Chapter 13

It was five to midnight.

The servant hid his watch in his pocket and picked up his phone uttering the words “Yes Mr. Lee” then he went toward Era and told her that it is time for them to head downstairs. The girl was still thinking that she was dreaming so she never considered being  cautious or suspicious.

They were heading downstairs to the second floor where they were before, and then stopped by the cylindrically sprouted fences:

“What now?” she shyly asked,

She started to eye their surroundings when her eyes caught glimpse of..

“No way! My… pendant!” her eyes shone as she saw it being held out by that servant. “Great you found it!” she walked towards him, reaching her hand to grasp it but there was another hand that beat her to it as it gripped the pendant, making Era’s eyes flow open.

“Ms. Jang Mi?” she heard a voice uttering so close from behind her. She froze.

“Ms. Cha Jang Mi, right?” the voice repeated and it sounded very familiar.

“Oh, here’s Master Lee” the servant now backed-off with a smile.

Era’s senses went numb as she heard her name being called, her body became motionless and she couldn’t move. A big hand gripped hers, entwining their fingers together and pulled her to find herself getting dragged around by a man in a white tuxedo and whom she couldn’t see the face. They were heading downstairs. The whole thing bewitched her.

It must be a present from my mom.. for me to carry on myself writing the rest of the tale that she left unfinished after she died.

There was her prince, and there it showed 12 midnight when both of them stood in the center of the room beside each other. Tears formed in her eyes as he lifted her hand up, gesturing to the crowd before them:

“Dear friends, tonight I invited all of you here to introduce this lady to you” he went on talking and she smiled at the crowd.

“Everyone, meet my fiancée… Cha Jang Mi” he aimed his palm at her, his smile never faded. She raised her face to take a good look at him finally but then,

“N-No way! This can’t be!!” Two voices yelled from the crowd.

Upon hearing them, and upon seeing the face of the said Prince, Era’s eyes widened and remained open. Her reaction was no different from that of his, Yu Jin, who could not believe his own eyes.

“Oh my goodness.” Mrs. Cha fainted, gasps and murmurs were echoing throughout the room.

Era started to shiver as she reached her hand up to pinch herself, Yu Jin eyed the unmistakable piece of jewelry that was on her finger just where he put the ring for Era. He shook his head repeatedly.

Era is really… Cha Jang Mi herself…?

Yes, he couldn't have guessed and never even cared to have a look at her face earlier before when he was escorting her down the stairs.

I swore to myself that I would accept this girl no matter who she was and no matter what she looked like...

Thus, he believed that he'd just accept his own decision and shall not back-off either ways.

I wished to help her take back what's truly and legally hers, and betrothment was a mere pretence for her to get the support she needed momentarily.

Jang Mi pinched herself but nothing happened. She squeezed her eyelids shut then opened her eyes and found herself in the same room, in the same spot with the same people and with Yu Jin staring absent-mindedly at her as if he’s seeing a ghost.

Reality hit her so hard, at that very moment as he showed her the golden locket and asked:

“Is this … pendant… really… yours?” he phrased with his eyes locking with hers.

“I…” she was out of words.

“Answer me!” he shook her by the shoulders, sounding so agitated.

She dropped her head and nodded, biting her lower lip which was a habit of hers that confirmed as well the fact that she was Era.

“Then why didn’t you say anything to me?” he shook her again, his face looked so twisted in pain. “Why did you lie to me?”

“You…” she clenched her fist. “You… lied…too” her voice became hoarse as tears streamed down her face, adding to his bewilderment.

“Look what have you done Era!” Yoon Song’s voice raised from the crowd. “If anything was to happen to my mother… I’ll never forgive you!” she was screaming, her voice stained with her sobs.

Era glanced towards her to see her stepmother lying on the floor, being held by Yoon Song. She covered at the sight and started to walk toward them when Yu Jin grabbed her by the wrist and yanked her back to where he was standing:

“I won’t allow you to go back there Jang Mi!” he yelled at her sternly then showed her his hand and the ring that he was wearing. “We’re betrothed now and they no longer have any authority over you! I'm soon to become your legal guardian!” he gritted his teeth.

She tried to shake his grip, “Let go of me” her voice was so dim.

“No I won’t!” he instead pulled her in a hug.

“Please…” she begged, as she squeezed into the tips of his clothes. “Let me go…”

He found himself pulling away from her, just as she wished.

“Don’t go back to them Jang Mi!” He said with an imperative tone.

She ignored his words and walked steadily toward the two women as they both were on the ground. Yoon Song’s glares were shooting daggers at Jang Mi:

“Right, come and help us you sneaky wench!” she grinned. “Be obedient and say that none of this is real and I might consider forgiving your disgrace!”

Jang Mi looked around, seemed like she never paid attention to what she heard, then went with steady steps toward one of the guests who had a glass filled with liquor in his hand:

“May I?” she touched the glass and asked, the man looked at her in suspicion, all eyes were on her in fact.

“What are you doing? Come here!” Yoon Song picked herself up and just as she her heels to face Era, she got something spilled all over her and her mother.

“Jang Mi!” Yu Jin Called from afar.

