Scandalous Love

1. | Riley

A knock on my bedroom door disrupted me from the world I had pulled myself into as I sat by the window ledge curled up with a book. My dress covered my thighs, knees and legs, swarming me like a blanket and at the soft sound of my name being called, I look up before calling out to whoever it may have been, allowing them to come in.

My eyes meet Nancy's as she smiles at me dearly - the one woman who probably actually cared about me in this place. She was more of a mother to me than Ava was, that was for sure. I didn't trust that step-mother of mine as far as I could throw her.

"Your father wants you downstairs, sweet pea," she tells me softly with a sweet smile playing at her lips.

I roll my eyes a little and look back down towards the pages of my book, wanting to finish this chapter. It was getting to the good bit.

"Don't roll your eyes at me, young lady," she teases me, heading over to the window ledge I had sat myself down on before placing her hand down in the middle of the page I was on, forcing me to look up at her.

"But Nana," I whine, pouting at her with puppy dog eyes. Nancy had never been my official grandmother but I saw her as one since the day I was born. She was the closest person to me since Mum passed away when I was only six. Even Emily, my own sister, isn't as close to me anymore. She's more closed off than an unopened book.

I could hear the music playing from downstairs at the gala. The last thing I wanted to do was go down there. I was better off locked up in my room at my own accord. I couldn't be dealing with Dad and his future wife. They were celebrating their engagement today but I was far from taking part in that celebration.

"Just for a couple of minutes, pea. There's a few people you need to meet. You can always come back upstairs and continue reading," she says to me before slowly managing to pry the book out of my hands. She slides my book-mark into it and then places the paperback down on the windowsill before holding my hand.

"Do I have to?" I ask, looking at her with the same tender face before she chuckles, nodding her head and leaning forwards to press her lips against my forehead.

"Yes, baby. You don't have to stay down there for long."

She takes hold of my hand and stands me up, making me smoothen down the pink silk of my dress before breathing in, correcting my posture as I guided myself out of the bedroom and down the circulating stairs decorated with the red carpet.

Walking down this flight of stairs always felt like torture. All eyes would always linger on me and would build up just about enough pressure which would cause me to trip over my feet and stumble, but today I was thankful that everyone was distracted taking photographs of the family - photographs they clearly didn't want me to be included in.

I roll my eyes, walking around in my most-hated heels. It was the pair Em had picked out for me but they definitely weren't very fitting.

My short brunette hair was already hurting from the up-do Nana had styled it in for the day.

I hated such occasions with a passion but the way I had to dress wasn't even the bad part. The worst thing was the way I had to act. Just thinking of those days when I was forced to take part in cotillion every summer and winter up until today was enough mental trauma in itself.

I had no freedom here. My escape was my bedroom, but it was the best escape I could ask for.

The further out into the hall I walk, the more people I come across - none of who seemed to know who I was - or even if they did, I was walking at too-fast a pace for them to actually catch my eye.

At least if I wandered around the room aimlessly for five minutes, I could retreat back to my escape room and say I interacted with the hundreds of people downstairs. Just because I didn't talk or communicate with them doesn't mean we didn't have an encounter.

It was when I eventually stumbled into the tense dynamics of my family that I faltered and flinched, taking a couple of steps backwards. By the time I had reached them, they had stopped taking photographs and Dad had instructed Emily to go and get me from my room, not knowing Nana had already sent me down.

Dad's arm was wrapped around Ava's waist and I cringe at the sight, continuing to walk further backwards to navigate my way away from them.

I knew if Dad was to see me, he would bombard me with questions about where I had been all throughout the period of time where they were taking photos.

Similarly, if I had bumped into Ava, she would complain about my tardiness but her two-faced persona would shine through entirely. When Dad's around, she acts like a total sweetheart but when we were alone, she didn't hesitate in the slightest to show her disapproval of me.

Emily was her favourite; Ava and Em were practically mother and daughter but that sort of relationship is one I would never dream of having with that blonde-haired fake.

The further back I walk, I eventually bump into someone else, trodding on their toes, making me instantly stumble.

"Whoa," their voice chimes from behind me as their arm worms its way under my pit to stand me back up again and keep me steady. "You okay there?"

"Yeah, sorry, I really didn't mean to. I'm such a"-I begin before turning myself around on my heel at the same time as I was smoothing my dress back down once again-"clutz," I mumble under my breath after taking in his presence.

He wore nothing but black - black jeans with a black jumper and he held a professional camera in his hand.

He didn't seem very old, he must have been about my age if not one or two years older. His curly and chiselled hair was gelled with a bright glow and the smile he wore on his face was almost contagious as dimples filled each side of his cheeks.

"It happens to the best of us. Don't even worry about it," he grins, making me nod my head, biting my lip.

This was the exact reason I hated social gatherings. I wasn't a people-person. I didn't mingle with others. I wasn't anything like a social butterfly.

I should be curled up in bed by the window with my curtains drawn open so I could look up at the moon where Mum's shadow was hiding. It was only ever present at night and every night of every day I attend to my window ledge by nine o'clock - the time she's present the most until the early hours of the morning.

I couldn't waste any more time down here. I needed to hurry up before it was too late.

"Riley," I hear my sister's voice call out, making my eyes widen.

Before I had the chance to walk away and hide, her hand finds its way to my wrist and she clutches onto my skin with a tight grip.

"What are you doing? I've been looking all over for you. Come on, Dad has someone he wants you to meet," she rambles, dragging me along with her, making me lose all eye-contact with the guy I had stumbled into.

And sooner or later I find out the "someone" Dad was desperate for me to meet was, in fact, a guy...

Now that I was seventeen, Dad had these expectations that I should settle down with someone of my "own choice" by my eighteenth birthday and if not, he would force me into a relationship with a guy of his choosing.

But tell me why it already seemed like he was doing that despite the fact I still supposedly had eleven months of "freedom" left?