Arcane ~ ONGOING

~Chapter Four~

not edited

I followed him up the fancy staircase, curiosity bursting inside me. As soon as reached the second floor, he started walking towards his left with long, confident strides. I try to catch up to him and soon I settle on a slow jog instead of walking. By then, I had realized that I wouldn't be able to keep up with him and his long strides.

He stopped in front of a baby pink door and along with him so did my heartbeat. The door looked so out of place with the dark colours and theme surrounding it. I knew what was behind that door. If they haven't changed, the door means nothing has been changed inside. And I feared that if I went inside, I would break down. Everything I am trying to hold back would overflow like water out of a flooded river.

"Open it," Octavian ordered. His voice was sharp and assertive. I could not pinpoint what he was trying to do. Here I was on the brink of hyperventilating, but he was adamant about me seeing that room. He was either blind or just wanted to see me suffer for what I did.

My shaky hand reached out and landed on the golden doorknob. Taking a deep, shaky breath and I turned it and dared to open it. My breathing was fast as I looked inside. The room mostly looked the same. But the paint looked fresh, the mirrors changed and the decor renewed. The ceiling no longer looked like it was from the 19th century and one of the walls was substituted with floor-length windows that overlooked the backyard. The vanity was beside the mirror, bulbs lining the edge of the mirror on the vanity. Natural sunlight flooded through the room.

I took a few steps forwards, taking a look around. My old portable ballet barre was pushed against the wall in front of the mirrors. There were a few boxes stacked in one of the corners. The baby pink walls soothed my anxious mind. I looked around and one thing caught my eyes. Pointe shoes.

I did not wear pointe shoes till I was eleven and they looked like the first pair I had. I looked behind me to see Octavian leaning against one of the walls, studying me.

"Are those my pointe shoes?" I asked, my eyebrows furrowed.

He hesitated for a moment or two but replied anyway, "Yes they are."

I looked at him, expecting an explanation but his expressions said that that was all he was going to provide me with. I sighed and continued looking around. In the end, I knelt down near the chair in front of the vanity and my hands landed on the box that lay there in the corner. "May I?" I asked, seeking Octavian's permission before I opened the box.

"Go ahead," he said and continued observing me. I opened the box slowly, scared of what was in there but a gasp escaped me as soon as my eyes laid on shimmering tiaras. There weren't many but I did not fail to recognize the five to six tiaras I had won when I was here with them.

These little accessories brought back numerous memories from the past competitions. How my dad would be there for every competition, every recital, every concert. He never missed any. He used to remind him of a little angel whenever he saw me dance on the stage under the spotlight. I remember that he was the happiest looking man every time I won a title.

Back then I was young, still a kid. A kid who didn't do much to appreciate the love showered upon her by her father and then as a teenager, I would have given anything to have that love and warmth of a father back. But it was long gone and it seemed like I was stuck in a cold hell where my safe heaven was kilometres away with no way back.

I did not realize that I have been crying until I saw a drop of tear on the shining stone of the tiara I held in my hands. I swiftly wiped it away and blink away the ones that were accumulated in my waterline, ready to fall.

"Why did you keep it? This room. Clearly, nobody dances here anymore, this room isn't renovated as the whole house. It looks out of place. Why would you keep it?" I asked, looking at Octavian who looked deep in thought. I was sitting on the floor with my back resting against the wall while Octavian stood leaning against the opposite wall, arms folded as an intimidating, scary aura surrounded him.