Chapter One

She slammed the door angrily after the humiliation at the prom night.

"Esther," Miss Parker called out. "What happened? Why the frown?"

She kept bombarding her with questions, but Esther silently walked away out of frustration and anger and went to her room, sobbing.

The only words that echoed in her head were, "You poor janitor! Daughter of a nobody!!" They had all laughed and pushed her down. "You belong to the woods…"

Esther couldn't do anything but cry bitterly. She buried her face into her pillow, her shoulders shaking, her chest tight with a pain she couldn't put into words. It wasn't the first time she had been mocked, but tonight it had cut deeper than usual. Maybe because she had hoped — foolishly hoped — that just for one night things would be different.

Miss Parker, her foster mother who had done nothing but love Esther as her own ever since her mother died, stood outside her room calling her in a calm voice.

"Esther, please open the door."

She didn't respond. All she had to say was, "Go away…let me be."

Miss Parker left, but she didn't go far. She stood just outside the door, her hand resting quietly against it, her heart heavy for the girl she loved as her own.

"Good morning, Esther," Miss Parker said. "Breakfast is ready."

"I am not hungry," she said, closing the door behind her.

I have to get to work early before Mr. Smith arrives, she said to herself, adjusting her bag on her shoulder and stepping out into the cool morning air. The streets were already alive — cars honking, people rushing, the city moving like it always did, unbothered and indifferent. Just like everyone else in her life.

She arrived at the building earlier than usual, the lobby quiet and still, the lights humming softly overhead.

"Good morning, Miss Linda," she greeted.

"You're so early to work, Esther," Linda said, looking up from her desk with a surprised expression.

"I have to go clean Mr. Smith Vale's office, ma," Esther said.

"Go ahead. Are you okay?" Linda asked, studying her face for a moment.

"I'm fine," Esther said softly, though she wasn't.

The elevator opened and she entered, going up to the next floor. She opened the door gently and started cleaning, the same voice playing in her head — *"You, daughter of a nobody."* She paused for a moment, took a breath, and then continued with a saddened mind. She wiped the counter slowly, her eyes distant, her movements mechanical. This was her life. This was all she had ever known.

The entrance door opened, and a particular sound of footsteps filled the floor — a sound everyone knew belonged to him. Mr. Smith Vale. Everyone silently returned to their positions and greeted in unison, "Good morning, Sir." No one dared say another word afterward unless spoken to, or else they were fired.

"Mr. Smith," Esther said as he opened the door. "Good morning, Sir."

He didn't respond. Instead, he walked quietly to his desk, sat down, and opened his laptop to work.

"Get out," Smith said in a quiet but cold tone.

She quickly rushed out.

"Mr. Smith, your appointment with Mr. Pears Wolf is today," Linda said.

"Okay," he said, still looking straight at his laptop without looking up. "Get out," Smith said.

A minute later.

"Esther!!" he called out angrily.

"Yes, Sir?"

"Why is there still dust on the counter?" he said.

"Si…Si…Sir," she said, shaking, not knowing what to say or do, confused as if the world was about to come crashing down on her.

"You are still standing, asshole?" He said.

"Now do your job, or be prepared to find yourself a new one." He said and walked away.

Esther stood there for a moment after he left, her jaw tight, her eyes burning. She swallowed hard, picked up her cloth, and went back to cleaning in silence.

Daughter of a nobody.

The words followed her everywhere.