A girl in a vibrant red dress approached Hope as she wore a flawless, concerned facade. Her heels look noticeably expensive as they carry the loud stepping sound. Hope, on the other hand, is not entertained by the idea that a rich girl is approaching her while she stands hopelessly with her drenched dress covered with mud. A moment later, the pretty girl asked.
"Are you okay, dear?"
Hope observed her for a few moments and saw a group holding their laughter at her from a distance where the pretty girl came from. If it were not for that detail, she would've fallen for the wicked act of this kind gesture.
It wouldn't be wise to make an enemy, as everyone is staring at them like they are the main character of a movie. So, Hope quickly made up her mind.
"Thank you, but I can handle myself here. I just got unlucky that the rain started before I reached a shelter."
Hope quickly shook off some excess water from her dress and went to the comfort room to fix herself.
'Why does every misfortune happen to me? I got soaked up, and everyone is probably making fun of me now. I should've taken a quick bus on the way here instead of saving the money.'
The venue is quite grand, but an hour away from Hope's home if she chooses to walk. It is probably her last time going to such an expensive place. Granted that she got quite lucky herself to nail the scholarship for this school that she loathes so much. If she knew this place breeds incompetence, she would never have taken that offer.
Her hard work for this radiant dress is wasted. It looks like a mess that you could find in the garbage pretty easily. Luckily, hope was not exposed to the harsh weather for too long, and the dress can be restored to a point where it's not embarrassing to look at. She quickly reached out for a small purse that contained some towels and wiped the muddy area of the skirt.
A few moments later, only a tint of mud is left. She silently fixed her purse again and sighed heavily.
'Now that my dress is acceptable, I will no longer have to walk to the pits of hell again.'
Naturally, she treats this whole gathering as torture. If hope is given a choice, she would rather suffer in hell for a thousand years than spend a day socializing with the wicked. What is special about this day that grown-ups spent a year's worth of food and rent? If hope can wield such money, she would have them all on her mother to pay debts. It wasn't all that bad. Hope gets to eat free meals at least.
As hope reached out for the knob to exit the comfort room, she heard whispers coming from the other side. They are talking about the weird girl with a messed-up dress from earlier.
"Did you see that slum girl with an ugly-looking dress? It's so funny, I barely hold back my laughter."
"Yeah! I almost died laughing when Lovely reached out to that homo."
"Who didn't? Man, if I'm that loser. I would've already left out of embarrassment."
Suddenly, hope felt no strength to pull the door. She felt hopeless, even though she knew they were laughing behind her back. It's a different matter if she actually heard them. Hope wants to dig a pit and bury herself in it.
A drop of tear is rolling down hope's slender cheek. She found the strength to quickly hide in a bathroom stall. The drop soon became a stream. Why do these inhumane beings exist? Why can't they focus on themselves rather than criticizing other people? What did I do to deserve this life?
Her mother named her Hope to spread and feel hope. But right now? All she can feel is despair and hatred for the world itself. Every disgusting moment of her life is flashing over her head as she cries silently and alone in that small corner that she is in. She wants everyone to feel the same thing. Hope wants to bring suffering to the so-called peers of hers. If everyone felt the same thing, no one would make fun of each other.
And in that moment, the seed of evil bloomed inside her. A twisted ideology burned through her head as she regained her strength to stop the stream of tears flowing from her puffy eyes. A wicked desire for everyone to feel hopeless.