Servant

Chapter 35

"Please! It'll only take a minute." She pushed, and the woman bit her lip. I secretly grabbed a sharp pair of scissors for protection and nodded to the woman.

If she tries anything, these scissors or going in her eyes.

The maid sighed and looked at Petra. "Just a minute." Then, after both maids left, me and Petra awkwardly stared at each other in silence as the door shut.

Then she approached me. I tensed up and turned to look at the mirror as she got closer. She stopped right behind me and locked eyes with my reflection."So... you're getting married." She started awkwardly. I slowly nodded before admiring the tiara in its glass case."I was nervous when they thought I was the heir. Are you?" She asked, and again, I nodded.

Then she growled under her breath and took in a gulp of air before exhaling. "Can I just cut to the chase?" I nodded. "When I was a little girl, my mom was a maid of the royal family, and she took pride in her job and people said she was the sweetest person they'd ever met. But when she came home..." she trailed off as I heard her sniffle the slightest bit, and I turned my body around to face her, confusion in my face."To put it simply, she was abusive. Really, really, abusive. I wasn't planned, and I just happened. She hated me for it because her life was put on hold just to take care of a baby she didn't want. I was a mistake, apparently. My father was a drunkard, so he could never step in for me, but thank Maria he didn't join her. She would hit me, scratch me, yank my hair, force me to clean and whip me if I didn't do as she ordered. I remember on my thirteenth birthday she forced me to stick my hand in the fireplace while a fire was going. She was horrible." I felt my eyes start to water at her words, but she pretended not to notice.

"But Mr Smith... he was so kind to me. He stood up for me and looked after me. He was the closest thing to a parent I ever had. He played with me, cooked for me, and treated the wounds my mom gave me. He may not seem like it to you, but he is actually one of the sweetest people I've ever met. I'm guessing he was cruel to you because he was forced to take care of you, and kids on the streets are seen as embarrassing to us maids and servants." I bit my lip, and she kept going. "And then... you were there. You took up all his time, and he couldn't do anything but take care of you, and in the process... he seemed to forget about me." She softly smiled at the floor, looking undeniably hurt by the fact.

I wanted to reach out for her and hug her, but I held myself back."Anyways, my mom never stopped hurting me, and eventually, dad left. He didn't even leave a note or anything, just one day we woke up and he wasn't in the house, or in Shiganshina for that matter. Mom's beatings got worse. She blamed me for it. All of it." Her bottom lip quivered and she took a deep breath to compose herself. "Then, one day, in the middle of winter, I ran out of the house after she had beaten me senseless, and curled up into a ball at the edge of the castle gates. And then someone saw me and helped me. It was Levi." She paused and sat down on the floor. "He clothed me, got an enchantress to treat my wounds, and all he asked in return was for me to play with him for a day. We had so much fun, but then I left. I know it seems childish, but back then, I quickly started to fall in love with him." I gulped as she continued. "So when I started to notice how you made him flustered, and how he warmed up to you so fast, I was so unbearably furious that I took all my anger out on you. Not only that, but I only started bullying you because of how you took Mr Smith away from me without even meaning to. I felt like I was completely left behind and that no one would even care if I left. It was so hard, and I was just a kid... I was so mad that I just would hurt you in any way I felt necessary to cope with my pain... you just finally got everything you wanted... but then I got what I wanted. Even though it was only for a week, I've never been happier. I finally got to marry the only man I loved, and when I saw you watching us from the ballroom doors, I couldn't help but want to rub it in your face." She paused and then she looked up at me, tears streaming from her glistening eyes.