????SHE’S NOT A CINDERELLA????
????A Cinderella doesn’t have to be a princess????
✍️ Written By Precious Pinky✍️
????Chapter Thirty-Six [36]????
Theme: I will forget you…????.
????Ruby’s Pov????
“Do you really believe that video?” Cherry asked me for the umpteenth time.
I didn’t say anything. I just kept staring at the floor as if it was the most interesting thing in the whole universe.
I was out of words! Hell, I don’t know if I even have the voice to talk!
Should I believe the video…?
If I say, I shouldn’t then I’m deceiving myself because it was clearly Malcolm’s face in the video. It was his voice.
But then again….Malcolm never fu-cked me. Yeah, we almost had se-x but we never did.
He never forced himself on me.
He listened to me and respected my decision of not having se-x until marriage.
I was confuse.
I don’t know what to believe.
Why is all this happening to me? Why does my life have to be this messy and annoying?
“Ruby?” Cherry touched me on my arm and that effect brou-ght me out of my trance. “You are really thinking too much, Ruby.”
I sighed and stood up to my feet and walked over to the window. I stare out at it and saw paparazzi standing in front of the compound.
I can’t even go out freely again!
“What do you expect me to do, Cheers? My life is just upside down.” I backed away from the window and went to sit down on the couch.
Cherry sat down beside and wrapped her arms around my shoulders and pulled me against herself.
My head rested on her chest. (Or bre-ast either of it.)
“Everything would be okay.” She whispered into my hair.
Will it?
Will everything ever be okay?
Will I get my freedom back?
Will I get my life back?
Will the world forget about my sins and move on?
Will Malcolm ever be mine?
Tsk, everything can never be okay!
Never!
“Do you believe the video?” She asked me again.
I’ve been trying to avoid this question but seems like I can’t.
“I…I don’t know.” I answered honestly.
She pulled away from me and held my face in between her palms and stared de-eply into my eyes.
“What do you think of that video, Ruby? Do you think Mal could say a thing as mean as that? Just tell me what you think?”
What do I think?
Well, that’s the problem! I don’t think! I just do things rashly.
If only I’d think! If only I had reasoned, then i wouldn’t have done something as stupid as going out with Malcolm when I know fully well that he was dating Kara!
But what annoys me most is that, I don’t seem to regret what we shared in Boston. in fact I love every one of the memory I shared with Malcolm as his girlfriend.
I look down at my lap, breaking the stare between me and Cheery and shook my head.
Why I was shaking my head is Something I don’t seem to understand.
But I knew I was fighting the tears.
I can’t be with Malcolm.
I might not believe everything I’m that video but Mr Joe was still right…
⏱️ FLASHBACK⏱️
“can we be left alone?” Mr Joe nodded his head to Cherry who stood beside me.
I nod my head and asked Cherry to leave us but before she left, she had given Mr Joe a , hurt-my-friend-and-you-are-dead! look.
God, I love my best friend.
she ki-ssed me on my cheek lightly and left Mr Joe and i in the living room. Alone.
“please sit.” I offered.
He nods his head and sat down on the single couch while I sat down.on the couch from him.
He scowled at me. “What did I say to you, Miss Darlings?”
“What did you say to me…?” I asked him.
Honestly, i can’t remember.
“Didn’t I warn you against revealing your true identity to Malcolm? I told you it would be very bad if he gets to find out who you were!”
oh…
I didn’t say anything.
“Malcolm is suffering right now because of you! Everyone wants him out of the band and you of all people should know that Malcolm can’t live without music. Music was his life! But he can’t sing again if he be with you!”
I gulped down.
I was still speechless. I still some know where this conversation was heading. I just listened.
“Watch this.” I handed his phone over to me.
It was a video of the fans asking Malcolm to leave the band.
I could feel the tears threatening to fall. my hands were shaky as I held unto the phone for dear life.
My poor Malcolm…
He was going all throu-ghthis pain because of me!
He would be forced to choose in between his career and me and knowing fully well that he would choose me…what will be become of his career.
what will become of his dream?
I clenched the phone tightly as the tears spilled out.
“You and Malcolm’s love is nothing but a tragedy. One of you is bond to get hurt, Miss Darlings!” He say.
Tsk, and i was thought that Kara would be the one to get hurt.
I had been daydreaming all those times.
“Hell, Mal never even loved you!” He say.
Wait, what?!?
I look up at him wide eyes.
