No One Loved Me

My dad was always busy.

Even on weekends, he was rarely at home.

When he returned home early, he was frequently furious with my mother and me.

He had been working hard outside, but when he returned home, he did not give people a break.

There were various reasons why my dad couldn’t rest.

The house is dirty, the side dishes are bland, my mother’s expression is depressed, and I don’t act cute like the neighbors’ daughters.

One day, my mother, who had been silently listening to my father’s yells, packed her belongings and left the house,

The following day was the weekend.

My father made several phone calls to my mother.

‘The person you are trying to reach is currently not available, please try again later…..’

Through the phone, I heard my mother’s strong determination.

My dad chuckled and looked at me. 

“……Oh. Do you want to spend time with your dad?”

As a child, I fell for my dad’s friendly voice.

My hair was tied in two clumsily, and I wore my favorite dress and pink stockings.

I also pulled out a pair of red shoes that I hadn’t worn in a few weeks when I went to kindergarten.

When my father and I arrived by car, there was a pretty older sister waiting for us.

“Hello? Is it…..you?”

Because I was shy, I hid behind my father’s legs.

“You must be polite to your friend.”

When I bowed, the sister smiled and covered her mouth with her hand.

“Her mother suddenly went to her parent’s house. I don’t have a place to leave her. I’m sorry.”

“No. it’s nice to be here like this, because you and I are husband and wife, and… I’m glad she’s our daughter.”

We drove to the amusement park in my dad’s car.

I picked up a cute animal headband and took a picture.

Dad spoke to the pretty older sister in a friendly tone and with a gentle expression I had never seen before.

We had a lot of fun then and then went to a family restaurant for a kids’ meal.

It was difficult to get my hands on the omurice with the small flag on it because it was a waste just to look at.

“…Ah. Would Unnie feed me?”

I was aware of the awkwardness of our interaction, but my dad was looking at me with satisfaction, so I opened my mouth gently.

Apparently, the restaurant was holding a family month celebration.

A member of the restaurant staff in a bright uniform approached us to take a photo.

“Kid, please get closer to your mom~”

“Mom?”

The older sister hugged me on the shoulder and laughed loudly. Dad encircled the older sister’s shoulders with his arms.

Click, the flash went off and the picture came out instantly.

The restaurant’s staff then handed it to me. I instinctively took it. 

After that, I returned home late at night. I saw my mother’s shoes in the hallway.

“Mom!”

“……Go inside.”

I hesitated before following my father’s strict orders and entering the room.

A scream erupted as soon as the door closed.

And I covered my ears with a pillow.

──・・✧・・──

“Madam Cecilia! Madam Cecilia!” 

I had a dream about the old days after a long time.

While looking back at those days, I realize it was the only time I felt happy.

“Madam Cecilia, are you awake?”

My mother and father divorced shortly after that.

It was because my mother had looked at the only picture I had in my bunny bag.

Then my mother presented my father with divorce papers after confirming the evidence of infidelity that she had suspected previously.

My dad signed it out without hesitation.

Did you think I would catch it? However my mother was shocked by that determination.

“Madam Cecilia, please wake up!”

In due course, I ended up living with my divorced mother.

My father remarried with the older sister I met before. And the two seem to have lived happily ever after.

Then my mother developed depression.

After my parents divorced, my depressed mother told me it was all my fault that her life had turned out this way.

“Madam Cecilia!”

When I heard the sound of someone’s voice interfering with my dream, I opened my heavy eyes.

“Look, Madam Cecilia has woken up!”

Who the hell was Cecilia, and why were they calling her name out loud, but I didn’t say anything to them.

“Madam Cecilia!”

An unfamiliar face suddenly came into my view.

She was an elderly woman with a gentle expression on her face.

“Excu-…..”

“Yes, Madam Cecilia, please say it!”

Why did you call me with a strange name?

I was puzzled, but I couldn’t lift a finger.

“You, go and call the Count. Madam Cecilia has woken up, go!”

Then someone was running fast.

“Madam Cecilia, do you recognize me? It’s me, your nanny!”

Nanny. It was not like I was in 19th-century modern Europe, and even in the midst of my confusion, I burst out laughing.

Anyway, I had to get up early in order to make it to my part-time job on time.

I was trying to stretch my elbows and raise my body.

“Madam has woken up.”

With a cold voice, the surrounding place fell silent.

“Count.”

“Count.”

It felt like someone on either side of me was kneeling.

“Cecilia.”

My head was shrouded in a shadow.

With his back bent down, a pretty handsome man was looking down at me.

When our eyes met, he chuckled his tongue.

“You look fine.”

“Count! Madam Cecilia has been poisoned! It’s a miracle she woke up safely!

“It’s not the first time this woman has consumed poison but are you still fooled?”

