Kyla.
All eyes were on me.
They always were.
The flash of cameras, the subtle turn of heads, the murmur of names that passed between champagne glasses... it was just a routine.
They didn't just see me, no, no... these people studied me.
As though I were some rare piece of art on display, porcelain skin glowing under golden light, silk hugging every curve of my body like it had been made to worship me and me alone, they observed my every action.
Hell, men wanted me and the women envied me.... my last name made sure of that.
Yet, beneath the glossy floor of the ballroom, beneath the clink of crystal flutes and the fake laughter, beneath those envious eyes, I was alone.
... My heart ached as though it had been pierced without repair by multiple sharp needles...
I couldn't breathe without feeling nothing but absolute pain.
Every step I took felt as though my heart was being ripped out of my chest.
I was heartbroken.
Yet, here I was feigning the perfect little smile.
I smiled when the mayor's wife told me how breathtaking I looked...
I offered polite nods when business partners shook my hand, telling me how proud my father must be, and pretended not to hear the whispers... the ones about my dead mother, about how "such a poor child" was being raised by a woman who wasn't hers.
Yes, they pitied me.
But none of them knew the truth.
They pitied me but that pity was the least of what I had endured.
"Look at her," a woman near the buffet murmured, not realizing her voice carried her words straight to my hearing.
"She could have any man in this room just by blinking".
"Oh, so fortunate ". Another concurred.
Yes, they were right... I could have any man in that room.
Ha! Actually, no, I could have all the men in that room if I wanted.
But surprisingly, none of them intrigued me.
Not a single one of them.
You see, the one I wanted didn't want me back. Or at least not as much as I wanted him... And apparently, he wasn't mine anymore.
The man who had set my soul on fire, the one man I could've done anything for... The one whom I became a sucker for, whom I had spent five years of my god-damned life showering my unconditional surrender to.
Yup, Slander Meyers wasn't mine anymore.
A few nights ago, I walked right into the love of my life in-between the thighs of my stepsister thrusting passionately while screaming my name as though his life depended on it.
Was it funny?
Yeah, sort of.
It was sad and unnerving but weirdly hilarious in a kind of way.
Maybe that's why my stepsister despised me.
The thought made my lips curl into something between a smirk and a grimace.
Liana.
My bitter, deceptive, stepsister.
Perfect curls, champagne dress hugging her slim figure, pearls at her throat, tiny waist, and wide eyes. An epitome of beauty.
My curse... Always in my shadow.
She smiled across the room, sweet as sugar, innocent as a dove, watching me with mockery in her eyes. She knew exactly what what she had done...
How she had gotten under my skin and disoriented me.
Only I knew better.
Only I saw the frown behind that smile, the envy in her eyes every time she watched me.
I knew she hated me. She always had. Not just because I was my father's blood, but because he trusted me with what she could never touch... part of his company. A role she thought belonged to her, but one he had given me because, unlike her, I worked for it.
And she despised me for it.
Still, in public, she wore the mask of the doting sister, raising her glass at me with that pretentious pride, while her nails dug crescents into the glass.
Always circling, lurking, and waiting for the moment I slipped so she could sink her manicured claws into whatever or whoever caught my attention.
My father thought she was innocent. He thought her mother was sweet. He thought our blended family was something picture-perfect. But he never lived inside my skin. He never heard the barbed words behind Liana's soft voice, never felt the venom dripping from my stepmother's smile when she kissed his cheek right in front of me.
But what difference would it make though? He was already blinded by love, so all her acts and that of her daughter's were nothing but good intentions in his eyes.
Instead, I had to protect myself.
The gala dragged on until my name was called.
My heels clasped elegantly against the glass like floor as I walked toward the stage. My dress was black satin, slit high up my thigh, each step showed just how flawless my milky skin was.
Yup, I adore myself way too much and spend a ton just to turn multiple necks my way. It makes me happy.
I held my chin high, not because I wanted to but because weakness was blood in shark-infested water. Everybody wanted to see perfection and that was what I reflected.
As the spotlights hit me, my heart raced as I tightened my palms around the microphone. It was cold, running a chilly feeling down my spine as I took my eyes up to my guests. The entire room full of people waiting, staring in anticipation.
"Ladies and gentleman...".
I brought out my flawless smile, my voice steady as I thanked them for their generosity, I spoke about charity, about giving back, about responsibility. Words my father approved of, words that made me sound like I belonged in his world.
But deep down inside me, I was choking.
Pfft... what a joke.
"Let's just get it over with" . Was what I thought right before the loud sound came.
Right above me, a loud groan.
The sound of chain snapping.
I felt my blood run cold as I struggled not to move an inch or even breathe just so I wouldn't trigger it even more.
