Ruby ran like her life depended on it, the sound of shouting reporters and camera flashes fading as her only focus became escape. Her legs ached, lungs burned, but she kept going. Everything was falling apart.

Ahead, her car came into view. Her salvation. She fumbled for her keys as she neared it, her hands trembling from the adrenaline and panic coursing through her. The reporters' voices grew louder again. They were catching up.

She slammed into the car, yanked the door open, and jumped inside. Her fingers shook as she jammed the key into the ignition.

The engine roared to life, and without looking back, she slammed her foot on the gas. The tires screeched, and she sped off, the wind whipping through the half-open window as she gripped the steering wheel with white-knuckled hands.

The city blurred around her as she drove, not even sure where she was going, only knowing she needed to get as far away as possible. The reporters' accusations still rang in her ears, and her pulse hadn't slowed down. Her breath was shaky, uneven, like she was suffocating under the weight of everything.

Her eyes became blurry because of the tears. She tried to hold it in but it kept coming. She had done nothing but be good. But the further she drove, the more she realized there was nowhere to run. Nowhere she could hide from what Sonia and Catherine had done.

Her phone rang, vibrating in the seat like a ticking time bomb. She stared at the screen, dread coiling in her chest. She already knew who it was. With a deep, shaky breath, she swiped to answer, pressing the phone to her ear.

"You are such an embarrassment," her mother's voice seethed through the speaker, dripping with venom. "If you wanted to be a whore, at least you could've been more careful keeping it a secret. Why are you so useless?"

Her words hit ruby like a slap. Her throat tightened, but she forced herself to respond. "Mum, please, believe me. The news is fake—"

"Don't you dare call me your mum," she spat. "God forbid it. I could never have such a worthless person as her daughter. You were finally useful as a model, bringing money into this house. Now look at you—just a disgrace. Can you imagine what people are saying about us? You better fix this mess, or we'll disown you for good."

Each word felt like a knife twisting in her gut. Her stomach churned; her heart shattered. All she had ever done was try to make them proud.

Her hands clenched around the wheel, her throat tightening as she fought back tears. "I tried so hard… I've done everything for you. Why can't you believe me?"

Then, her father's voice came through, cold and detached. "I regret ever having you as our daughter. You should have never been born"

"Why can't you be more like your sweet sister? Catherine is the only one that brings good fortune to this family."

"Are you for real mom?" Ruby's voice cracked, her anger mingling with the pain in her chest..

"I told you not to ever call me your mom, foolish girl!"

"I've sacrificed so much… given you everything. I have done nothing but tried to make you both proud. I have been bringing money into this family. Why can't you believe me?! What haven't I done for you guys?"

"You dare talk back to us. I told you this girl is bad luck. We should have abandoned her when we had the chance." Her mother said.

A hollow ache settled in Ruby's chest, "Please…you don't mean that, Mum."

"We mean every word," her father's voice was a merciless blade. "Consider yourself disowned. We're done with you."

"Dad… please, don't say that. Why won't you believe me?" Ruby couldn't hold in her tears

"I'm not your dad," he growled. "I'll never be. You've ruined everything. People are mocking me for raising such a disgrace, a prostitute. I never want to see your face again."

The line went dead.

The silence after the call was deafening. The phone slipped from her hand, landing on the seat with a dull thud. Her chest ached with a hollow, crushing pain.

Tears spilled down her cheeks, but she couldn't hold them back anymore. All the years of working so hard, of trying to be enough—wasted. They never saw her, not as their daughter, not as anyone worthy of love.

A blaring horn jolted her back to reality.

"Watch where you're going, stupid!" a driver yelled as he passed, his words only adding to her sinking feeling of despair.

She reached for the brake, trying to pull herself together, but her foot slammed down to no effect. Her heart skipped a beat and the car sped faster.

"No…no...no…Please this can't be happening," She said, her voice laced with fear and desperation as she kept slamming on the breaks.

She kept turning the wheel, as she slammed on the break, but the car kept speeding up.

A message suddenly popped on her phone, she took a quick look and color drained from her face.

[We wish you rot on the other side]

It was a message from Cathrina. Not only did they frame her but they want her dead? Her life flashed before her eyes. All her years of trying to please everyone hoping to be accepted. All those years of chasing love from people that never saw her.

She finally regretted it all. They would rather let her die than to start over. The road ahead was a blur as she fought to keep the car steady, dodging oncoming vehicles. Every second felt like an eternity.

She yanked the wheel, narrowly avoiding a truck, but the car spun out of control, tires screeching as it careened off the road and hit a wall.

BOOM.

The explosion tore through the air, sending waves of heat rolling over Ruby, blistering and unforgiving. The acrid stench of burning gasoline filled her lungs, sharp and suffocating, making her cough and gasp, but the flames seemed to steal even that shallow breath.

Her eyes stung, the searing brightness of the fire blinding her, swallowing the world in an orange and red haze that danced, relentless and all-consuming. The taste of smoke clung to her tongue, thick and bitter, coating her throat as if the fire itself was clawing its way inside her.

Her tears dried instantly, the heat evaporating them before they could fall, leaving only raw, scorching pain etched on her cheeks. She slumped forward, her forehead resting against the steering wheel, barely aware of the gritty, metallic taste of her own blood on her lips.

The seat beneath her was unbearably hot, and the leather burned through her clothing, the sharp smell of melting fabric mingling with the intense, nauseating odor of scorched metal.

"I can't accept this… I did nothing wrong," her mind screamed, though the words never left her lips.

Her voice was gone, trapped within her as if her very will to speak had been snatched away by the flames.

A desperate plea surged through her, barely more than a whisper in her thoughts. 'I want to live… I want to live… please… I don't want to die…'

But even her thoughts felt strangled, smothered by the smoke and heat closing in around her.

As her strength ebbed, and her vision faded, memories clawed their way into her mind. Faces, voices, people who had turned their backs, who had twisted the knife. Her chest ached—not just from the suffocating smoke, but from the years of betrayal, of being dismissed, overlooked, used.

'Why are they living in comfort while I suffer like this?' The thought was a poison, bitter and insistent. 'That should not be. THEY MUST PAY!! THEY MUST!!'

She felt the darkness encroaching, her body surrendering to the flames, but her final thought burned hotter than the fire.

With that last burst of hatred and regret, Ruby succumbed, her soul swallowed by the consuming blaze, her final wish etched into the night.