I woke up, my face drenched in sweat and panting.
I found the necklace under my pillow, and it shined. I quickly put it away in one of my drawers on my nightstand. I stretched and noticed how bright the sunlight was coming through my curtains.
Cassia and Stella burst through my door, which made me jump a little. They had more of a cheerful look which confused me since yesterday was the funeral and they had such serious faces on; I guess it wouldn't affect them. I tried to push away such thoughts.
"Good morning, Lady Zola! Did you sleep well?" Stella said in a professional tone.
"Good morning to you both and yes I slept well, just an odd dream."
"We have something for you that might change your morning. Chamomile tea with honey! Your favorite!" Cassia said energetically while pushing a little cart. Chamomile? I thought I would stop drinking that after I got engaged.
I was quickly reminded that I have to apologize to Mark. I stand up and look at the door. He isn't there. Usually, he would stand near my door. I faced Cassia and Stella.
"Where's Mark?"
Stella and Cassia look at me as if I was speaking in another language. "Mark?..." Cassia questioned.
"Who's... Mark?" Stella asked with some hesitation.
I was in shocked. I know they talked little with Mark but to say they don't know him is maybe a bit much. "You know Mark? He is a guard. My guard. He is like this tall." I put my hand in the air to help them see how tall he is.
They look at me for a while, then look at each other. "You have no personal guard." Stella said with concern and seriousness.
"And there's no guard named Mark." Cassia said with some seriousness in her voice, which is normally not like her. Did Mark quit? No, it can't be then someone in the Manor would've known or informed me, at least.
This must be a dream and there's only one way to find out I raised my hand and smacked myself in the face as hard as I could. Instant regret. I felt the hot sting on my face, and that was enough to tell me I was not in a dream. "OW! I slap hard."
"MISS ARE YOU OKAY!?" Cassia had looked at me as if I went mad.
"Yeah, I'm fine-"
"WE MUST TREAT IT SO IT DOESN'T LEAVE A MARK ON YOUR FACE!" Stella had cut me off and started panicking a little.
"Stella, breathe I'm fine... Wait! Miss? Since when did you call me miss?" I looked at Cassia.
Cassia's eyes widened and she rocked her head. "I'm so sorry! I'm still getting used to calling you my lady, please forgive me."
I nodded my head at her words. I can't be too hard on them. I just haven't heard them call me that before I was adopted.
"Did any nobles request to see me?" I sighed after saying that. I know after the funeral yesterday I am going to be swarmed with people trying to talk to me. It was like an unwanted bug.
"Mis- my lady, did you forget no one knows you have adopted yet? You and your friends' existence isn't known" Stella looked at me sternly.
I froze after I heard those words. "Did the banquet pass?" Deep down I hope it will prove all the suspicions I have wrong.
Stella raised one of her eyebrows. "Passed? It hasn't started. The banquet is 6 months away." My heart dropped to my big toe.
Miss. Chamomile tea. No Mark. No one knows of our existence. It's like we went back in time. If so, how? I blinked. Does that mean Tyrian and the Emperor aren't dead? Is everyone okay now? Everything can be fixed or altered?
"My lady, are you going to cry?" Stella said with concern.
I look up at both of them. "Where're my parents?"
Cassia looks at Stella, then back at me. "I-I think they are in the garden for their morning walk." The second I heard those words, I ran out of my room at full speed.
"MY LADY! WHY ARE YOU RUNNING? PLEASE DON'T RUN!!" I heard Stella and Cassia yell for me down the hall. A lot of servants and maids looked at me as I ran. I don't blame them, this is out of the normal for me.
If I'm living the life like those isekai comics I've read then I'm going to be me, being better to others, and stop being so scared. I pushed my parents away because I was scared and they treated me and my friends so well. I turned the corner and saw the doors that lead to the garden.
This time there's going to be a new Zola in town, and she is going to do better than she did before! I burst through the doors quickly, scanning for my parents; I heard the footsteps of those I assumed were maids. I spotted them talking, and I smiled. They have such beauty.
My mom's eyes widened when she saw me in my nightgown. She pointed at me. My dad turned to see what was happening, and his eyes widened as well. "Zola, what's the matter?"
After hearing those words, more tears fell. My parents looked at me with so much concern. "Mom! Dad!" I hurried up to them and gave them an enormous hug. The force I had made all three of us fall to the ground.
"What's all this for?" My mom giggled a little.
"I've missed you guys." I said with a smile.
My dad lightly chuckled. "Missed us? We didn't go anywhere." My dad looked a little confused.
I did a small chuckle. "I know, but I had a dream where I lost you guys. And I didn't want that."
My mom almost had some tears in her eyes. "Aw, you will not lose us, we are here for you no matter what." Hearing those words almost broke me. I feel confident we can grow closer.
My dad shook his head. "Wait, did you just call us mom and dad?" We all froze after hearing that. I just nodded my head with a smile.
"Since when did you call us that?"
"I should've been calling you that since the beginning. Please forgive me for not doing that sooner." I responded to my dad.
They both had tears in their eyes. They tried to speak, but nothing came out. I looked both of them in the eyes and gave them a big smile. "I'll try to be a better daughter for you."
We finally sat up from laying on the ground. My mom looked at me. "You don't have to be anything. Just be you and our daughter, we are already proud of you." My mom kissed my forehead, and I cried a little more. Those words hit me in my heart. I never knew they were proud of me for who I am. I looked at my dad, who nodded his head in agreement with what my mom said.
"You are the best!" I told them while hugging them. This time it was a big group hug. I don't remember the last time I hugged them at all but feeling their warmth and knowing how much they care for me. I hope this isn't a dream and I can treat everyone better than before.
Stella, Cassia, and anybody who followed them came to where I was. I heard them stop in their tracks. I guess it's because they're seeing us hugging. My dad saw them. "Is there a problem? Why are all of you here?"
I heard Stella's voice. "We saw Lady Zola leave her room in such a hurry, we were going after her." Stella had some tiredness and nervousness in her voice.
"No need to worry. We want to hug our lovely daughter some more." My dad said while hugging me tighter. My mom agreed as well, and hugged me tighter. I kind of felt like I couldn't breathe. I tried to ignore that because what my dad said was sweet. I heard an awe behind me. They are making this moment so embarrassing for me. I mean, I ran outside here in my pajamas, so maybe I should be embarrassed by myself.
"Even though you are 18, I guess you are still young enough to show affection to your parents as you did." Stella said while brushing my hair. I felt embarrassed that this was the talk of the day. What Stella said made me remember that I went back in time. I looked at myself in the mirror and almost screamed at how young I looked. You never noticed how much you change until you go back a year. Just yesterday I was a 19 soon to be 20 noblewomen who lost her fiancé and now I'm a daughter who freshly turned 18 years old. What kind of life is this?
"My lady, you didn't seem the type to just run. You're different from usual, but it's in a good way!" Cassia smiled brightly at me.
"Oh, Cassia, can you please go tell my friends I want to meet them in our library before breakfast?"
"Yes, my lady." She left. "It's so fancy calling you that. Have a good day my lady!" Cassia left energetically.
"She seems to be in an extra good mood." Stella said.
"Huh? What do you mean?"
"I just haven't seen her that energetic since we first met you." Stella finished doing my hair. Stella's words seem to make me think a lot. I wonder if my friends remember anything that happened. I sighed, thinking about how I was going to handle that conversation.