Avoiding Lyndon might have been easy but there are simply some unforeseeable circumstances that will catch you unprepared. 

Today, April came to Kalliste boutique when she ran across the source of her last life’s tragedy. It was the mayor’s degenerate son Linsy followed by two women. Hand in hand with his escorts they entered the store. It didn’t take long for the quiet atmosphere to change into a lively one. 

It was normal for guests to come in, after all this is business but controlling the quality of people entering is up to the management. April ignored them as she proceeded to take Sena’s pre-ordered items. When the manager left to take them out she waited at the lounge with the sales associate but after a while, she got a little bored and decided to take a look at a few pieces herself. 

She worked hard since coming here and has earned quite a sum. Their old house back in her hometown had been repaired and she secured her parents' retirement. A little reward for herself doesn’t sound too bad, isn’t it?   

She took a fancy to a nice pair of blue stilettos and was about to take it when a hand shot out snatching it from her. It was a pity someone was faster. April moved to the next shelf, this time she saw the exquisite black and white kitten heel shoes. 

“My mother also liked this kind of style.” The male voice said enthusiastically. 

April put the shoe down and politely moved on to the side to look for another design. She thought the man would stop there but he seemed to have found tailing her amusing. 

“This is the latest design, are you sure you can afford this one?”

Her hand paused and said in a neutral tone, “If sir wanted this same item please wait until I have finished looking at it.” Or he can call his own SA and wait instead of rudely grabbing the item like this. 

Linsy was not used to women ignoring him when he already made the move. For him, women were only in two categories, the one who’s easy to get when you have money and the one playing hard to get to rake more benefits. April appeared to be a new species and he was curious to discover it. The edges of his mouth cocked up smugly.

“For a beautiful lady, I am willing to buy this as a gift.”

“I’m sorry but I have to decline. Thank you for the offer though.” April refused.

Linsy leaned on the wall looking at her in an uncomfortable manner that made her skin crawl. She didn’t know why she felt uneasy, the gaze the man was giving her appeared to be warm but for her, it seemed particularly cruel. “My companions came here as well, why don't you add your purchase with us? It’s easier that way.”

The beauty remained unfazed. Women in his circle are commonplace and he doesn’t lack a couple or more reserves for pastime but, seeing April today stoked the long-dormant fire within him. It was as if something’s telling him that he should get close to her, that getting her will bring change to his long boring days. Of course, Linsy doesn’t believe in true love and what he is feeling has nothing to do with it. He approached her aggressively as to how a child would when he sees his favourite toy. 

Linsy took a step forward and deliberately sniffed April’s shoulder making the other flinch. “I consider this day a rare encounter, take it as a token of my appreciation and if you accept it, that will make me very happy.”

April moved away disgusted by his greasy look. The sales associate assigned to her noticed her plight and tried to divert Linsy’s attention as tactfully as possible. “Sir, we have new arrivals today in the bags section. Would you like to take a look for your lady companions?” 

Linsy waved her off uninterested in the offer. He thought April wasn’t impressed so he began bragging about how the women he is with wanted plenty of things so she doesn’t have to be embarrassed. “I can buy you ten more, there’s no problem.”

Go buy it yourself and quickly stay away from me! April rolled her eyes secretly. 

She distanced herself before he could even come near and spoke firmly, “We are not familiar.” 

His cloying smile stiffened after realizing that she wasn’t falling for his coaxing at all. With his overtures frequently ignored, displeasure flashed in his eye and made the tips of his fingertips itch. He could barely conceal the greed and lust leaping in those bleary eyes. In his mind, Linsy had already thought of hundreds of interesting plays to break her. He licked his dry lip impatiently, the bitch didn’t know what’s good for her. 

“Do we have a problem here?” Jacob asked. 

The noisy girls on the other side suddenly quieted. Linsy looked back and froze. As someone who had once seen the people whom his father wanted to curry favour, Jacob An’s face is no stranger to him. Even in his muddled state, there is no way he will not recognize him because behind this seemingly amiable man is a boss that even the elites of this country had to be mindful of. 

