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3: I'm Trying, At Least
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2024-12-31 23:25:44Althea
There was a time when I wished I could live in a big mansion, with some maids ready to serve whatever I want, a dress you would notice from miles away, and an expensive wine to accompany me in a luxury bathtub.
In my imagination, I could get anything I couldn’t in real life.
“If I were born rich, I hope I get an endless supply of wine.” That was what Granny said when I asked her how if we had the chance to become rich. Due to her health, she never had alcohol–at least not on my watch. But that’s what imagination was all about, right? To want things you couldn’t have, to be able to do things you never did.
It all came true now, yet I wasn’t sure what to feel. The bathtub was nice, and the wine from my kitchen cabinet was indeed the nicest wine I’ve ever had in my entire life. To be honest, that was my first wine. All of these were nice, but I still felt restless. I hated to admit it, but the last conversation I had with that annoying man kept bothering me.
Leonardo and Josh told me about him. The only son of Osman Cox; and currently the owner of the biggest network security company in the state, Matthias Cox. “Asshole” Cox would fit him best, though. His father also died recently, so he was under the same circumstances as me. It seemed he got it easier on his side, since he had already gotten used to this rich life. And here I was, trying to figure all this stuff while hoping I didn’t blow my mind in the process.
I might have Googled him a little too much, but I would pretend I never did that. It wasn’t like he piqued my interest or anything. He was just Matthias Cox, a man I refused to have any dealings with–business or personal. Few days ago should and would be the first and last time I ever met him.
My father, Jessen-Keith Lewis, on the other hand, was the head of a beauty company, with 7 different brands under him–including the one I tend to use. He also invested in another beauty company as well, making him basically anywhere. It was easy to know about him, yet G****e knew my father better than I did. In fact, they knew his existence first before me. Yet it was me that had to deal with his mess. The kind of mess that rich people deal with.
For the last five days, I had to catch up with lots of things. Too many documents I’ve signed, I even lost count of it. The good news was my debt, including that shitty student loan had been paid. I moved to a better residence–better was an understatement for sure–and I didn’t need to deal with clients that asked too much for a little money. But those plus sides came with a price. A lot, to be precise.
The life of Althea Lewis that I had for these 25 years wasn’t useful here. I needed to be the new Althea Lewis: the one who knew how to be rich and how to act like one. Well, trying would not be enough. Tonight, I really needed to be one, because I needed to attend a party.
Josh sent me the invitation yesterday and said it would be my debut to the public.
“People already knew you, Althea. But they haven’t met you yet. So it will be nice to create a good impression. The people you’ll meet in this event will be a possible business partner, so do your best, okay? I’m sure they will love you.”
Josh trusted me more than I could trust myself, guess I should have thanked him for that.
But that brought me another problem. How exactly was I supposed to impress rich people? I wasn’t even one of them.
I hadn’t told anyone about my condition, though I asked my best friend, Katy, something similar.
“How to act rich? Well, I don’t really know about it, but I think the more money you have, the more pain in the ass you’d become,” she said when I Facetime-d her, just before I moved out from New Jersey. I just told her I had to move out because of my new job in a beauty company. It wasn’t like I was lying. I just withheld some information.
She wasn’t wrong with that one. I just happened to meet someone with that description: rich, yet also an asshole.
“Give me a better answer, Kate. Something that I can do easily.”
“Being rich isn’t an easy thing in the first place, hun. But, I bet it had to do with look. You need to look … you, know. Rich. Wear a luxury brand from head to toe. Learn some table manners and read a business book or something. Don’t rich people like to talk about business all the time?”
I wasn’t sure I could do that in a short period of time. Even if I was quite confident with my ability to learn and remember new things, play pretend still wasn’t my forte.
“Or just watch some films, Thea. I have some recommendations for you, bonus a hot male lead that will make you want to get laid–”
“Yeah, Kate. Thanks.”
I didn’t need her to talk more about that. She was my best friend, I knew, but she better give up to make me get laid. She had tried that when we were in college, and with this new stuff going on, sexual pleasure definitely wasn’t in my card.
