Emily stared blankly at her friend's house. It was small, cozy, and well furnished, the kind of life she had imagined for herself. Not overly rich, but comfortable.
That life felt like a ghost now, stolen by a mountain of debt. Is she has known back then, she wouldn't have begged her parents to send her to the top culinary school in country L. What was the point of a world class certificate if she couldn't even use it.
Emily approached the gate. Mia had been her inseparable childhood friend, the only person she could trust with her struggles.She has lost counts of how Mia had helped her with her family crisis. With money, food, clothes, anything at all without her paying back. And this time she's here to ask for more just to have peace at home. She pushed the door open, moving silently, intending to surprise her friend.
Instead, she heard laughter.
"I've got Mike wrapped around my fingers," Mia chuckled, her voice dripping with malice. "That Emily... she thinks she's still married to him. She has no idea what's coming. I had to convince Mike to stop her from cooking home meals, she was showing off too much."
Emily froze, her heart hammering against her ribs. She couldn't believe her ears.
"Well, I don't care if she suffers and dies in that house," Mia continued, her tone dismissive. "I wasn't the one who forced her parents to borrow that money for her tuition. She's nothing but a beggar now."
The sound of a phone vibrating filled the room.
"Hold on babes, Mike is calling," Mia said, answering with a syrupy sweet voice. "Hello, Mike?"
A moment later, Mia grinned. "Don't worry, I've told Joy and Mona they can come with your parents this evening. A family dinner date sounds perfect."
Emily couldn't take it anymore. She turned and fled, not caring if Mia saw her or not. This was the same person she shared her secrets with, the same person who had watched her sacrifice her assets to make ends meet. While she rotted away like a slave, serving a family that despised her, they were busy planning dinners with her husband's mistress.
How could life be so unfair? She wondered, her chest tightening. What did she ever do to deserve all this?
Emily dragged her weak, trembling body through the heat of the afternoon sun. She moved like a ghost, barely aware of the path until she found herself standing before her parent's house. It was a small, weather-worn structure built near the edge of the woods, looking as though it might surrender to the elements at any moment.
She had once dreamed of being the daughter who would lift her family out of this poverty, the one to change their lives forever. But as she stood there now, unkept and broken, she realized she was no better off than when she had left.
"Emily, my dear?"
The warm, soothing voice came from behind her. Emily turned to see her mother standing there, her eyes widening in shock and then softening with instant, motherly recognition.
The wall Emily had built around her heart finally crumbled. She couldn't help it. She stretched out her arms toward her mother, weeping like a lost child. That hug was the only thing she needed in the world right now.
"It's okay, my child, it's okay," her mother whispered calmly, stroking Emily's hair as the girl's tears fell freely.
Inside, her father's reaction was an explosion of grief and fury.
"How dare those bastards treat my daughter this way!" He yelled. He dropped a plate of pork onto the dinning table, his face twisted with anger as he paced the small room, his fists clenched so tight his knuckles turned white.
"Emily, my dear, we are so sorry," her mother whispered, her own eyes filling with tears. "You are going through all this because of us."
"Don't blame yourself mama, nobody planned for all this to happen." Emily said softly. For the first time in over a year. She felt a sense of ease. Despite the poverty, she knew these were the only people on earth she could truly rely on.
Her father stopped pacing and pulled a chair out for her. "Emily, eat up. Look at you, you're so thin," he said, his voice thick with emotions as he piled her plate with rice and pork.
"Thank you, papa," Emily said, glancing between her parents. "But there's something I need to tell you both...I don't want to be married to Mike anymore. I'm leaving him for good."
"That's right," her father said, his voice cracking as he tried to hold back his tears. "Don't live another day with those heartless beings. I don't care if I go to prison for the debt, my daughter is not going to suffer while I'm still alive."
He looked away, his heart heavy with the realization that he had failed to protect his only child from a year of misery.
As evening approached, Emily felt a new sense of resolve. Her father offered to accompany her back to the Hordling house to gather the rest of her things, but seeing his state of anger, she knew she had to go alone. She wanted to end this chapter of her life peacefully, but firmly.
She arrived at the house, and as expected, it was a total mess. She remembered they were all supposed to be getting ready for their "family dinner date."
"What took you so long, Emily?" Mrs Erica's raging voice filled the house. "Is this how your mother raised you? To neglect the needs of your family?"
Emily smiled. So now they're family? When it was time for her to be their slave, they were family. They probably thought she had come back with money after spending the full day outside.
"Where is the money?" Sir Lucas's voice boomed.
"What money, Dad?" Emily asked, feigning ignorance.
"Don't play dumb with me. You went out to work today, didn't you? So where is the money from the work!" Sir Lucas demanded, stretching out his right arm.
"I didn't go to work, Dad. I went to my parents ," she said calmly, walking toward the room she shared with Mike to begin packing her things.
"Don't make me angry, Emily! I clearly told you to go_"
"Is there any need for the money?" Emily interrupted,, looking him straight in the eyes. There was no fear in her gaze anymore, no guilt, nothing. These people had literally labeled her a fool, and it all ended today. "You're all going out for a family dinner date at Mia's, aren't you?"
"Of course we're going! She has done so much more than your incompetent ass!" Mona barked from the other room.
Emily didn't bother saying another word. She packed the few small belongings she had and set them by the door.
"And where do you think you're going? You and that wretched family of yours still owe us. You're not going anywhere without paying every single cent!" Mona yelled, grabbing Emily's hand to stop her from walking out.
Emily had no intention of arguing. She gently, but firmly removed Mona's hand from hers.
"My one year living with you people is more than enough to pay off my parents debt," Emily said, gritting her teeth. "Who paid for yours and your sister's tuition fees? Who pays your mother's medical bills? Who pays the house rent and the utility bills in this house? Who worked like a dog day and night to make sure you were all alright? I did."
She picked up her bag. "So, I'm going to take my bag and walk out of here peacefully, because I am dead-pissed right now."
She didn't wait for a reply. She began walking out, then stopped and turned one last time.
"And please tell your brother... I'll be sending the divorce papers soon."
And like that, she walked into her freedom, or so she thought.