What did he just say?
Malcolm don’t love me?
But…no.
Mr Joe was just this all this just to get stuff into my head.
Malcolm loves me and i was damn sure of it.
And thinking back to those days, Malcolm never claimed to love me and I in the other hand never told him my true feelings.
“Here.” Mr Joe handed another phone to me. It was a video of Malcolm.
“…Yes, Ruby was just my fu-ckbuddy. She never meant anything to me. Hell, i only just used her to satisfy my need.”
I threw the phone back to Mr Joe as I started crying.
My chest felt heavy.
I couldn’t breath well no matter how ha-rd I try.
Did Malcolm really think of me as that?
But we never had se-x. Yes, we almost had se-x but didn’t!
so…so….
I couldn’t think of anything right now.
“You and Malcolm relationship have all been lies. But you guys can’t keep deceiving yourself and keep hurting yourself, Miss Darlings. It’s time to make things right.”
⏱️ FLASHBACK ENDS⏱️
That video might be fake even though it looked very real but…. Malcolm and I can’t keep deceiving ourselves.
This relationships wasn’t good for us. The whole world are against it. No one wants us to be together.
And who knows….maybe what Malcolm felt for me was lust and not love.
“Malcolm and i can’t be together.” I suddenly blurted out.
“What?” Cherry choked out in surprise.
“Our relationship can never work out. Cheers. The whole world are against us. And look, they are all requesting Malcolm to leave the band and that’s because of me! And who knows… maybe we aren’t meant to be… that’s why we got separated from the very beginning.”
“Are you saying all this because of the video?” Cherry questioned.
“No. But I’m saying all this because i want to live in the truth and escape the darkness. I can’t keep hurting the man i love.”
????????????????????????????????????????
It was late in the evening.
Cherry was preparing dinner while Tyson, James, Vincent and i were playing a video game.
Vincent and i were team while James and Tyson were teammates.
All thanks to them, I got to push away my bad luck. And the bad things happening to me since I returned from Boston.
Speaking about bad things….
I haven’t told anyone yet about ‘that man.’
I didn’t even tell Cherry.
I watched Tyson as he played the game with a huge grin on his face.
He was happy.
There was no sign that he missed his father or anything.
He doesn’t need him.
I don’t need him.
Jennifer doesn’t even need him.
We don’t need him.
He was nothing but our past and should be treated as one.
Because pasts are to be forgotten.
I wish.
Oh…yeah, that reminds me….I have to speak with Jennifer concerning what she said about paying rents or so.
That girl does nothing but agitate me.
isn’t she seeing what’s going on in the world?
Does she hate me this much that she didn’t even show up to see how I was feeling?
She doesn’t even.care whether I die or not!
She was just like ‘that man.’
Like father, like daughter!
But de-ep down, I wish Jennifer had showed up to see how I was holding up with what’s going on.
I wish she cared.
God, I miss her so much!
I shouldn’t have disown her.
I still love my sister.
But the stubborn me won’t admit it!
“I will be right back.” I said to the guys and walked over to the kitchen.
I grabbed a cup and poured some water into it.
“Hey. How is the game going?” She winked.
I rolled my eyes. “Awfully awful.” We both started laughing.
Even though the whole world were against me…I still have the people I love by my side.
“That reminds me…I have something to tell you, Ruby.” Cherry began.
“shoot.” I say as I sipped at my water.
“Jennifer came over.” That choked me as I started coughing. “I should have waited until you finished drinking the water.” She say as she came to stand behind me and started patting me on my back.
“what did you just say?” I questioned after I had gotten myself.
“Jennifer came by before you arrived from Boston. She came to check after you.”
“Wait, what?”
“Jennifer as changed. She was crying. She blamed herself for the pain you are pa-ssing throu-gh…you and your sister need to talk, Ruby.”
“No. i don’t want to have anything to do with her.” The stubborn me stated. When de-ep down I really want to see my sister and talk to her again.
I fu-cking miss her!
“Do you think Tyson wants this?! Do you think he’s okay with that fact that his sisters hate themselves? Hell, do you think Tyson doesn’t even want his father back!”
His…his father?
Was she talking about the man i bumped into a week ago at Boston?
Was she talking about the man i warned never to show his face to me again?
Was she talking about that same man?
“Cherry….” I was cut off with the ringtone of her phone.
She sighed as she walked over to the counter and snatched the phone off it.