I stared at the invitation on the dressing table, before I looked at myself in the mirror. I did my makeup like usual while trying the new products that I received two days ago–a sample of my father' company's new product. I guess the news about a new owner of the company had circulated, and they sent me some.
Trust me when I said I knew nothing about makeup. As long as it could cover my dark panda eyes and pimples as my results of stressful life, it would be enough. I picked out the nicest casual outfit I had, which consisted of white mesh with long sleeves and a beige midi skirt. I was busy learning how to be rich but forgot to buy things to make me look rich.
I might not have been a good actor, but I was good at trying things.
And that was my agenda today: trying.
It was better than nothing, right?
*
Bab terkait
Sunshine and The Beast 4: Again
AltheaI had my notes about a few stores to visit, and a list of things I need to buy to support my looks tonight. I went out and told Deborah, the one that worked for me, to wait. I knew it would be good if I had an extra hand for help, but I might only embarrass myself today, so I preferred to have no one as a witness.“You can manage the house while I’m going out. I have Mr. Lorell with me, so it will be fine,” I said, mentioning my driver. That was another life upgrade of my new life.“Where are we going, Miss Lewis?” Mr. Lorell asked when I got into the car and sat awkwardly in the back.“I want to go to Fifth Avenue,” I answered back. “Is there any fashion outlet that …,” I scratched the back of my head, “maybe the one that my father often visited?”“Mr. Lewis had a private tailor, Miss,” he said. “But if you’re looking for a dress, I might know a place. It’s also on Fifth Avenue.”“Oh, that’s nice. Can you take me there, Mr. Lorell?”He smiled once again while turning his hea
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2024-12-31Sunshine and The Beast 5: A Way Out
AltheaThe amount of experience I’ve had with men was just as much as my experience with business. It was basically nonexistent. Sure, I went on a few dates with some guys, thanks to your nosy dorm mate who was also your best friend. But I didn’t necessarily date them. To have a date wasn’t really in my checklist, considering you need some cash to enjoy it. I skipped my high school promp and my graduation night too. Dancing? I was as good as a statue. So, if I had to describe this night, it must be a night for me to do everything I had never and couldn’t do. Business, socialize, dance. You named it. The only thing I was capable of was holding the hand of someone I didn’t expect to hold.Matthias Cox.Despite I was the one who agreed upon this, it still took me by surprise. As I walked out from his limousine, grabbed his hand so we could walk side by side to the party, I kept wondering if this really was a good idea.Back at Forema Reflections, as much as I hated to admit, he really
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-01Sunshine and The Beast 6: Another Proposal
MatthiasThere was nothing free in this world. That was the number one lesson the world had taught me.Not air, foods, especially freedom. You got to pay for those things, and the price sometimes couldn’t be paid by money.And that was the price of my freedom.I knew it would not be easy. Fuck, I expected that much, yet it still bothered the hell out of me. The scene from three days before night kept playing in my mind; how Althea froze in her seat, looking beautiful with those red lips that made me think the unthinkable for a second, but then surprised me with a reply.“You must be out of your mind.”I thought about it before. She wasn’t my type at all. She was way too naive and fragile. She wasn’t even ready to deal with this mess. But she was also my safest option. She was new to this, sure. And that was exactly the reason why. Because no one was behind her, controlling her. She’s probably the only one who wasn’t interested in my money. She barely had any interest in me, as much as
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-02Sunshine and The Beast 7: Deal For Two
