alone, she approached her.

“Dad says you’re my sister, but Mom says you’re a bringer of misfortune.”

Cecilia usually never spoke rudely to others. Especially not to someone older than her. Even though that girl was only a little bit older, maybe a year or two.

“Your father is right.”

“I trust my mother more!” Cecilia screamed.

“Fine. But I am really your older sister.”

“You’re not my sister! Why do you have to live here! Go away!”

As she said that, Cecilia grabbed that girl’s hair. That girl screamed in pain, causing the maids to rush over and separate the two of them.

That day, Cecilia was scolded by her father for behaving violently. It was the first time her father had ever scolded her.

***

By the time Cecilia entered middle school, her mother’s condition had improved significantly. Perhaps it was because her father had built a separate building behind their house. That girl lived there with several maids who were also not allowed to enter the main house.

Cecilia thought her mother must have become healthier because she no longer had to share the same air as that girl. After all, that girl was indeed the bringer of misfortune.

Cecilia often saw her mother turn pale or even vomit just from hearing the child’s name. It would be better if they never had to see each other.

Even so, Cecilia’s mother still had to meet that child at important occasions. Cecilia’s father introduced that girl as his daughter too in front of people, so the four of them had to appear as a family.

Usually, after the party was over, Cecilia’s mother would slap that girl several times for embarrassing her.

At first, Cecilia thought that the child wasn’t actually embarrassing anyone at the event. But as time went on, she realized that the child’s mere presence was enough to embarrass their family.

Like what happened at that one time.

Cecilia did not remember what kind of event it was. They held too many events anyway. Too often and too boring for someone her age.

Like always, she would gather among relatives, greet the people her parents respected one by one, then sit quietly like a well-behaved child.

Cecilia would sit at a round table while her father and mother went around greeting guests. She simply sat there without bothering anyone. But then someone would approach her to say some meaningless stuff.

Sometimes people praised her with empty compliments. Cecilia was old enough to understand that they were just sucking up because her father was filthy rich. But she didn’t mind that.

What she didn’t like is when they came to praise that girl, and compared Cecilia to that girl.

“I heard your older sister won another award; you should be just like her.”

“You must study hard so you can be as smart as your older sister.”

“Look, your older sister is so beautiful. Why don’t you look like her?”

Cecilia is sick of hearing those words.

Too noisy, too meddlesome, too annoying.

“Of course I don’t look like her. She’s a mistress’s child.”

Suddenly, the entire room fell silent.

No one said a word, even the background music stopped.

Cecilia didn’t have time to see the anger on her father’s face or the shock on the guest’s faces. She clenched her jaw, refusing to lower her head. She didn’t feel she had said anything wrong; her mother often said the same thing.

Cecilia pressed her lips together. She looked around, then walked quickly out of the room. She heard her mother’s voice, even her father’s, calling her name. But Cecilia ignored them.

That day, Cecilia was slapped by her father for saying such things in front of many important people. It was the first time her father had ever slapped her.

***

One year ago…

Cecilia was a fully grown adult. She was certainly old enough to not be frightened by listening to their parents yelling at each other. Like on that night after her father’s birthday party. Cecilia heard a commotion on the second floor, her father’s room. Cecilia could hear and see them clearly from the window. Sometimes, they didn’t try to hide it since everyone already knew it anyway.

“I beg you, Linda, please treat Maria well. Stop humiliating her at events like that.”

“Who told her to come to an event that isn’t for her family?”

“I am her family, Linda. Let me be her father! Maria has no one else; her mother is gone!”

“So what? Cecilia has no one either. Her mother she used to have is gone too, she’s dead inside. And her father she used to have is gone as well. He became the father of a bastard child.”

“LINDA!” her father’s shout echoed.

From behind the window, Cecilia watched her father wipe his face. Yet, she felt nothing.

“Have my apologies all these years still not been enough? What else do I have to do to make up for my mistakes?”

“I don’t want your apology. I want Cecilia to live the life she deserves. She should live happily and comfortably. She should be your successor, the heir to your company.”

Cecilia’s mother’s face reddened, tears welled up in her eyes

“But Maria also has a right…”

“She’s not your legitimate child, Richard! Your child is Cecilia!” her mother raised her voice. “Just give her ten, no, five percent. Though honestly, I wouldn’t give her a single penny.”

Cecilia’s father fell silent for a moment.

“But that’s too unfair to her…”

“That’s already too much for her,” Cecilia’s mother urged, placing her hands on her father’s back. “A few percent of the company’s shares is enough to let her live comfortably for the rest of her life.”

“But she’s my child too, Linda. She also has the right to manage the company.”

“But not the Wang family’s company.” Her mother replied coldly, as if that were her final decision. “Marry that child off to an heir from another family. Let her become part of their family.”

Cecilia snorted, seeing how difficult it was for her father to grant her mother’s wish. The man pressed his fingers against his temple as if the entire matter gave him a headache.

“All right, I’ll do as you wish.”

Cecilia’s mother’s expression softened. A faint, triumphant smile appeared on her face.

“But promise me you’ll accept Maria as your daughter. Your stepdaughter.”

“I promise, Richard,” she said with conviction. “From now on, I’ll treat her well.”