“I would have been grateful if she had died quietly. There is no room for a quiet place in the house because of all the fuss she made.”

“Count!”

“Alright. You’ve been begging me to come here, but the nanny should go back.”

The man who had finished speaking abruptly left the place.

A woman recognized as a nanny sobbed as she looked behind the man who was leaving.

I had no idea what all the fuss was about until I fell asleep.

Then I woke up at the crack of dawn and I had a strange dream that I couldn’t recall.

For a brief moment, I tried to remember what I had been dreaming about, then shook my head.

I was afraid about the part-time job that I missed without permission.

I fumbled for the cell phone next to the bed, thinking I should send a text message to the team leader.

“Huh?”

In the palm of my hand, I could feel the smoothness of the bed sheet.

It was a different level of smoothness from my blanket, which had been washed several times and was full of scratches and tears.

“What is this, no, where am I?”

I jumped out of the bed and a soft carpet was revealed beneath my bare feet.

When I first time saw such a place in my life, I looked around the place blankly.

“Let’s find my phone first.”

My part-time job required me to complete difficult tasks. All I had to do was receive the documents and type them into the computer, and the pay was decent compared to the intensity of labor.

Then I looked around, searching for my phone.

“Have I been kidnapped by a psychopath?”

Every corner in the room had antique furniture. It looked like the furniture of a European nobleman in the 19th century.

“This is not a kidnapping.”

Kidnapping me brings them no benefit as a criminal. I was an orphan with no parents to demand a ransom, and I was  a poor person who can’t even afford to pay my rent on time.

“Did they help me when I collapsed on the street?”

This is a much more plausible hypothesis.

With the help of a person with an unusual taste in interior design, I came close to disrespecting the benefactor.

I need to find my phone, meet the owner and say thank you. Then find the nearest bus stop and go home.

My heart, which had been pounding due to anxiety before, regained some stability after the situation was cleared up.

“The dressing table is big.”

I looked through every drawer but couldn’t find my phone.

I had to restrain myself from touching someone’s personal items on the dressing table, but now I can’t help myself.

I will apologize later, and I came closer to the dressing table.

“……Huh?”

An unfamiliar face in the vanity mirror is impersonating my actions.

“Is it still a dream?”

I pinched my thigh hard.

Ouch, it hurts. It didn’t seem that I was dreaming.

The curvy blonde haired woman looked at me with wide eyes.

“I think this is a dream.”

Even though I pinched my thighs until it hurts, it’s possible that I’m still dreaming. Just because I’m dreaming doesn’t mean I am not experiencing pain.

I attempted to make myself calm, but the reality in front of me remained unchanged.

My phone was no longer the problem. So the idea of ​​getting out of here became pressing.

I left the room reluctantly after opening the door.

“Madam Cecilia?”

As soon as I opened the door, I met a woman in a white apron.

She said, “Why didn’t you stay in your bed? The doctor said you still need more rest.”

Again, she called me Cecilia.

“Ce-Cecilia……”

“Madam Cecilia. Please go inside instead of doing this. Count will be upset if he finds this out.”

Who is the Count?

Is he the owner of this house, which is obsessed with not only the interior but also the theater of situations?

“Madam Cecilia, please. The count will be here soon, and he won’t like it when he finds that Madam Cecilia has left the room.”

The woman hurriedly tried to push me into the room.

I strengthened my feet to avoid being pushed.

“Wait, get out of my way. Thank you for the help, but I must return home now. I’ll pay this back later.”

“Home? Oh, you mean your parents’ house?”

This makes no sense. I haven’t even married yet, but who is my relative’s family?

“It’s my home. I have a part-time job in the morning, so I have to leave early.”

“Madam Cecilia.”

The woman sighed deeply.

“By the way, Lady Cecilia is Countess Linton. Dead or alive, this is Madam Cecilia’s house.”

The woman kept saying strange things the whole time.

I pretended to obey the woman, then suddenly turned around and ran.

“Agh, Madam Cecilia.”

As I jumped down two stairwells at once, I saw a large door.

I turned around thinking that was the front door.

“Madam Cecilia, please no!”

“Ugh!”

I was surprised to hear a woman’s voice coming from behind as I turned my head, then I bumped into someone.

“What’s going on?”

It’s him. It was only a few seconds, but his tone was cold to the bone and remained vivid in my memory.

“Count!”

The woman who had been following me immediately knelt down.

“Are you about to do something crazy?”

I was caught by this man.

The door was only a few steps away, but I couldn’t barely move because he’s clutching my arm so tightly.

“Let me go.”

Scratching his head, the man was irritated.

“Whether you die or go insane, Cecilia, do at least one thing right.”

I was led back to the room where I was desperately ruined by this man.