AltheaFor more than a week I lived here, I always thought this was too big for me. That was the reason why I preferred my bedroom, where the space fitted me more.Now, with Matthias here, my penthouse seemed to grow smaller. It wasn’t, of course. But his presence filled the whole room as he walked in and sat on the sofa, while I sat across him. Deborah made some tea and brought some slices of cheesecake and pastry, yet none of that was touched.None of us talked as minutes passed by. I sat down with my crossed legs, fully aware of the stares he gave me. Despite his closed lips, those blue eyes of his moved as if it was trying to tell me something. I couldn’t figure it out. He might have been judging me in his head, or cursing and planning other unthinkable things. Whatever he was thinking, it’s hard to ignore the way his eyes fixated on me.‘“Can you say something?”I finally muttered. Matthias raised his eyebrows but remained in his position, relaxed. “I thought you were regretting
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-06Sunshine and The Beast 8: She Was Pretty
MatthiasThe news about me and Althea were about to marry really spreaded fast. My phone rang nonstop, and I bet Althea was going through the same thing. It was exactly what I wished for. The faster the news expanded , the better. I had to make this as quick as possible.“So what are we going to say? It’s love at the first sight?” Althea looked at me full of judgement as she said it. “It doesn’t make sense. I hated you when we first met.”“And now you don’t?” I smirked.She rolled her eyes. “It doesn’t really matter.”I just wanted to tease her a little, but she was right. It didn't matter if she hated me or not. Our focus should be on what people thought of us. It was common to marry with no love at all. But people loved to see something they wanted to see. And our job was to put on a show, make sense or not.So here was the summary of the script: we fell in love at first sight and while going on a few dates, we decided to hit the marriage button right away.It shouldn’t be surprisi
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-07Sunshine and The Beast 9: First Kiss
AltheaNewsflash: preparing a wedding was one hell of a work.Well, I might as well be going to hell for faking a marriage, but the process of it was already painful. It was simple to get your marriage legalized. I once heard you could also get a drive-through marriage. Just one drive away, and you would get your certificate. But the thing being rich is, simplicity wasn’t in your dictionary. The more complicated it was, the better. The more the merrier. It was overkill for sure. I didn’t know anything about building a family. I barely had one. But Granny told me, a wedding was not the end. It was a beginning, either for a better life or a gate to hell. The amount you’ve spent on the wedding day wouldn’t guarantee a better marriage life. We sent the invitation two weeks ago, while the wedding was two weeks ahead. Despite Matthias hiring an event organizer and wedding planner, it didn’t mean I can cross my legs and do nothing.I still needed to do a lot of things, including this: we
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-07Sunshine and The Beast 10: Before The Wedding
MatthiasCountdown: one day before the marriage.Some people sure didn’t know when to stop, because they kept trying to ruin my mood despite knowing damn well nothing would change. If years trying didn’t do shit, what made them think that a day would?I gotta admit, they really got me to my limit.After I took Althea to her penthouse, I chose to rest a bit in my car. But just before I wanted to close my eyes, my phone rang.“Mr. Cox, we’ve done all as you said.” My assistant, Ren, said. “Those paparazzi were sent by Davos. We’ve gotten rid of any footage they took and warned them for any suspicious news.”That old man really didn’t know when to stop, huh? “He should worry about his coffin rather than bothering a woman twice his age.”“He’s been eyeing Erbeauty for quite awhile now,” Ren replied. Leonardo thought he could control Althea by treating her with those fake acts at first. His new target unexpectedly getting married to someone else was definitely not on his list. Everybody k
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-08Sunshine and The Beast 11: The Wedding (I)
AltheaMy only reference of weddings were the depictions given by the media. You know how it went–that stereotypical grand weddings with a bunch of people invited, a giant cake that cost more than the annual wage of an average worker, completed by fancy catering as if it was prepared by a 3 Stars Michelin Chef (and probably it was). The merrier it was, the more in love were the groom and the bride. I never really dreamed of a wedding. Survival was always my priority. It still was. Despite all the preparations I’ve done, the fact that I sat next to my new husband and known as “Mrs. Cox” still didn’t feel right. All those wishes seemed like nonsense. This wedding was nothing but an act, a part of my survival plan.I remembered every single word that we exchanged at the altar. How both of us looked at each other, tried to convince the world that love was in this marriage.“I, Matthias Cox, take you, Althea Lewis, to be my wife. To be my friend, faithful partner, and my life from this
