18
Their Kingdom Panorama
/\_____/\
Victoria lie on her stomach staring out of the window in her room. She’d left the drapes open so that she could stare at the moon. Maybe staring at the moon would bring her some peace, she’d thought, since the moon could be seen from anywhere. Inside her grandma’s home she’d be staring at the same moon as well. Was her grandma staring at the same moon she was?
“They told me this is home, grandma,” Victoria spoke quietly. “But why do I feel like I can’t believe it?”
Pressing her face into her pillow she took a breath and finally closed her eyes.
She awoke in the early morning after waking up a few times that night. It’d been uncomfortable. The fluffy bed she’d dreamed of her whole life had been uncomfortable. Sleeping somewhere other than her grandmother’s home…had been a much more different experience than she’d thought. Well…excluding the prison bed that had belonged to her for 5 years.
Getting up to her feet she had the urge to look back into her closet and after a few moments found herself trying on all the different clothes of different genres. She stared at herself in the mirror, made some poses, took her clothes off and tried other ones.
“Whoa…you can for sure blend in with those girls,” she complimented herself before a knock came from her door.
“Miss? Are you awake?”
“Whoa…there’s even someone who comes to wake me up?” she asked herself.
Turning to the door alarmed she looked over her outfit and quickly slid out of it. What if they thought she was rude for suddenly dressing up in clothes they haven’t yet introduced her to? To start off with a bad impression would hurt her as well as her chances of leaving or staying. Victoria had enough knowledge at least to understand the minds of what people think.
In the end she found herself wearing the clothes she’d arrived in yesterday.
“Yea,” she looked at herself in the mirror while trying to rub out the wrinkles on her collared shirt, “this is me.”
“Miss?” the knock came again.
Victoria walked toward the door and unlocked it.
A moment later she found herself walking down the stairs and paused when she saw her father walk by. When he turned toward her she could feel the power full of authority come from him and instead of visualizing him as her father she only saw the President of the investment company standing before her. Victoria froze and returned to him a deep bow.
He smiled and glided toward her with simple steps.
“You’re awake?” he asked.
The broad fatherly smile on his face made her think of the father she’d been missing her whole life.
“Go ahead and eat breakfast,” he nodded toward her.
“Where are you going?” she asked when he took a step away. “I want to go to work too.”
“Don’t worry about it. Just stay home,” he assured.
“But I…” Victoria began but he’d already walked off with his male secretary following him out.
“Your breakfast is in the kitchen, Miss.”
Victoria turned to look at the nanny. How was she supposed to stay in all day? What was there to do?
/\_____/\
“Don’t stand by the door today,” So Rae said when they reached the office, “you’re going to have to run errands as my secretary today.”
“Secretary?” Donghae repeated.
She looked annoyed at first but her face expression changed into a softer tone, “I’ll give you papers to make copies of in a moment. During the meantime just sit at the desk and answer any phone calls.”
“Oh…” Donghae nodded toward her and as the door closed behind him with a soft thud he turned to glance at the empty desk.
Was Victoria not coming in today?
/\_____/\
Standing at the side of the dining table Victoria could feel drop in awe. Besides the bowl of rice beside her plate were three other dishes the nanny had cooked that morning.
“This?” Victoria asked turning to the nanny standing by the sink busy washing dishes. “You want me to eat this?”
“Yes.”
“But…” Victoria started and watched as the nanny turned to her. “Do you have cereal? Next time just give me a bowl of cereal.”
“The President would be upset.” the gray haired nanny started.
“It’s ok, I’m only used to eating cereal.”
Victoria watched as the nanny gave her a look of disapproval before turning around. She hesitated about whether to eat the full meal or not, afraid that she might not be able to eat it and that the nanny would scorn her from behind.
Before having made a decision the nanny placed an empty bowl before her with a box of cereal and a carton of milk. And breakfast concluded with cereal.
After breakfast the nanny quickly hushed her out of the kitchen with a silent stare and Victoria found herself wandering through the empty house wondering if the people who lived in it cared to occupy it at all.
The halls were poorly decorated, but full of the scent of money and richness. Its modernity made her wonder why grandma had lived such a poor life when such a rich son-in-law had been there all along. Pausing in her steps she realized she’d forgotten about it. Her mother and her grandma and why she’d been left with them.