“Secretary An, w-what a coincidence meeting you here…”

“Ms April?”

Linsy’s whole body froze. “You know each–” he choked. “Uh, we-- we are just having a nice conversation.” 

He brushed off Linsy’s lame excuse and walked towards April with heavy steps. “I was in another building when I saw you. You’re here for the dress Ms Erde will use for the premier night?”

April nodded stiffly at the sharp-looking elite man.  

Ms Erde?! Linsy suddenly felt cold on his back. The uncontrollable shaking of his body began. This is not the kind of encounter he was anticipating!  

April, who saw Jacob approaching, recognized his intent to rescue her. It wasn’t the first, she remembered she met Secretary An in the same encounter with the mayor’s son a few months back on the streets and she had never forgotten his favour since. She is yet to repay it and here she is owing him another again. 

“Mr Miles,” Jacob said tepidly to Linsy who rushed to put a distance between him and April. “I see you haven’t changed your ways.” 

Linsy shivered when his gaze crashed to a pair of emotionless eyes behind gold-rimmed eyeglasses. 

“Thank you,” April whispered in a low voice sincerely. 

“It’s alright. Girls should be more cautious.” Jacob then threw a disgusted look on the side. “Perverts are everywhere.” 

The two went to the waiting area to pick up Sena’s order and left the boutique quickly. On the way back, April expressed her gratitude several times. Although she looked calm, she remembered it was the mayor’s son notorious for being a bastard that whoever entered his eyes better pray not to be caught or else… 

“He won’t touch you, you don’t have to be so nervous,” Jacob said lightly. 

“Y-Yes.” 

She was still nervous, he thought. 

“In Capital City all the way to the nearby districts, your boss is one of those people who can make Linsy scream for this mother.” 

April looked at him in baffled silence. 

He then explained why. According to his investigation, when Ms Erde’s mother died all the people who had held a grudge against her before began to come out including those with ill interests. The mayor’s son had been drooling over Ms Erde for a long time, without her mother’s protection he thought she was easy prey. 

Who would expect that her mother’s death would only unleash a much unruly character? Linsy wanted to kidnap her that fateful day but he was almost disabled after the unlucky encounter. In the middle of the road, Sena pulled out a cricket bat, smashed his new sports car and pulled him out for a beating until he peed his pants. 

That’s not all, four sturdy men came out of nowhere then dragged the bruised Linsy away. Did he think it was so easy to abduct Sena Erde? He was reversely kidnapped. A phone call then came to the mayor’s office informing him that his son is in a pet clinic about to be neutered if he did not come to claim him back. If not for his father apologizing profusely on his behalf he might have turned into a eunuch by now.    

Strangely enough, the Miles family who were unable to tolerate the slightest affront remained as timid as a mouse and didn’t make any moves to retaliate. The talks about the encounter eventually died down and are seldom being discussed but people certainly remember it. For Linsy, it was a lifetime trauma that he would lose his wits as soon as he heard ‘Sena Erde’ or anything closely associated with her. 

Does he hate her? Of course, it was a deep-seated hatred soaking in his bones but what can he do? His father already warned him that Sena is no ordinary kid he can mess with. 

April dropped her jaw after knowing the full story and renewed her outlook towards her boss. She had seen Jess and the guards following her. She also heard about her reputation in the upper circle and had more or less understood her background. However, she didn’t know it was so tough even the mayor couldn't chew on her. People like the mayor’s family, if it were in her home country, you're probably six feet down pushing daisies or might have long been shark bait.  

“Sena!” 

Jacob and April stopped at the door of an upscale hair salon and spa just in time to hear a crash. She just had a round with the arrogant mayor’s son, little did she know that her little boss is having a similar headache.

“Of all places to run into a mad dog.” Sena in her brilliant platinum blonde hair looked down at a woman sprawled on the floor along with many bottles of hair treatment solutions. 