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-09
Bab terbaru
Sunshine and The Beast 102: Separate Ways
AltheaWhen I thought everything was okay, all the walls were tumbling down. My life, my happiness, everything.I woke up in a haze, my head pounding as if I had been hit by a hundred storms. The sharp scent of antiseptic stung my nose, and I felt the unfamiliar weight of a hospital blanket over me. My limbs were heavy, uncooperative, as if they belonged to someone else, and my chest felt tight. It took a moment for my eyes to focus, the world around me blurry and indistinct.The pain was the first thing I recognized. A dull, aching throb in my lower abdomen, deep and unrelenting. I reached for it instinctively, as if I could touch the wound and make it go away. But when my hand brushed against the skin, it felt foreign—empty. As if the very thing I was searching for was no longer there.The memories rushed back like a flood.The blood. The pain. The terror that had washed over me in the moments before I lost consciousness. The frantic urgency of Matthias’s voice, calling my name, the
Sunshine and The Beast 102: The Truth
MatthiasThe elevator groaned as it descended, like the machine itself was reluctant to take me where I was going. Each floor ticked past with a hollow ding, echoing up the shaft like a countdown I hadn’t agreed to. Somewhere in the stillness between the fifth and the fourth floor, I caught my reflection in the polished steel of the doors; drawn face, bloodshot eyes, jaw clenched so tight it ached. I looked like a man walking into something he might not walk out of.The feeling of unease settled in the pit of my stomach, growing heavier with each passing second. The soft hum of the elevator's motor seemed to mock me, as if it knew the uncertainty that lay ahead. I tried to shake off the sense of foreboding, reminding myself that I had a job to do, a mission to complete. But as the elevator finally reached the ground floor and the doors slid open with a hiss, I couldn't help but wonder if I was walking into a trap.I didn’t bother adjusting my coat when the doors opened. The hallway ou
Sunshine and The Beast 101: Meet Me
MatthiasAlthea's condition was getting worse, to the point she had to get into an operation room.Time did not make everything calmer; instead, every second scraped across my nerves like the edge of a dull blade. Each tick of the wall clock sounded louder than the last, a metronome counting down to something I couldn’t name. The longer I sat there, the more I felt like I was unraveling by degrees, breath by breath.I sat stiffly in the dimly lit waiting area just past the ICU doors, one foot tapping without rhythm against the waxed linoleum floor. That smell—the sour tang of antiseptic—clung to everything: the walls, the plastic seats, and the inside of my throat. It mixed with the faint scent of coffee long gone cold and something metallic, like the memory of blood. The air was cool, but my jacket stuck to me anyway, and every breath I took felt borrowed.I tried to distract myself by flipping through a magazine left on the table, but the words blurred together and the pictures seem
Sunshine and The Beast Folded Page: Her Parents (II)
[Folded Page]Flashback, Part IIThe phone rang just past three in the morning.The burner, tucked beneath a drawer in the dresser, buzzed once—twice—its low hum slicing through the silence like a blade. Jess hadn’t been asleep. Not really. His body had settled, eyes closed for just minutes, but his mind had remained wired, straining through the dark for sounds that didn’t belong.His hand moved automatically, fingers closing around the phone, the sickening feeling of dread blooming in his stomach before his brain could even process why. Something was wrong. He knew it.The moment he answered, his voice was rough, hoarse from a mix of exhaustion and a deep, gnawing fear.“Reiley?” The word came out more as a prayer than a question, but it was too late. His heart was already sinking.The voice on the other end wasn’t hers. It was too calm. Too controlled.“Jessen,” the woman said. Her tone was efficient, practiced — not one ounce of emotion, not one crack of humanity breaking through.
