I noticed the look on her face and I couldn't help but grin. She was festering with anger due the fact that she went on that errand.
How does it feel being the scapegoat? You want Gabriel, you are free to have him. Take out the trash for me and do the work that is deserving of you.
"Oh, here comes her."
Jessica frowned, Gabriel also shifted uncomfortably, I turned to see a short, beautiful girl walking down the aisle to her sit at the back. Everyone was giving her weird gazes. The cafeteria even became silent as they looked at her.
Her eyes looked puffy from crying, I couldn't help but frown.
That said girl was Lola Wrights. She was assistant manager of human resources, from what I know, she is a normally fun, active girl. She always seem to remain positive even when stucked with a terrible boss.
I turned back to Jessica who was looking down at her meal picking on it.
"What happened?" I asked.
She looked back at me, her face now filled with sympathy. "Oh, you haven't heard, Lola was found naked and unconscious in Blue Villa hotel, the lobby. Not just that people are saying she went there for sex work and she got duped. Someone even posted her photos online. To make matters worse, her stupid manager had posted the link on the group chat. Now everyone knows about it. I am surprise you didn't know.'
"Kiara hardly checks those things," Gabriel intercepted as he shoved rice into his mouth.
I felt disgusted, wonder how I fell in love with him. Such terrible habits.
'When did this happen?"
"June the 17th." they both said the same time and my eyes widened.
I didn't listen to them as they both laughed at each other. Instead I focused in the date.
"What did you say the name of the hotel was again?"
I watched as their countenance changed, Gabriel clearing his throat and Jessica looking uncomfortable. She gave me a funny look as she replied, "Blue Villa. Why?"
That was it. June the 17th, 2015, the day I was reborn. The day I woke up in that room, drugged. The day I had a one night stand with Jason Cole.
I scoffed, leaning back against my chair.
I remember it. As clear as day.
"Scum."
"She is such a slut."
"Doesn't she have a boyfriend? What would her boyfriend say about her now. Women, such manipulative beings."
I gulped as I sat at the back of the cafeteria. I couldn't handle it. For the past two weeks, I had been facing constant demeaning comments from my coworkers.
My nudes were found online and no one knows who posted it. It was from the outing I went to with Jessica and Gabriel.
They had wanted tp hangout. All I remembered was having one drink. Next morning I woke up naked in an unfamiliar room with also a naked Jessica and a naked Gabriel.
No one knows what happened, we were ambushed. Yet only my nude photos were found online.
Gabriel didn't care. He knows the truth, thats why I love him. We would be getting married soon and I would resign from here. I would not have to look into the faces of these people and face their hate.
Splash!
Juice was poured straight to my face.
"Scum!"
I looked up to see my manager who was looking at me with spite. "We are a little company and you want to ruin that with your filth? I don't want to see you work as my assistant anymore. Get out!"
"Earth to Kiara?" Jessica snapped a finger in front of my face, snapping me out of that painful memory.
I blinked, refocusing on her cute, innocent round face.
The same face she plastered on her personal social media account, same face that had made her a rising star on all platforms.
The same face that had stolen my ideas, my business, and stolen my husband.
The same face that watched me die.
I wanted to rip it off.
The memory cut deep within me. I was destroyed and now I knew that the people who put me through that was non other than these two assholes in front of me.
Could they also have a hand in that of Lola? But...why?
Lola and me never had anything in common in my past life. We only met once at the hospital. She was pregnant and came for checkup and another time at a company conference but it was always a and I.
"Kiara? What's wrong with you?"
I forced a smile, my eyes cold despite the thoughts in my head. "Sorry what were you saying?"
She then giggled, the sound light and carefree, as if she was the most purest human of all.
"I was just asking about your skincare routine. You used to have patchy skin, didn't you? How did you go from that to looking like this. Please share tips."
She looked nervous, ever since I asked her to say the name of the hotel again.
Hmm, what did you do, Jessica?
"Yeah, Kiara," Gabriel chimed in, "What exactly changed. You use to be…"
"Excuse me." My voice was sharp as I cut him before he continued speaking and I stood up, grabbing my tray without sparing them another glance.
I could feel their eyes on me, but I didn't care.
I made my way across the cafeteria toward Lola's table. She was sitting alone, her head down, her shoulders hunched as if trying to make herself invisible. Her long dark hair hung in loose waves around her face, hiding the tears I knew were threatening to spill. She looked fragile, broken in a way I recognized all too well.
I stopped in front of her, placing my tray down gently on the table. "Hi, Lola," I said softly, giving her the kindest smile I could muster.
She looked up slowly, her eyes red and swollen from crying. Surprised to see me, "Who…who are you?"
Her question caught me off guard. Of course, she wouldn't remember me.
We hadn't interacted much in this life, not yet.
I forced a kind smile and sat down across from her, trying to put her at ease.
"I'm Kiara," I said softly. "We work in the same company."
Her swollen eyes blinked in confusion, and for a moment, I saw the deep sadness and fear hiding behind them. The same emotions I had felt when I was in her shoes.
"What do you want?" she whispered, her voice barely audible. "I don't have anything left. Everyone already knows…just leave me alone."
I leaned in, keeping my voice gentle. "I'm not here to judge you, Lola. I just wanted to see if you were okay."
Her lips trembled as she looked away, her fingers gripping the edge of the table. "No one cares. They're all talking about me like I'm some…some piece of trash. Like I did this to myself."
I swallowed hard, the memory of my own downfall still fresh in my mind. The whispers, the stares—everyone calling me scum, just like they were doing to her now. I had been there. I had suffered in silence, but Lola didn't have to.
"I know how you feel," I said quietly.
She shook her head, clearly not believing me. "How could you possibly know?"
I took a deep breath. "Because it happened to me, too."
Lola froze, her red-rimmed eyes locking onto mine, searching my face for any sign of a lie. I saw her skepticism, the disbelief that someone like me—someone who seemed to have it all together—could understand what she was going through.
But I did.
"It was a few years ago," I continued, keeping my voice steady. "Someone drugged me. I woke up in a hotel, naked, with no memory of how I got there. My photos were leaked, just like yours. People called me horrible things. They ruined me. And the worst part? The people I trusted, were the ones behind it."
Lola's eyes widened, and I could see the shock and fear settling in. "That…that can't be real. Why would they do that to you?"
I let out a bitter laugh, glancing back at Gabriel and Jessica, who were still looking at me as if I had gone mad.
"They did it because they could. Because they enjoyed watching me fall apart. Hence I totally relate with you."
She stared at me, her lips quivering. "How…how did you push through? For me, it feels too late."
"It's never too late," I said firmly. "I thought I had someone to hold on to to make me feel better after the situation but I was wrong. The only person that can make you pull thought this is…you."
Lola looked at me, her tears threatening to spill over again, but this time, there was a flicker of hope in her eyes. She didn't know me, but she could sense the determination in my voice. I wouldn't let her be another victim of Jessica and Gabriel's games.
If they had a hand in it.
Of if fate isn't playing a twisted game on me.
I sat there, watching her begin to process what I had just told her.
When suddenly a bang was heard.
The cafeteria door swung open behind us, and I glanced up to see the human resources manager walking in our direction. They were clearly coming for Lola, no doubt ready to reprimand or interrogate her, as if she hadn't been through enough.
I looked at what the manager was holding.
Orange juice.
Just like it was for me.
But not today.
I stood up, quickly moving behind Lola just as the HR manager approached.
Splash!
The sensation of cold liquid hit my back, soaking through my white shirt.