Ain't Falling For his Lies anymore

A soft knock at the door pulled me out of my heavy thoughts.

“Miss Lisa, breakfast is ready.”

The gentle voice made my heart stop for a moment because I knew that voice so well, and I stood up slowly on shaky legs and walked to the door with my hand trembling as I turned the knob and opened it.

There she stood, Maria, my old housemaid until I got married, the kind woman who had been like a mother to me, and in my first life Richard had fired her with a gentle smile on his face while I watched and he told me she was spreading bad rumors about our family and that it was for my protection, and I believed every word and let him send her away, and later I learned the truth that he just wanted to remove anyone who truly cared for me so he could control everything, and Maria ended up sick and alone on the streets because of my blindness.

She looked exactly the same now with warm brown eyes and a gentle smile and her simple uniform, and she was alive and well.

Tears burst from my eyes before I could stop them and heavy sobs shook my whole body as I stepped forward and threw my arms around her and held her tight while breathing in her familiar scent of soap and fresh bread.

“Miss Lisa?” Maria sounded confused as she patted my back softly. “What is wrong, my dear? Did you have a bad dream?”

I could not speak at first and I just cried harder because in my first life I had lost her because of my own foolishness, and I remembered how she had begged me to be careful around Richard and how she had tried to warn me and how I had ignored her because I was blinded by love.

“I… I thought I lost you,” I whispered between sobs. “I thought you were gone forever.”

Maria pulled back gently and wiped my tears with her thumb while worry filled her eyes. “I am right here, Miss. I have been with you since you were a little girl. Come now. Breakfast will get cold and your favorite pancakes are waiting.”

I nodded and tried to smile through my tears even though she was confused of course because she did not know I had already lived and died once full of regret and betrayal.

We walked together down the hallway and I looked like a lost stranger even though the house felt so familiar with the same paintings on the walls and the same soft carpet under my feet and everything looked exactly as it had before I met Richard.

When we reached the dining room I sat down and Maria placed a plate of warm pancakes in front of me and the sweet smell was comforting but my mind was far away because I needed to know the exact date.

I stood up quickly and walked to the small calendar on the wall and my eyes scanned the numbers.

September 13th.

My heart dropped like a stone.

Tomorrow.

Tomorrow I was supposed to meet Richard Hale for the first time at the charity gala.

Memories flooded me all at once and in my first life I had worn a simple white dress with silver details and my hair in a soft bun and Richard walked up to me with that charming smile and said “You look like someone who was made to stand beside me” and his voice was so warm and his touch so gentle and I fell for him fast and hard.

I remembered how he promised me a beautiful future and how he held me when I cried about my father’s death and how I gave him my whole heart and my trust and my family’s company without hesitation and he took everything and destroyed me slowly while smiling like the perfect husband.

The memories made my stomach turn with disgust and anger.

I walked back to my room with fast steps and not even a second glance at my abandoned meal was spared and my hands were shaking badly and on my desk lay the fancy golden invitation card for tomorrow’s event while my mom stood beside the table in my room.

“Richard invited you and his father is the top richest man in the country,” she simply said with a smile.

I stared at my mom in disgust because her beautiful innocent smile made me hate her more for the smart move with Richard to sell her off so they could work hand in hand and steal what was left of the family inheritance.

The words “Special Guest – Miss Lisa” were written in beautiful letters and I picked it up and my fingers tightened around it until the paper bent.

“Richard Hale…” I whispered and my voice was cold and full of fire.

Tears fell onto the invitation but these were not tears of sadness and they were tears of anger and new strength.

I tore the card slowly at first and then faster and faster and the pieces fell to the floor like snow.

“This time…” I said quietly but with strong determination, “I’m not coming.”

“You wouldn’t do such a thing Lisa! Look… Richard is a good guy and he just wants to meet you so be nice,” my mom cooed in her usual sweet tone before leaving the room.

A faint smile tugged beneath my lips because I refused to fall for lies anymore and outside the window the bright morning sun made the city look peaceful and beautiful but I knew better now that this was my second life and I would change everything and the first thing I changed was simple… I would not meet Richard Hale tomorrow.

“I will never fall for his lies again!!”

I sat back down at the table and looked at Maria and the other staff with a strange intensity that made them glance at each other in confusion and I poked my pancake with the fork as if it had personally offended me and muttered under my breath “Even the syrup looks suspicious today” and Maria blinked and asked if I was feeling all right and I just smiled too brightly and said “Never better” while my eyes stayed sharp and far away because every familiar face and every soft word now carried the weight of a life already lived and lost and I would not waste this one.