Sunshine and The Beast Folded Page: Her Parents
[Folded Page]FlashbackThe rain battered the windows of the small house like fists of fury, the storm outside a violent mirror of the one raging within. Wind shrieked through the trees like lost souls, and every thunderclap seemed to rattle the very bones of the house.Reiley Alden paced the length of the living room, her bare feet soundless against the worn, splintered hardwood. She moved like a caged thing, restless, hunted. In the cradle tucked tightly into the corner — the safest corner she could find — baby Althea slept fitfully, her tiny face scrunched in some fretful dream only infants understood. The occasional twitch of her small hands made Reiley’s heart ache in a way that almost brought her to her knees.The storm outside was nothing compared to the one brewing inside her chest. She longed for it to pass, for the world to somehow become kind again — but some part of her, the part that had survived too much already, knew it never would.She paused by the fireplace, the flic
Sunshine and The Beast 100: Emergency
MatthiasA panic attack slammed into me like a freight train the moment they wheeled her through the emergency room doors.Althea lay so still on the gurney, her skin almost translucent under the harsh fluorescent lights, her breathing shallow and uneven, as if each breath cost her more than she could give. Her head lolled slightly to one side, and the sight of it—of her, usually so vibrant and stubbornly full of life, now fragile and terrifyingly still—carved something brutal and cold through my chest, a feeling I couldn't shake even as I stumbled forward.I tried to follow—I needed to follow—but a nurse stepped into my path, palm up, firm but not unkind. "Sir, you have to wait here. We'll update you as soon as we can," she said, her voice kind but leaving no room for argument."No—" I rasped, the sound of it cracking out of me, unfamiliar and raw. "I’m sorry," she said again, softer this time, her eyes flickering with sympathy. "Please. Let us help her."Helplessness crashed over
Sunshine and The Beast 99: Warm Hug, Closer Danger
AltheaThe world tilted when I tried to sit up, but I was okay. My stomach did a little dance, and I bit my lip, blinking against the wave of nausea that swept over me. The old couch moaned as I settled back into its cushions, pulling the cozy blanket even tighter around my shoulders, as if it could hold me together."Are you sure you don't want to go to the hospital?" Then, Matthias's voice broke through the quiet, low and urgent.I shook my head firmly, even though the motion made the room spin again. "I'm doing well, Matt," I said, though I could see he was worried. "It's just a feeling of nausea. It's just the usual stuff that happens during pregnancy."Matthias remained seated near the window, but the tension in his body was almost tangible. His arms were crossed, his broad shoulders stiff beneath the thin fabric of his shirt. Golden shafts of fading afternoon light slanted across the room, casting long shadows that made everything feel both too still and too fragile."You've bee
Sunshine and The Beast 98: Destructive Plan
Folded PageThe room was pretty dark, with only a desk lamp lighting up a bit, making everything look a bit dull and sickly. The curtains were drawn tight, shutting out the world, as if even the night outside didn't deserve to witness what was about to go down.He was sitting still, and you could barely see him because he was so dark. The only sign of his anger was the soft, regular tapping of his finger against the armrest.On the desk, a small bottle of medicine sat upright — harmless at first glance, and pretty ordinary.But it wasn't a typical situation.Not to him.Not to her.And definitely not to Matthias Cox.He took a slow, thoughtful breath as he leaned forward, his hand hovering over the bottle before finally picking it up. The glass felt cold against his skin, but he welcomed the chill. It helped him think. It reminded him why he had waited so long for this.Althea; The ideal crack in Matthias's armor.He was turning the bottle slowly between his fingers, studying it like
Sunshine and The Beast 97: Was it Only Stress?
"Oh, God. The meeting was finally over."I let my head drop to the table with a soft thud, not even bothering to hide my exhaustion. The sleeves of my blouse took most of the impact, but that didn't stop me from letting out a sigh - long, dramatic, maybe even a little whiny. I deserved it. Today's meeting had been a slog. Convincing investors that art had value-not just financial, but cultural, emotional-was like pulling teeth with a teaspoon. Worst of all, I actually liked the project.Tristan laughed and placed a cold bottle of water at my elbow. "You survived. Barely.""I deserve an award," I muttered without lifting my head. "Preferably something shiny. Or chocolate. Or edible. All three, actually.""Edible awards," he mused. "There's a startup idea in there somewhere."I groaned. "Don't make me think about business right now. I need food. Or I'll burn up.""I already ordered." He leaned back in his chair and stretched his arms behind his head. "You like noodles, right?"That made
