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8: She Was Pretty
Terakhir Diperbarui:
2025-01-07 18:37:19
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Sunshine 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 : 2025-01-09Sunshine and The Beast 12: The Wedding (II)
AltheaThe wedding was over. Finally.It took a lot of my energy to meet a lot of people. I also met a few of my father’s colleagues, including Leonardo and Josh. While Matthias once told me Leo was planning for something, he was cool when we talked. He congratulated me on my wedding and asked about my experience working with big business so far.“If there is anything you need, you can reach me out. You can ask for Josh’s help too. He might know your father’s business better, since they were working together before.”“I’ll remember that, Leo.”Sure, I would remember it. But doing that? No promise was made.Maybe I started to get the grasp of living like the rich.Despite all of my energy being drained to attend the wedding–as the bride, of course–it was safe to say it all went smoothly. We expected some small annoying events, but so far it’s right on track, just as we planned. Even after the wedding was over, and we were on our way to the house. There would be no need for a hotel whe
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-10Sunshine and The Beast 13: No Love
AltheaTo be a wife was not easy at all.Based on my research—which was totally taken from the internet as my single source—you would know what to do when you were married. It supposed to feel natural, since you were doing it with and for the love of your life. That was why there was no fixed manual about how to be a good wife. When you knew, you knew.But it seemed like I needed that sort of manual, because Lord help, I didn’t really know what to do. The wedding was barely an opening. A prelude from the whole act.Did every couple on earth really marry for love so they didn’t need any manual or guidebook?Maybe one day, I would write this down and the first ever manual book of how to be a good fake wife. They said business was about finding an opportunity, no? Might as well use this one.But the problem was, I needed to be good first, so I could tell others how to do the same. Yet the questions still remain with no answer.I stared at the connecting door as I woke up. This was his re
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-11Sunshine and The Beast 14: Honeymoon to Venice (I)
MatthiasI visited Italy a few times for business trips, but this was my first time here without any business agenda.It still was business, though not like the usual business I did. This time, I didn’t need to meet any investors. I didn’t have to stay awake for late night meetings, or to have some arguments regarding the deal. I just needed to exist, to be here beside the woman who people knew as my wife.Althea Cox. That name suited her quite nicely.Our flight was 10 hours, more or less. We chose to go with a commercial airline and use our private jet as a distraction. Media would find out sooner or later, but I wanted at least the three days of this honeymoon to be shit-free. I asked Ren to use my private jet to meet my new investor in Bali, Indonesia. Two birds in one stone.I didn’t know if there was something interesting in Venice, but Althea named that, so here we were. Once we arrived at the airport and took our luggage, we grabbed a taxi and went to the hotel. The streets
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-12Sunshine and The Beast 15: Honeymoon to Venice (II)
AltheaI didn’t know if it was caused by Venice or my energy was drained to the bottom of the pit, but I slept so well last night.Well, afternoon, to be exact. My stomach was already full from all the airplane food when we arrived, so all I needed was to catch the lack of sleep I’ve had for two days straight. I just did not expect it to be 10 hours of sleep. It could possibly be more than that if not because of the door bell.I forced my eyes to open, then a flash of light basked me, automatically made me close my eyes again. What? Was that the call from heaven?It took me a while with constant blinking until I could adapt. The door closed again, and I saw Matthias there. He walked to my bed, then put the tray that consisted of bread, cheese butter, and a glass of milk.“Eat this and get ready,” he commanded. Yeah, husband. A good morning would be nice, but whatever.“That’s enough right? We can grab some food outside later. So get ready, fast.”“Get … what?”“If you don’t want to w
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-13Sunshine and The Beast 16: Honeymoon to Venice (III)
AltheaTo say that Venice was nice was an understatement. Sure, some places weren’t as nice as those mesmerizing photography you’d seen online, but Venice got what I’ve been looking for. In another life, I hoped I was born rich, so that I could go to Venicea thousand times and explore more of its beauty and arts.We have visited 3 museums and one art exhibition in total, and all he did was follow me around without protest. I almost thought I was accompanied by someone that was not Matthias Cox. I did not plan anything, all of those museums were mentioned by him. It’s like we were on a trip and he was my tour guide.Should I start to worry or was it okay for me to relax?“Now, next ….”I stopped him when we were walking out from the exhibition we’ve just seen. “Do you want to go elsewhere?”“Why?” He asked me back. “There were still a few museums left.”So he really had a list with him. SInce when? And why though?I’d love to do that again, sure, but I was not alone here, and even i
Terakhir Diperbarui : 2025-01-14
Bab terbaru
Sunshine and The Beast 103: New Life
AltheaThe day I moved into some apartment I rented impulsively, it had rained.Not a cinematic kind of rain; the poetic kind that makes you feel reborn or something melodramatic like that. No. It was just grey and annoying, the kind that soaked through your sweater before you realized it and turned cardboard boxes soggy at the edges.A neighbor helped me carry a few things upstairs, some guy with AirPods in and no questions asked. I didn’t even catch his name. He handed me a dripping box labeled Bedroom and disappeared before I could say thank you. The elevator doors closed and I just stood there, clutching my new keys like they might anchor me to something.This was supposed to be a new beginning. But it didn’t feel like a beginning at all. It felt like a concession.The apartment was on the twelfth floor. I picked it because of the view. Something about seeing the whole city stretch below me made me think I’d feel less trapped. But instead, the height only made the silence louder.
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