Yoon Song raised her face slowly, liquor dripping from her jaw she saw Era standing in front of her with the empty glass in her hand, her face looking as expresionless as that of a dead.

“W-What have you just…?” Yoon Song’s voice shook.

However, the corner of her lips curled into a smirk now.

“Era!” Yu Jin came running at her but she reached her palm to stop him from taking any further steps:

“No, stop!” he halted “Don’t come any closer.”

She backed off and off reaching the nearest table, she picked up one of the decorative candles.

“Y-You’ll regret what you’ve done!” Yoon Song lost her composure as she kept staring with a wince at her stained gown.

Era walked toward her and her mother whom she supported with her body. She stood across from the two of them.

“Wait.. no! Era! Don’t!” Yu Jin just realized what was about to happen. Everyone stepped back.

“I know that your mother will end up burning in hell…” she said, with a nonchalant voice, “But then here I am thinking to myself,” she held her jaw and smiled “Why do I have to wait for her to die? Why can’t she just get burned right away and get sent to hell already?!” her voice was getting gloomier.

“H-Hey!” Yoon Song reluctantly backed-off. “Y-You’re insane…”

“Didn’t you want me to be?” she tilted her head and laughed. “Or is it because that you’re about to have your true colors exposed to the world that you can’t take it?”

“Somebody do something!” Yoon Song was desperately looking around, seeing that no one was taking a single move, Yu Jin included. “Do something! Lee Yu Jin! It's your party!” she broke in tears.

“Hah… see?” Era snickered, “They’re not moving because they can clearly see who’s the real lunatic here.” She blew on the fire of the candles and it soon turned to mere smoke.

Yu Jin let out a heavy sigh of relief.

“Don’t worry… I found the answer to my question already.” Era placed the candles on the floor then dusted her palms. “I can’t allow you to die, what’s the rush? There are plenty of things that I am yet to show you” she smirked, her voice completely different than how it was before, “I’ll make sure to turn your life into a living hell myself.”

Yoon Song was trembling, as she hugged her mother and Jang Mi started to walk away, the crowd opening her a path as she strolled through.

Yu Jin was hauled back to reality only as he saw her walking past the door, he immediately took off after her:

“Wait! Jang Mi! Where are you going!?”

But as if she wasn’t listening to him, she left from the main gate by the time he reached the door.

“Why?!” he bent down to his knees, got his phone out as he called the guards and ordered them not to allow the girl with the red dress to get away. He glimpsed something sparkling on the staircase. No it wasn’t a pair of the crystalline shoes. He picked it up and looked at it.

“How can she drop it?” he clenched his fist around the golden heart. That’s exactly what was happening to his own heart, it was getting squeezed in his chest by both guilt and regret. He wished he knew that things were going to end this way. He fell to his knees. It started to rain over him.

Ever since that day, Era disappeared. No one was able to find her, as if she evaporated in thin air. Yu Jin was getting more miserable with everyday passing without her being found. She was his fiancée, and she will always be. Nothing would change that one fact.

The Cha household didn’t knew a peaceful day ever since that night, although nothing proved the guilt of Mrs. Cha in any of the crimes that Yu Jin accused her of, she couldn’t have slept without having nightmares of Jang Min and her mother haunting her.

“She didn’t destroy mother as much as she destroyed him though…” said Yoon Song as she read a celebrity magazine.

Yoon Yi read in the one she was holding:

“Lee Yu Jin caught in another scandal with an actress..” she sighed.

“It’s been a year without her showing up, do you think she died?”

“She better not” said Yoon Yi, “Or else he'll be gone for good,”

“Will be gone?” Yoon Song pushed away the cushion that she was hugging. “You mean you’re worried about Lee Yu Jin and not about your own mother?”

“I never said that”

“But you’ve changed Yoon Yi, you’re not the same sister I used to have fun around” she stood up. “Era and the Lee brothers are the reason for our family to get torn apart.”

“Jun Ho has never done anything wrong!”

“Stop defending them!” Yoon Song Yelled. “I can’t take it anymore!” she gripped her head. “My mother’s having a mental breakdown and you act unconcerned by it!?” she gripped her sister by the shoulders.

“She wouldn’t have come to this state if she didn’t do anything wrong, like she says” She brushed Yoon Song’s hands away.

“But you witnessed with your own eyes that nothing was proved against her!” her tears started to flow, “Please come back to your senses, sister, don’t leave me alone!”

Yoon Yi gritted her teeth and pushed her older sister away:

“I’m sorry.. I can’t”

Then she stood up as her phone started to ring, and headed toward the entrance.

“No… not you too Yoon Yi!” she fell to her knees “Don’t go…” Yoon Song covered her face. "Please!" but her pleads never reached her sister who was now on her way to leave that house once and for all.

However, Yoon Song never knew that the revenge of that girl, the one they once named Cinderella has yet to begin, and that once she appears again, it'll be a matter of time before that family gets completely doomed.

"Why Era... why did you do this to me?" every time he remembered that night when she left, he would just fill another glass with wine and swallow it in one gulp, then stare at its transperent glass that got faintly tainted with redness...

*To be continued*