Swiveling around she started back down the hallway with hands clasped behind her. The grand white walls stared at her pacing back and forth refusing to answer questions she asked. In the end Victoria sighed and walked toward the fat window with a great view of the field in the back. Staring out she wondered whether it’d be alright to leave the house.
Slightly turning around she viewed the empty hallways for any living soul, but found it empty. Since there was no one to keep mark of her attendance it’d be alright to walk off and just head back in before So Rae and her father arrived home. Or maybe if she felt like it, she’d just stay in her grandma’s home. Besides she was far too old to be treated like a kid and stay still as ordered. Obeying wasn’t a filial duty on her list as of right now.
Skipping down the stairs Victoria exited the house, crossed the empty green yard, and hopped down the stairs.
/\_____/\
When Victoria turned around the corner a gray car came speeding around the corner coming to a soft halt by the black door. Kyuhyun stepped out of his car and walked toward the door ringing the bell the moment he neared it. The door opened he found a middle aged woman with a yellow cleaning apron standing there.
“Would you like anything to eat?” the nanny questioned setting a cup of water in front of him in the guest room.
“I just ate before I came,” he replied with a smile and glanced around.
“Shouldn’t you be at work with So Rae?”
“Ah…that…So Rae doesn’t give me anything to do, so I’m just loitering around,” Kyuhyun told.
“That girl…she’s still the same,” the nanny sympathized, “I’ve told her many times to treat you better.”
He let out an uncomfortable laugh, “It’s fine.”
The nanny sighed, “If only her father hadn’t changed the marriage plans then she wouldn’t be so stubborn.”
Kyuhyun looked away hoping not to further the subject about their cancelled marriage. He knew that So Rae had grown up under the guidance of the nanny so talking to her about So Rae wouldn’t lead anywhere but asking him to turn the marriage back to So Rae.
“I was wondering,” Kyuhyun interrupted her long speech about her opinion on So Rae, “is So Rae’s sister home?”
“Sister?” the nanny repeated as if she didn’t know who he was talking about.
He nodded his head once, “Yes. I heard she was brought home last night. Is she around?”
“She disappeared after breakfast this morning, I don’t know where she is.”
“Is that so?” Kyuhyun asked then got up. “Then I guess that’s also fine. It also looks like no one’s home right now.”
He glanced toward the stairs before saying farewell to the nanny.
/\_____/\
Pouting his lips out he quickly ran over to an empty seat and sat down rubbing his hands together excitedly. The bowl of warm fresh rice and the kimchi soup beside it made his heart thud loudly. Food, food, food. Good food. He hadn’t had a good meal like this in a while.
He’d been thankful for the free cafeteria food as well for the various food they served each day. Grabbing his spoon he began to dig in furiously before others started to fill up the empty seats around him. Unknown to them he kept his space and continued eating in silence until his ears picked up their conversation.
“But I wonder why the VP seems so angry,” one of the woman with long haired whispered. “She should be glad that her long lost sister has been found.”
“I heard her father has been looking for her behind the VP’s back.”
“The VP didn’t want her sister to be found?”
“The relationship between the President and the VP is strange. Definitely not like a father and daughter relationship.”
“What?” Donghae suddenly chirped up. “What do you mean? Did something happen to So Rae?”
The girls turned to stare at him surprised by his sudden interruption.
“Who are you?”
“You can’t call the VP by her name!”
“Uh…oops,” he put a hand over his lips then couldn’t help but lean toward them, “but what were you talking about?”
The girls turned to look at each other as if discussing through their eyes whether it was ok or not to talk to him.
At last one of them turned to him, “So Rae is like…the shadow of her father. And there’s also gossip that they’re against each other.”
Donghae raised an eyebrow now feeling confused.
“Then where does her sister fit into the picture?” he asked.
“It’s not confirmed, but they say that the VP’s father wants to kick her out and give the company to his other daughter; the one they found yesterday.”
“What?” he said.
“Don’t tell the VP about these rumors,” the girl cautioned, “we’d get fired.”
He watched as they turned around and turned the topic of their gossip into something about boyfriends. After leaving the cafeteria he headed up the elevator with his head slightly clouded.
So, Victoria was really the daughter? But why had there been a daughter missing? And was So Rae as the girls described her to be?
“Nuh-uh,” he shook his head. “I’m sure she’s not like that.”
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