She looks down at the caller ID and suddenly her eyes wide-ned.
She looks up at me in total shock.
I scrunched up my face at her and was about to leave the kitchen… maybe she was waiting for me to leave before she answers her call.
I was already half way out the door when she said.
“The call is for you.”
????????????????????????????????????????
I had snuck out of the house and stayed out of sight from the paparazzi.
God, I don’t know when I became a fu-cking celebrity!
I walked down the lonely path and finally came to stand at the over pa-ss.
This place brou-ght back memories.
Happy memories of Malcolm and I.
God, I can’t believe I will get to see Malcolm.
Yeah, turns out that the call happen to be for me.
It was Malcolm who had called.
He requested to meet up with me here.
I couldn’t refuse so I accepted.
And besides I have something very important to tell him.
I looked down at the cars driving back and forth under the overpas-sas I waited for Malcolm to show up.
Jennifer’s name suddenly pop into my head.
Was she really sorry for everything she had done?
Does she want to be with us again?
Mom had asked me not to give up on Jennifer before she pa-ssed out…was it be because she knew a time like this would come?
Was I ready to forgive my sister?
⏱️ Do you think Tyson is happy at the fact that his sisters hate each other? Hell, do you think Tyson doesn’t want to be with his father?⏱️
Cherry’s words rung in my head.
Was I being selfish in making decisions for Tyson?
“Gem.”
Wait, Gem?
I look by my side and came face to face with Malcolm.
He was grinning at me.
He had bags under his eyes. His hair were looking so unkempt under the face cap that he had worn to hide his identity from the world.
He was looking so stressed out.
It looks like Malcolm haven’t slept for days.
He was indeed suffering.
Our love will do nothing but hurt us.
But that is if we ever loved each other!
“Hey.” I breath out, looking away from him as I went back into looking at cars.
“How have you been?”
“If I say great then you will know that I’m lying because obviously, i don’t look great.”
He chuckled.
fu-ck, how I miss that chuckle of his.
How I miss looking at that cute face of his.
“How about you?” I ask now.
He shrugged. “Good?”
“That’s a clear lie, you know that right?”
We both started laughing.
“I’m sorry you are going throu-ghall this because of me.” He began. “But Gem, I have no regret in having a relationship with you. And i don’t care if the whole world are against us… i still want to be with you.” He say.
I could see the sincerity in his eyes.
That video were totally fake. Maybe it was real but I’m sure some parts had been edited out.
I could see the love in Malcolm’s eyes. He doesn’t need to say it out because his eyes were already doing the confession.
But his career….
His dream…
If he chooses me over his career, won’t he regret it one day?
“But your fans…they are requesting you leave the band or else you go back to Kara.”
“Well, I don’t care. If being with you means giving up on my dream then I’m fine with it.” He cupped my face in between his palms as he looked de-eply into my eyes.
Well, that’s the problem!
He would give up on his dream because of me.
I don’t want that…
And besides, there’s no way we can ever be happy in the relationship.
“No.” I suddenly say.
“No?”
“No, Malcolm. This is foolish. We being together is foolish and stupid! we can’t be together, Mal.” I say, while taking his hand away from my face and creating a distance between us.
“What?” His face fell.
“Malcolm, we can’t keep deceiving ourselves! We can’t keep acting to be in love when we clearly don’t love each other!”
“What?”
“What we shared in Boston were nothing but lies and pretense!” God, I can’t believe I was saying all this but i have to. I don’t want him to give up on his dream because of me!
“What are you saying, Gem?” He questioned as he took a step closer towards me.
I took a step back, backing away from him.
“You never loved me.” I point out.
This hurt like a bit-ch !
“But I do love you. fu-ck, I love you, Gem. I love you so much and that’s why I want to choose you over them. Because I love you!” Malcolm loves me. He loves me! He just said that with his own mouth. I should be happy. Hell, I’m happy but we can’t still be together. We can’t. “And I know you love me too, Gem. You live me, right?”
Hell, yes!
I love you so much, Malcolm.
I love you with all my heart.
In fact, I’ve started loving you since that sto-re room incident.
I was going to say that. In fact I wanted to say that but I couldn’t.
“I never said those words to you, Malcolm.” I spat. “Focus on your career and stop chasing a girl who never loved you.”
“You are joking, right?” He voice cracked as he said that. Wait, was Malcolm going to cry?
“I will forget about you, Malcolm.”
*
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#TBC.