But the dangling crystals from the chandelier wouldn't stop. It shuddered and broke free in an instant.
Before I could even blink, it was coming down in full force, faster than movement, crashing all around me, and erupting screams from my guest who watched in awe.
I stood still, breath locking in my throat until bam! Something hard slammed into me, knocking me flat on the stage.
Shards of crystal exploded where I'd been standing, glittering like deadly confetti...
My ears rang as my heart raced, my skin still tingling with the ghost of someone's touch.
But when I blinked, there was no one. Whoever had saved me was gone.
"Kyla!" My father yelled, running through the chaos, as he moved past guards and staff, his arms pulling me upright. "My God, are you hurt?"
"Hey, baby, look at me!" He cupped both my cheeks to look at my eyes as I shook my head numbly before slowly sliding into his warm embrace.
My heart thundered. I was not hurt, not yet, but I was shaken to the bone.
And I knew exactly whose jealousy had nearly killed me tonight.
---
Hours later, the house was quiet except for the thudding in my chest as I sat on my bed. The guest had all gone. I was still in shock but my blood boiled.
Liana.
I knew it was her.
She had been watching me all night with that fake smile on her face.
Who knew she actually had a plan?
She had taken everything I had but still wanted more, even if it meant shattering me like the chandelier that almost ended me.
But of course, I had no proof. I never did.
She took my place, she took my only family, she took the only man I ever loved, and now finally, she wants to take my life. Yet, I still have no proof!
I felt so useless, so angry, so, I did what I always did whenever I felt frustrated. I turned my rage toward the only man who should have defended me.
"You actually believe it was an accident?" My voice cracked as I faced my father. "Do you think I'm stupid? Someone tried to kill me!"
"It was a faulty chain, Kyla..."
"... A faulty chain, haha... Of course ". I muttered after him. He really was chosing to turn a blind eye.
"Baby, you're just being paranoid. I know you're still in shock..." He tells me but I cut him off.
"No! I'm not in shock! You just never see it! " I knew he was going to call this Paranoia as usual and it pissed me out of my mind.
"Y-you never see what they do, Dad".
"You let them walk all over me while you pretend everything is perfect... Like we're in this little perfect world but open your eyes, they are trying to fucking murder your only child!"
"Kyla..."
He was still talking when she entered.
"Darling, what's happening?" Melinda's voice interrupted, gliding into the room with her perfume, swaying her hips left to right as she kissed my father's cheeks, her eyes never leaving me.
And as if on cue, the devil herself swept in.
"Kyla," Liana breathed, rushing to my side with false concern painted on her face. "A-are you okay? I was so scared when it fell, oh, Poor sister…"
She mocked me in that tone, feigning ignorance all the while killing me slowly.
"You wretch." I gritted my teeth, unable to hide my emotions. "Get. Out!"
But she only tilted her head innocently, as if I were the mad one.
"Wha-what do you mean...?" She muttered innocently. "I was really worried, Kyla".
"My poor girl, she must still be in shock" Melinda chipped in... "What a nightmare. But don't worry, we'll take care of you."
I scoffed at her pretentious words, wondering who was foolish enough to buy their act only to lift my eyes to my father who nodded naively, as though her words were law.
"I'll hire security for you, Kyla. A bodyguard. We can't risk something like this again". Father suggested.
Melinda's eyes gleamed. "Of course, darling. Let me handle the screening. I'll find someone… trustworthy."
Wait, hold on, what the hell is even happening? Why would I want to be in the care of someone as dangerous as Melinda?
Something inside me snapped.
How could he do this to me? How could he trust her so much with my safety?
"Of course. Let her decide. Why not? She already controls everything else." I stood, trembling. "Heh... I mean absolutely nothing to you, isn't that right?"
Father shook his head to my words but I continued anyway. I knew I was hurting his feelings but he hurt mine first. And I already felt so betrayed.
He'd rather call my words Paranoia just so he could be on their good side than listen to my complaints?
"Look at me, father... do you even see me? Do you even recognize who your real daughter is anymore?"
"Kyla..."
"One of them in here wants me dead! Now you are putting my safety in her hands?"
"God! Kyla! Enough!"
He yelled at me and I flinched at his actions, shaking my head in shock. I should've known... He wasn't the father I used to know anymore. He was a complete stranger...
Before he could realize his actions, I dashed out of that room without looking back at neither one of their faces.
My heels echoed down the marble stairs as I strolled out of the doors and out of the house, into the night.
It was freezing outside when I got into the backseat of my car, my mascara bleeding with tears I refused to let fall.
If I stayed, they'd suffocate me. Every second I spent with them meant I was choking.
So I ran.