Like the moon in the sky, just like sun lights up the sky with colourful daze of the bright morning sun penetration from the window.
Ann was born to a loving family. Her mother, Sarah, was a kind-hearted nurse, and her father, John, was a successful businessman. They lived in a cozy suburban home filled with laughter and warmth.
Tragedy struck when Ann was 10 years old. Her mother passed away from a sudden illness, leaving Ann and her father heartbroken.
John, struggling to cope with his loss, sought comfort in Alice, a woman he met through his business network. Alice was charming and elegant, with a daughter, Victoria, from a previous marriage.
Ann's father, eager to provide a stable family environment, married Alice after a whirlwind romance. However, Alice's true nature soon revealed itself.
Alice was manipulative and controlling, favoring her biological daughter, Victoria, over Ann. She constantly belittled Ann, making her feel unworthy and unloved.
As Ann grew older, the emotional distance between her and her father increased. He became increasingly absorbed in his business, leaving Ann vulnerable to Alice's cruelty.
*The Struggle*
Ann's struggles intensified when she turned 18. Alice convinced her father to cut her off financially, forcing Ann to fend for herself.
With no financial support, Ann had to
Drop out of college,Find menial jobs to make ends meet, Live in a small, cramped room in her father's house.
Despite these challenges, Ann held onto hope. She dreamed of escaping her miserable life and finding true love
Ann's experiences shaped her into,
a resilient and resourceful individual , a kind hearted person , longing for genuine connection and
a guarded person, fearing emotional vulnerability.
Now, at 22, Ann works at Smith & Co., struggling to make a living. Her encounter with the stranger (Tobias) sparks a glimmer of hope.
Ann's eyes fluttered open, greeting another dismal day. Her small, cluttered room was a reflection of her life – chaotic and suffocating. The faint scent of stale air and worn furniture clung to her like a bad omen.
She dressed hastily, the worn fabric of her clothes a reminder of her poverty. Downstairs, the kitchen was already filled with tension. Alice, her stepmother, stood by the counter, sipping coffee.
"Ann, get to work," Alice snapped, without looking up. "You're running late."
Ann grabbed her bag and headed out the door, the sound of Alice's disapproving sigh echoing behind her.
The city streets were alive with activity, but Ann's heart remained numb. She had lost her mother at a young age, and her father's subsequent marriage to Alice had only brought misery. Her stepsister, Victoria, was Alice's daughter from a past marriage , and Ann had always felt like an outsider.
As she walked to work, Ann wondered if this was all life had to offer – drudgery and disappointment.
*The Small Company*
Ann arrived at Smith & Co., a modest firm where she worked as an administrative assistant. Her colleagues were kind, but the pay was meager. She spent most of her day staring at spreadsheets, lost in thoughts of a better life.
At lunch, Ann sat alone in the cafeteria watching the world outside through grimy windows. Her phone buzzed with a text from her best friend, Rachel:
"Hey, Ann! How's it going?"
Ann hesitated, unsure how to respond. How could she explain the desperation creeping in, the feeling of being trapped?
"Hey, Rach. Just surviving," she typed, forcing a smile onto her face.
As the day drew to a close view, Ann packed her belongings and headed home, the weight of her circumstances threatening to consume her.
*The Unexpected Encounter*
As she walked, lost in thought, Ann collided with a stranger. Apologetic, she looked up to meet piercing blue eyes and chiseled features.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Ann exclaimed.
The stranger smiled, helping her gather scattered papers. "No harm done. Are you okay?"
For a fleeting moment, Ann felt like someone has seen through her pains, like this stranger understood her struggles.
"I'm fine, thank you," Ann replied, quickly regaining composure.
As they parted ways, Ann couldn't shake off the feeling that her life was about to change. As she arrived home she helplessly drop her bag and other files she came back with and lazily leaned back on the sofa.
On the sofa, Ann's mind was not at peace thinking of her encounter with the piercing blue eyes and chiselled man she met on her way back home in collaboration with what life as a motherless poor girl was making her to pass through. She relaxed on the sofa some minutes and went straight to the kitchen to check if there's any cooked food that she will eat because since morning it's only beans ball and bread that she snacked on at around 12:42pm that day that is the only thing that she has devoured. On her way to the kitchen she met her stepmother Alice who was already waiting for the incident to take place, staring at her like a moron,
"Good evening ma"Ann greeted as she walked straight to the kitchen,without expecting a good responds from her stepmother, cognizantly her stepmother mother barked at her, "where are going, have u made any meal and ur about to leave the house , just tell me !!!, Or is there anyone that the lifeless woman that has been settled with casket and resting under my feet you called your mother cooked for you" as all this word were fallen off from Ann's stepmother's
mouth with a hostile stare gaze. Straight away, when Ann heard her stepmother which she normally call BEAST in her heart described her mother as a lifeless woman that has been resting under her feet , Tears rolled down from her optic down to her cheeks, deliberately making her to lost her appetite at the moment.
She walked straight to her room, crying and later doze off after sobbing for minutes.