Orla:
Back at Naraâs apartment, the dayâs events weighed heavily on me. The horses, the stables, the peopleâit was all so overwhelming. Nara was still at work, staying late to handle whatever crisis had popped up, leaving me alone in her apartment. It felt strange to have so much time to myself, especially after such an intense day.
I wandered into the bathroom, ready to wash off the dust and sweat. The hot water from the shower was a welcome relief, soothing my tense muscles and calming my racing thoughts. For a few minutes, I just stood there, letting the steam wrap around me, hoping it would ease the weight of everything piling up lately. It had been weeks since that dayâweeks since Iâd answered any calls. Iâd only managed a few curt texts to my parents, assuring them I was safe and needed space. I hadnât even begun to figure out what Iâd say to them, let alone Logan. At first, their constant barrage had been overwhelming. But as the days passed, the calls slowed, and the texts trickled down to almost nothing. Maybe, just maybe, theyâd finally decided to leave me be.
When I finally stepped out of the shower, the cool air hit my skin, making me shiver. I wrapped a towel around myself and moved to the sink, wiping a hand across the fogged-up mirror. My reflection appeared, and for a brief moment, it was just me. Wet hair plastered to my face, cheeks flushed from the heat of the shower, and eyes that looked a little too tired for comfort. I sighed, feeling the weight of everything once again.
But as I leaned in closer, something changed. The reflection shifted, almost imperceptibly at first. I blinked, thinking maybe it was just my eyes playing tricks on me. But then I saw herâthe empress, the queen, regal and haunting, staring back at me from the mirror. She looked so much like me, yet so different, dressed in elaborate robes of crimson and gold, her hair adorned with jewels and that glimmering lotus banyeo.
My heart started to pound as I realized it wasnât just a trick of the light. She was there, as real as I was, her expression filled with a kind of fear that chilled me to the bone.
This time, she moved.
Her head turned, slowly, as if she were looking at something beyond me. The fear in her eyes deepened, and I felt it too, creeping into my chest, making it hard to breathe. My feet felt like they were glued to the floor, unable to turn and see what she was looking at, even though every instinct screamed at me to run.
Suddenly, the buzzing of my phone shattered the silence, pulling me out of the trance. I gasped, nearly dropping the towel as I stumbled back from the mirror. The empress vanished, leaving only my own pale, frightened face staring back at me.
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I grabbed the phone with trembling hands, not bothering to check the caller ID. âHello?â My voice was shaky, barely above a whisper.
There was a brief pause, then a voice I hadnât wanted to hear again.
âOrla, nice of you to finally answer.â
Logan.
His voice sent a new wave of dread through me, colder and more real than the apparition Iâd just seen. I cursed at myself for automatically picking up. So much for thinking he had finally stopped contacting me. The last thing I wanted was to hear from him, especially now.
âWhat do you want?â I forced out, trying to keep my voice steady.
âWhat do I want?â he sneered, his tone dripping with venom. âI want to know why the hell you ran off like that. You think you can just leave me and everything we built together without a word? Do you have any idea what youâve done?â
What I've done? My mind flashed back to that day, to the moment I opened the closet door and saw himâLoganâpressed up against Anna, his hands roaming where they shouldnât have been. The way heâd looked at me, not with guilt, but with⦠annoyance, as if I was the one in the wrong for catching him. It was a scene Iâd replayed in my mind over and over again, each time cutting deeper than the last. The betrayal, the disbelief, the crushing weight of realizing that everything weâd built had been a lie.
My hands started to shake, and I gripped the phone so tightly I was afraid it might break. âLogan, I donât owe you anything,â I said, my voice firmer than I felt. âWeâre done. You made sure of that.â
âYou donât get to decide when weâre done, Orla,â he spat. âYouâre going to regret this. Mark my words.â
Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes, but I refused to let them fall. I wasnât going to let him get to me, not again. âYou donât control me, Logan. Not anymore.â
He laughed, a low, dismissive sound that sent a chill through me. âControl you? Thatâs ridiculous. I never controlled you, Orla. If thatâs what youâve been thinking, then maybe itâs best you take some time to really think things over. But donât fool yourselfâthis isnât the end of us.â
Without another word, I hung up, my heart racing as I dropped the phone onto the counter.
My hands were still trembling, the fear and anger swirling inside me until I couldnât tell which was stronger. What was Logan even saying?
This isnât my doingâitâs his. He cheated, and thereâs no coming back from that.
I shouldâve argued, shouldâve told him how wrong he was, that this is the end. But before I could even think of the words, Iâd impulsively hung up, leaving me standing there, breathless and unsure of what to do next.
I looked back at the mirror, half-expecting the empress to reappear, but there was nothingâjust my own reflection, pale and shaken. I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself, but Loganâs words echoed in my mind, mixing with the image of the empress and the terror in her eyes.
What was happening to me? And what was I so afraid of?