The charm spread and filled Lia's eyes, making her heart seemed to be filled with blooming flowers. Her eyes that looked tired and sad because of the insults from Mr. Sony and Zizie were now softer and lit up with a hint of happiness. Lia froze, admiring the beauty.
"Are you okay? Are you having trouble moving? Oh, let me carry you." The man immediately came forward to rush to carry Lia. The touch of his fingers that might explode Lia's consciousness finally stopped, when suddenly Lia shook her head quickly.
Lia got up as if nothing had happened, or at least as soon as she wanted to be seen. Instinctively she tucked her hair behind her ear, lowered her head slowly, and stood awkwardly. "It is okay. I was just shocked, nothing more. Sorry, I bumped into you earlier." The pain in her hip suddenly returned, reminding her that the recent crash had left its mark.
The man shook his head quickly. His face that always looked friendly and smiled on many occasions seemed to want to swallow Lia's sadness. His hair was black and very healthy, glistening in the light of the city street lamps. "It's not your fault. I just went out to buy something at the department store, and suddenly… yeah, I'm sorry to have to bump into a cute girl on the side of the road like this. Good thing you weren't hurt. I'm sorry."
Lia nodded slowly, she didn't say anything after that besides her blushing cheeks. That man called her a cute girl. Lia wanted to say thanks and so on but the problem was that her tongue was too mute to speak. This was the first time she had spoken normally to a man she had just seen for the first time. But even so, Lia didn't leave, in her heart, she still wanted to stay longer and maybe wanted to make some progress with the stranger man in front of her.
Lia wanted to have a normal romance story like her friends, or at least she wanted to have a male friend who looked at her in the right way. Lia wanted to be recognized as an ordinary girl who was not disgusting to look at, or she wanted to be treated as a human being who deserved to live in this world.
Her expectations were too high until finally, she didn't realize that the man in front of her had said goodbye and left, leaving Lia who was still fantasizing with a sense of optimism that was starting to bloom. When she regained consciousness, Lia bit her lip and kicked the pebble in front of her. "What can I expect?" Lia sighed and went back on her way.
About thirty minutes later she arrived at the door of her flat. The flat was more shabby than her old flat, calmer than her old flat, and to be honest, more expensive than her old flat, due to its strategic location in the hustle and bustle of the city.
It could suffocate Lia, and she still didn't get a better life.
Lia looked up when she found the room next to her suddenly bright. "Oh, the occupants of the next room have gone home? Thankfully, I feel safer this way. At least here I still have some neighbors even though they always have differing work hours with me."
Lia immediately went into her room, took off her clothes, and cleaned herself up. The splash of water in the bathroom refreshed her senses, and it forced her to recall the reality she was facing.
"Prince Aerus." Lia bit her lip, and then she held her flat stomach. Honestly, she's really scared right now. But she tried to live the day as calmly as possible, as casually as possible, and not as flashy as possible.
…
It had been a month since Lia's meeting with Prince Aerus, and it had been a month since they had slept together. Lia woke up in the morning feeling tired because of the very rude treatment from Mr. Sony that she always got.
But all that fatigue seemed to evaporate quickly when she found herself having her monthly period. Lia's eyes lit up, and she immediately slumped on the floor to express her gratitude. "Thank God! Thank goodness I'm not pregnant!"
That day onwards Lia passed her days with more enthusiasm, with more life spirit. Now Lia had got her life and got rid of the terror that had been frightening her after death. Lia had removed the possibility of her being able to give birth to Prince Aerus because the evidence was that she did not succeed in getting pregnant.
Her golden hair wasn't a big deal anymore, because it's useless for Lia. Prince Aerus, who was her mate, as Hamdi said, had left her to find another mate. Although 'mark' had been etched on Lia's body, it seemed that it was commensurate with the new life she was getting now.
Lia came out of the flat to go have fun on the weekend. Back then, she would never have had the chance to do that, but not now. Lia already had some friends she can go out with. They were neighbors who lived near her flat. Everything just happened. They met and got to know each other. Lia's impression that made other people stayed away was no longer valid, and Lia didn't know what the reason was.
They had fun until the night, until the peak of happiness of young people enjoying the weekend.
Time suddenly flew by so fast, it was already ten o'clock at night. Lia widened her eyes and wiped her sleepy eyes. "Hey, I have to go home. It is late."
One of the girls held Lia's arm. The girl's name was Meta. She was a tiny girl who was always making out with her lover. "Oh come on, Lia! It's still too early. After all, no one is waiting for you at home, right? Come on, stay here with us for a little while. We have to visit one more place. It's the weekend!!!"
The others agreed. They suggested that Lia stayed with them to visit another place, now they were on the bus, and Lia had fallen asleep a few minutes ago. Now her body was getting tired and very sleepy.
"I really can't. I'm getting sleepy now, and I'm afraid that my insomnia will come back again. And you know that Mr. Sony sometimes likes to ask me to come to the cafe as he pleases?" Lia yawned. Her face was now decorated with light makeup. Due to her new friends, Lia had transformed into a more beautiful girl than before.
Meta wanted to protest against Lia, but her boyfriend immediately stopped her. Finally, Meta relented and said, "Okay, take care of yourself! You'll get off at the next stop, right? Sorry, we couldn't accompany you home."
Lia didn't even hear Meta's words. She had stood up staggering to check the road so she knew where she was. After seeing the bus stop not far from her new flat, Lia immediately got off. He briefly waved at her new friends and left with the darkness of the night.
Lia shook her head, forcing herself to stay awake. Just as she was about to sit on the waiting chair at the bus stop, her body suddenly collapsed from sleepiness. And then she fell asleep for quite a long time and was aware of nothing else.
Her sleepy habits had been a bit worse lately, especially when she had reduced her rest time due to attending dinner invitations and hanging out with her new friends.
Lia's soft breathing filled the night, which cradled her in a man's arms. When Lia finally got enough sleep she blinked her eyes. When she woke up, her face turned pale as she found herself in an unfamiliar room.
***
Note: If you miss Prince Aerus, be patient. He will appear in the next episode. I love you…