Nathalia’s POV
I silently answered a take-home activity for school when I was suddenly disturbed by my mother forcefully opening my bedroom door.
“Mom?” I called her, but she ignored me. She went straight to my closet and started grabbing my clothes, then pulled out a suitcase and placed it on the bed.
“What are you doing, Mom?” I asked, puzzled, as I approached her.
“We’re leaving. Get ready.” Her voice trembled with panic.
I furrowed my brow. I couldn’t recall any plans we had for today. Besides, it was already evening.
“Where are we going?” I followed her movements, trying to make sense of what she was doing. Despite not having any idea what was happening, I couldn’t help but feel anxious.
She paused for a moment from her rushed packing and faced me. I was taken aback when she tightly gripped both my shoulders.
“Nathalia, listen to what I will say, okay?”
I nodded even though I was still clueless about what was happening.
She took a deep breath before continuing, “We need to get out of here as soon as possible. Your father has enemies in his business who want to bring us down. So, we need to go far away because they are on their way here.” She looked at me intensely. “Do you understand me?”
At the age of eleven, I already understood what my mother meant. My father was a well-known and successful businessman, so ever since I was young, I knew about the rivals in our business who wanted to take us down. But I never thought it would come to this.
I nodded and smiled. “Okay, I’ll help you.”
We quickly packed my things into the suitcase. Once we finished, we rushed out of the room, and every step we took was swift. As I looked up, I noticed that we were surrounded by our guards.
I was used to seeing this kind of scene, but I couldn’t help but feel scared when I saw that some of them were holding guns.
I knew that they always carried guns, but it was the first time I saw all of them holding their weapons, poised to shoot at any moment.
As we were leaving the mansion, the sound of gunshots echoed around us, causing both me and Mom to dive to the ground. She held me tightly, covering my ears.
Despite the fear I felt, curiosity got the better of me. I peeked slightly and looked around. I almost screamed when I noticed some of our guards lying on the floor, bathing in their own blood. Meanwhile, others were still engaged in a fierce firefight.
What the hell is really happening? Is this all about the business rivalry?
I continued to watch what was happening around me when someone suddenly pulled me up. When I looked up, I saw the worried face of my father.
“Let’s go,” he said.
Mom nodded, standing beside me. As we made our way out, we were protected by the remaining members of our team.
But to my surprise, their faces started to blur.
We were safely getting inside the car. However, when I looked outside, I couldn’t help but cry as I saw, one by one, our guards falling and getting killed.
Mom hugged me tightly, trying to comfort me, but I couldn’t stop crying as I witnessed the horrific scene.
Dad quickly accelerated the car to leave the danger zone.
“Shit!” I heard Dad cuss.
I was about to look up when, suddenly, gunshots pierced through the silence of the night. Mom immediately leaned over me, searching for something under our seats.
My eyes widened in shock when she retrieved a gun from there. Without hesitation, she rolled down the window and peered outside before firing back at the pursuers.
What the hell? Since when did Mom learn to use a gun?
“Thalia! Stay down!” he yelled at me.
I immediately ducked my head as Dad shouted loudly. I held onto the front seat tightly as he drove recklessly.
A few minutes passed before the surroundings finally quieted down. I slowly lifted my head and quickly embraced Mom when she returned to her seat.
She looks tired and exhausted.
“It’s alright now, honey.”
I felt relieved when she gently caressed my hair.
“Where are we going now?” I asked my parents, sniffling.
“To the people we once turned our backs on but are truly trustworthy, my child. To the ones who are destined—”
Everything happened so fast. Out of nowhere, a van appeared from our right side, causing our car to flip over.
Despite the pain in my head and the blood gushing out, I couldn’t help but cry when I saw my parents hugging me tightly, seemingly lifeless.
“Mom! Dad!” I tried to wake them up, but they didn’t move.
Just as I was about to scream for help, I heard the forceful opening of a nearby door. Even though my vision was blurred from tears and the darkness of the surroundings, I couldn’t be mistaken about what I saw.