“Who’s the dog?!” Mrs Luz screamed, stood up quickly while pointing at her with her decorative nail extensions. “How can you treat your elder this way?” 

Sena gave her a bored stare making her small face look like icy porcelain. Those almond cat eyes were lit with danger. “An elder playing cheap tricks like a high schooler. That’s horridly low class.”

The conflict started when her companion Ian first spotted Sena getting her hair done in another room by the professional hairdresser Mrs Luz requested. He felt indignant and he felt the need to vent the madam’s grievance so when the hairdresser temporarily left, Ian sneaked into the utility room and fiddled with the solution. He is used to doing this when he was doing shows so it’s easy for him to mix the solutions so then Sena who was supposed to have a light brown dye ended up with a wild platinum blonde head instead. Fortunately, the result was still acceptable and somehow matched her. 

Sena’s remark that she has no culture and breeding caused her confidence to splinter in several pieces. Mrs Luz is proud of her position and for years of occupying the Luz house many people finally looked up to her. Enraged, and unwilling to accept the accusation, she reached for a glass of complimentary cocktail on a tray to splash it on the girl who delivered the stinging insult. 

But the other caught her wrist and twisted it and said in a languid tone. “Isn’t it ironic how you try so hard to emulate the manners of those above you while you are constantly acting like a deranged shrew whenever you see me?” 

Sena plucked the martini from her hand and sipped it. Her eyes turned to Ian and chuckled softly. 

“I remember you. Aren’t you one of Maya’s puppies?”

Ian’s handsome face twisted. “Sena Er–”

“Well, I don’t care what kind of people you two are as long as you stay out of my sight and don’t let me smell your filth.” She pushed Mrs Luz to him, the two could barely hold their balance and hit the wall. 

Mrs Luz was wearing a 5-inches pair of heels and twisted her foot. The well-maintained face looked up to Ian in pain. She was almost forty-five but her face remained as smooth as a young girl and her body was still proportional. But if you look closer, one would see that her facial expressions were unnaturally frozen due to injections and her arms were starting to sag. The noise was too loud it gathered the attention of those people in the lounge that they began to peek into the VIP area. Inside they saw Mrs Luz body pressed up to the male model. 

Mrs Luz was in a panic. “Sena, I, I know you hated me for marrying your father but you should at least leave me some dignity I deserve. You can’t tarnish my reputation like this, your dad and I were in an inseparable relationship. It was your mother who got in the way—”

“Quit your bullshit,” Sena said scathingly. “I haven’t mentioned anything about your reputation so why jump into a flustered explanation– or, are you guilty that I found you cosying up with him?” 

Mrs Luz trembled from head to foot. “Shut up. You can’t just say that!” 

Sena saw the spark of flames in the woman’s eyes and she happily poured more oil to see her explode. “You started it.”

Keenly feeling the presence of other people, Sena said brightly. “Oh yeah, before I forget. You seem to have taught your daughter a ridiculous lie that you and Mr Luz knew each other but, didn’t you first meet my parents when you were working as a waitress in a yacht club?” She smiled sweetly at the woman. “You claim to know Mr Luz first when he doesn’t even know you served him up at the party. My mother was three months pregnant at that time by the way. I remember the colour of your uniform… white and pink was it?” 

“No!” Mrs Luz combusted grandly. “H-How could you possibly…” Cold sweat broke out all over her body. She was sure no one remembers that event!  

“How could I possibly know? You forgot that it was a high-end gathering and there are cameras all over. I still have a copy. Wanna see?” 

The madam’s eyes widened in fright. “You, you’re bluffing… don’t think just because you are my husband’s daughter I will still be soft on you! So what? I’m your father’s wife now and you, you are nothing but a discarded daughter compared to Maya!”

“You are admitting it.” 

“Screw you!” Mrs Luz raised her other hand to slap her but she caught it again. 

