Growing up, my life was simple. My family was neither rich nor poor—we had just enough. My father had a stable job, and my mother was a housewife, always gentle and kind. Being their only child, I never lacked love, but I also knew that life wasn't as easy as it seemed for everyone.
Aren, on the other hand, lived in a completely different world. His family was wealthy—extremely wealthy. He was their only heir, born into privilege and opportunity. Everything about him screamed perfection, from the way he carried himself to the effortless way people admired him.
Then there was Lina. She, too, came from a rich background, but unlike Aren, she had a strong, confident presence that made people gravitate toward her. She was used to attention, used to standing in the spotlight. And somehow, that spotlight always seemed to shine right where I wanted to be.
I wasn't jealous of their wealth. I had never wished for a life of luxury. But standing next to them, I sometimes felt... small. Like I didn't belong in their world.
Maybe that's why I never found the courage to confess my feelings to Aren. Because deep down, I knew I wasn't someone who could stand beside him.
Still, that didn't change how I felt.
Late at night, lying in bed, I would wonder—if I had been born into a different family, if I had been someone extraordinary, would Aren have looked at me differently?
But life doesn't work that way.
I was Miya, the girl who loved silently, the girl who stood in the background while others took center stage.
And no matter how much I wished otherwise, I knew that some things were never meant to change.