“A-Aries?”
He didn’t speak, but I was startled when he forcibly pulled me out of the car.
“Aries? What are you doing? Let go of me! Mom and Dad are still inside! We need to help them!”
I struggled against his grip, but he held on tightly. My heart raced as I saw a devilish grin appear on his face.
“Why would I help them? They didn’t follow the agreement. They are a big obstacle to our destined union. So, they deserve to vanish from this world,” Aries said coldly.
I became even more confused by what he said. “What do you mean?”
Since we turned ten years old, we have been aware of the agreement between our parents regarding us. Although I still didn’t fully understand the reason behind it, I knew that someday we were destined to be together.
“How did they become obstacles? Weren’t they the ones who planned—”
I was cut off when we stopped in front of a black car. Inside was his father, pretending to be sitting casually.
“Dispose of them. Make sure you do it cleanly.” Aries’ father gave an emotionless command to the men with him in the car.
I couldn’t believe what I heard. How could they do this? My parents trusted and welcomed them. If it weren’t for my father’s help, they might have been in a much worse situation.
I was about to protest when I heard a series of gunshots again. His men were alerted, and I took advantage of their panic to break free from Aries’ grasp.
But fate wasn’t on my side that night. In no time, I found myself lying on the pavement after being hit by Aries’ father’s car.
I heard Aries crying hysterically. I tried to move my body, but weakness overcame me.
I hoped it was just a dream. I prayed that when I woke up, I’d see Mom and Dad’s happy faces.
But if all of this was real, I wished to forget it all when I woke up. Along with everyone related to my family.
As my eyes were about to close, a blurry figure replaced the dark sky above.
“Nathalia!”
I was about to reach out my hand when the surroundings went dark again.
“Nathalia!”
I slowly opened my eyes, hearing his urgent call and feeling a slight shake on my shoulder.
I blinked, and Stephen’s concerned face came into focus.
“Are you okay? Does anything hurt? You were shouting and crying while sleeping! I was so fucking worried!”
I was about to reply when I heard the door open and something fall to the floor. My attention shifted, and I noticed my friends standing by the door.
“Thank God, you’re already awake! You scared us to death!” Mads rushed over to me, her face showing her concern.
“How are you feeling?” Damon asked.
Confused by their reactions, I furrowed my brows. Moreover, I realized I was in an unfamiliar room.
“What happened?”
“You drowned! You had a leg cramp earlier while we were in the sea. We’re sorry we didn’t notice it right away. If only we—” Harold stopped, his face filled with regret.
In an instant, memories of the incident flooded back into my mind. I almost forgot about it due to the disturbing dream.
It’s been a long time since I last dreamed of that tragic scene in my life. However, even now, the face of the person who helped me remains unclear, as does that of some of our former guards.
Moreover, it seems like I’ve forgotten more from my past than just him.
Besides Stephen’s secrets, I realized that I must retrieve my lost memories soon. There might be things I’ve forgotten from my past that could help me find Aries—the person who ruined my life.
I took a deep breath before looking at each of them. Concern and regret were evident on their faces.
I smiled at them. “Don’t worry. I’m fine now. Besides, none of you are to blame. There’s no one at fault here. So, don’t make those ugly faces.” I tried to make a joke to lighten the tension, but it didn’t seem to work.
“No! They’re all irresponsible! There were so many people around, but not a single one noticed you right away! What if I didn’t decide to check on you? God knows what will happen next!” Stephen walked back and forth, unable to keep still.
I sighed at his reaction. It seemed like smoke could come out of his nose at any moment.
“I’m really fine. It was an accident, and no one intended it. So, stop scolding them,” I said, trying to glare at him.
He didn’t say a word, but I was taken aback when he suddenly approached me and tightly held my hand.
“I almost lost you before. I just don’t want it to happen again,” he whispered.
I furrowed my brow at his words. What does he mean?
I was about to ask him when suddenly he turned his back and stormed out of the room.
I looked at my friends, all of whom avoided my gaze. Just what the hell happened?