“It’s still vain, uncouth, and loud.” Sena let go of her hand, picked the olives on her glass and chewed it slowly; her eyes squinting in delight as if glad to see her suffer. She then dropped the toothpick on the floor and stepped on it. “Here in the upper class, we fight, we lie and we compete in private but we don’t indulge in such cheap displays of temper like you.” 

Under Mrs Luz horrified eyes, Sena provocatively looked at the people outside. There are more or less twenty wealthy wives and ladies watching the fun. They all clearly heard what Sena said and silently agreed in their hearts. Indeed this Mrs Luz was ill-bred. 

“You and your daughter wore your masks for so long you no longer know how to take it off—” 

“S-Stop, stop it. Sena.” The woman pleaded furiously. She knew the ramifications of today’s quarrel once it spread. Her eyes darted from her to the audience frantically. 

“---I’m warning you, the next time you try acting your self-made drama again I will strip you off of everything you have.” She then looked at the model Ian holding the madam’s shoulder with obvious ridicule. “Let’s see how Mr Luz still wants a wife who rolls around fresh young men every time he is out for business.” 

Mrs Luz pushed the model away like a hot iron plate with shaking hands. Sena looked at her dead in the eyes and remarked dryly. “How do I know? It’s up for you to guess.” It would be delightful to watch her live every day in trepidation, letting her taste the feeling of slowly losing the position she was so proud of grabbing. Not to mention a model and young male idols, there are other things she absolutely cannot let anyone know and wishes to erase. Too bad for her, Sena knows.

She did not say more and enjoyed the panicked look of Mrs Luz. 

Ian who realized the consequences of being caught with his sponsor jumped to deny their relationship. “No! I, I’m not– Mrs Luz and I.” He stuttered and did not get to continue under the scrutiny of those piercing hazel eyes. Eyes that saw right through his soul. 

“9:00 pm at XX Hotel room 503 on November 15.” 

Ian’s fear escalated to panic and alarm. Mrs Luz was in no better state as well, she glared at Sena full of wrath ready to pounce and tear her to pieces. Her husband will absolutely kill her once he finds out about this. 

“You motherless little demon—” 

Sena peered at her under her eyelashes and cocked an eyebrow, “Go ahead and scream all you want. Let every person in this establishment know what kind of loose amoral bitch Mr Luz has married. It’s guaranteed to spread in less than a minute.” 

April and Jacob who were watching nearby couldn’t help but feel sorry for the evil stepmother. It seems Snow White did not eat the poisoned apple instead, she mercilessly shoved it back to the ugly witch’s throat. Jacob was reminded of the wild anecdotes about Ms Erde, the story of how terrorized the mayor’s son is well-founded. A little spark and she will incinerate anyone who crosses her. 

“Take my advice and learn to evaluate your worth before jumping in front of me.” Sena put the glass of martini on the console and wiped her hand with a tissue. 

“Bitch!” Mrs Luz went insane when Sena turned her back, throwing them out of sight, out of mind. “Why didn’t you die along with your stuck up mother!” She shouted angrily and swept all the bottles, glasses and cosmetics on the tray. Her whole body is sticky with all the things that spilt on her from earlier. Her new fingernails were also broken. 

“M-Madam…” Ian wanted to calm her down but he was slapped away. 

“Useless dog!” 

At this moment the madam’s chest is suffocating with humiliation and anger. She kicked a chair and walked out of the salon leaving her young model without turning back. The people watching the excitement dispersed slowly, satisfied with the new tidbits they can nibble on. 

“Jeez, what a lousy day.” Sena chuckled, tousling her hair in front of the mirror and putting on a light pink lipstick to finish the effect. The bright shade was not her thing but doing another colour will only damage her hair. She decided to sit for a while. Jacob sent April in safely then left to find his boss shortly. The ladies then moved out to return home. 

Out in a small corner, a person carrying a camera followed the two figures walking on the side of the street of the famous fashion enclave. Someone tipped him that they saw Sena Erde here, so he packed his tools and waited for a fiasco to begin. It was his lucky day to be able to catch her out of Paragon or off work. He clicked several shots and sneakily followed them. 

Here Sena was walking in high heels with shades perched on her tall nose and a gorgeous cascade of fresh platinum hair. April beside her in a chic lady suit. It wasn’t just this photo, from that day on the other paparazzi following her put in their shots, apparently keen on making an album of her daily life but what came out was an accidental portfolio of her outfits that became popular to many ladies later.

 

It’s November and suddenly a domestic movie gained an advantage against foreign horror films sprouting in theatres. At the premiere of the movie Hermit, not only the cast and everyone in the crew came to support it but the various well-known names in the country.

On the red carpet facing hundreds of cameras are the four college students Tang Chang’an, Ramsy Muller, Sydney Weiss and Yuya Ren who wrote, directed and made the whole movie. Spark’s famous four eggheads suddenly went on fire not only because of their talents but of their youthful and sunny appearances.

[Director, editor, screenwriter, cinematographer and lighting tech? Are you sure that with these strong visuals you are not a boy band?] 

[I never knew what it’s like to blush until I saw these four. My face is still hot until now.]

[Sis, you’re not alone!!!]  

[Oh, my heart! Can you be more gentle? Those smiles are going to be the death of me!] 

The flashes from the camera never stopped. 

Next, the main cast came donning their best suits and dresses along with their partners. A while later, an uproar sounded when the most respected socialite and philanthropist Madam Eleanor Muller came being escorted by Nicholas Aiguille. Everyone was dumbfounded why such heavyweights suddenly appeared in such a small film. One brave reporter stepped forward and asked the madam curiously and was answered directly that she came here to cheer on her grandson and his friends. 

As for which of those four eggheads he is, the crowd already has an idea. 

The four eggheads waited at the other end of the red carpet to meet the elegant matriarch. The Tang couple who rarely shows up in public also took this moment to announce that they are here to back their little brother’s chosen career, cutting all speculations that Chang’an and his elder brother Leonard are not on good terms. It’s fairly known these days that the mistress who tricked the Tang patriarch had lost her shine and was thrown out of the main house to fend for herself. 

Enemies speculated that Chang’an, the unwanted child, will follow the same path. Unfortunately, they thought wrong.  

Wherever the Tang couple goes, naturally, Sena also follows. This time, she came with Michael Saldini as her escort along with her pretty sister. Wearing the cream silk dress with embroidered lavender tulle overlay from Lady Doukas and her failed platinum dye, Sena walked unhurriedly emanating an air of ancient grandeur and timeless elegance. The outfit has a straight neckline with spaghetti straps that tie into bows on her shoulders. It fitted so well that it looked softly feminine on her. Who could have possibly guessed that her hair was supposed to be highlighted as a joke tonight? 

Nicholas, in his dark suit, waited for her to reach their side. Michael graciously let go and nudged her to Nicholas’s side for a photo. He then went to take a picture with his sister and Madam Muller. 

Nicholas held Sena’s hand gently, pressed a brief kiss on it for the pictorial. The image was like a loyal guard serving the elf-like beauty. The Tang couple watching nearby looked at each other. 

“Do you think…” Linda let her words hang. 

Leo squinted his eyes and locked them on the man standing way too close to the baby sister. The two had been photographed together on many occasions but there was not any malicious nor romantic gossip about their relationship. Here they are walking side by side harmoniously like a pair of ordinary close friends but Leo is not at ease.

Anonymous: [Why is Sena here? Did she also participate in the movie?]

Anonymous: [I knew she was imitating Maya Luz. Remember folks, she joined the same show as Maya but got kicked out first. Now that Maya’s career is on the rise she also jumped to make a movie.] 

Anonymous: [She will expose her inferior mediocre self soon. The only good thing she has is money but can only buy her a fake career and not acting skills.]

Nancy-sama: [A brain is also a good thing to have. Why don’t you have one? This is not the place for people like you to spray garbage.]

The fierce loli suddenly strikes.

Anonymous: [Damn, she’s like a weed. She’s everywhere.]

[Imagine comparing someone who has more achievements and undoubtedly a much better appearance than you to a weed.] Cuckoo, a loyal Sena fan couldn’t hold it and roasted back. 

[Sena is not a cast. She’s an investor. Do you know the difference?]

[Investor? So what? This movie is going to fail anyway!]

Almost half of those who knew the gossip that it was a low budget horror film had little expectation of this movie. A person who claimed to be working as a crew broke the news that it was written and directed by a group of amateurs and that they can only rely on their backings to hype up the film. Sure enough, the premier was star-studded.

[I say, I won’t waste a penny for a badly made movie. There’s still a horror channel for that, and it’s free.]

[Err, what do you expect? It’s just another shit visual effect again and a bunch of jerky CGI monsters. I’m losing hope.]

But after the first screening ended, the guests invited could still not recover from the shock they felt after they walked out of the cinema. 

“Ah, I won’t sleep with my lights off tonight. I’m so scared.” A young celebrity shuddered. 

“Me too, I’m beginning to be a little afraid of the shadows.” 

The murmurs continued. Some even seek out the reporters and camera to express their feelings to share their emotions to the audience vividly. In the inconspicuous part of the theatre, the bigwigs gathered together for refreshments.  

 “Sis!” Layla jumped and trotted to her side as soon as she found Sena. Her eyes locked on the platinum hair with a gradient of light blue.  

“Careful no to trip,” She cautioned smilingly, pulling the girl close. 

Nicholas was squeezed in but he dared not complain about it and moved to give the ladies their space. 

“I shouldn’t have come to watch this.” She cried miserably. “Brother always comes home late at night, what do I do if I remember the monster?!” 

The girl has thoroughly forgotten that it was her brother who’s in charge of those monsters.

Sena winked, “You can hide under the sheets.” 

“No!” Layla shook her head and clung to her arm. “Can I come to your house and sleep? I’m really scared.”

“Sure you can.” 

Layla’s eyes twinkled happily and let out a victorious “Yey!” 

“Oh yes, I also joined the mountaineering club and the Edelweiss outreach program.”

Sena was taken by surprise, she was once a member of the former and the president of the latter. 

“You’re surprised, right? I had the same reaction when I learned that you joined them in your middle school years in the academy. I think this is predestined!”

“As long as you’re enjoying it.” She replied, patting her head. “Go and explore while you’re young.” 

Layla blushed, receiving her approval and compliment.  

“You speak like you’re a hundred years older than her. You two forgot there is only a five-year age gap between you?” Michael said. 

“Oh, no wonder big brother and Nikki don't seem to mind that they are five years older than Sena.” 

Michael coughed unnaturally. He’s almost twenty-seven and Sena is twenty-two next year, it wasn’t such a wide age gap, right?

“Little girl your tongue is getting sharper,” Mike told his sister.

Layla hid behind her and stuck her tongue out to her brother. 

 

On the way home, Sena sat primly in Nicholas’s car. It has been a long month filled with excitement. They just finished the groundbreaking ceremony for the East District and officially began the construction. She was glad that she had achieved one of her wishes to take part in the rise of the new Metropolitan Hub.  

Nicholas drove smoothly and would glance at her from time to time. Their talk in the Highland Lodge was interrupted halfway, they hadn’t broached the subject again when they returned to the city. Fortunately, things weren’t awkward between them and they maintained their harmonious relationship. The only change that can be seen was perhaps Sena’s initiative to send him a text. 

~Sigh.

He had to thank their cooperation in the project for that. If it weren’t for this, he would probably spend another year trying to think of ways to legitimately call or message her. 

They were passing through a tunnel when a black SUV suddenly overtook from behind and swerved to their right, almost crashing at them. 

Nicholas let out an expletive. 

Sena clutched her seatbelt in fright.