The Fallen Princess

The First Fall

The sun's rays slipped through the thin curtains, casting light over a tired-looking girl sprawled on an uncovered bed. The brightness slowly pulled Eve from sleep. She remembered last night all too well, trying to tidy her tiny new room while coughing from dust and recoiling from spiderwebs that clung stubbornly to the corners. Even after cleaning what she could, her large suitcase remained untouched, overflowing with things she didn't know where to put.

The bed she lay on was stiff and unyielding. All night, she tossed and turned, unable to stop thinking about her old mattress— soft, warm, fragrant, and twice her size. This one felt more like a plank.

A beam of sunlight hit her face. Eve groaned and reached for her phone.

6 A.M.

Viona's reminder echoed from yesterday: our place is a little bit far away, so you need to wake up early, and your new semester starts tomorrow.

Forcing herself up, Eve quickly gathered her things — uniform, laptop, phone, books. She was quietly grateful the bank hadn't seized those. But as she prepared for the day, her stomach tightened with unease.

The bathroom felt foreign. 

The silence felt foreign.

And the absence of her maids felt like a hole she didn't know how to fill.

Her uniform wasn't perfect. She couldn't tie her ribbon properly. Usually, her maids handled everything— hair, outfit, accessories and putting all together, creating the perfect doll. Now, she struggled alone, eventually stuffing the ribbon into her blazer pocket. Her long wavy hair, normally styled flawlessly, hung straight and slightly messy. She didn't even know how to curl it herself.

"I'll drop you off," Gary said casually, flipping a newspaper page without looking at her.

The words made Eve pause. Although the situation called for it, previously, he never drove her before. 

Not once.

The reason must be because there is only one car left now that's available for driving.

Yet still... a warm, strange feeling fluttered in her chest.

Something unfamiliar, almost tender.

She didn't recognize it as happiness.

"I'm ready. Where's my breakfast?" Eve asked, frowning in confusion.

Viona offered an apologetic smile. Old habits clung tightly, Eve expected this— her mother never cooked. But a small part of her wished she would at least try. Any attempt would have meant something.

"I woke up late," Viona said. "Even if I didn't, I don't know how to cook. You know that."

Viona had grown up wealthy; a sheltered heir before merging her family with Gary's company. 

All responsibility had fallen on him after their parents passed away, while the greedy and treacherous relative , the couple had cut ties long ago.

Now, with bankruptcy swallowing everything, they were lucky to afford even this cramped apartment and the one modest car they had left. Without those severed relatives blocking the way, they might've been homeless.

"Just drink some milk. Let's go," Gary said coolly. Eve obeyed, drinking a glass of milk before following him outside. When he dropped her off in the old car, countless eyes scanned her.

Some stared with disgust, some with lust, and some with pity.

Eve ignored them all. She only searched for one silhouette— one she desperately hoped to see.

He is absent.

"Hey, Eve!" a unfamiliar boy shouted, forcing her to stop and turn.

Still tired, still empty, she answered with a low growl, "What?"

"I heard about what happened with your dad's company," he said, voice dripping with false sympathy. "Do you need my help?" He smirked. "People say you've been with almost every guy in school after flirting with them. I can help you... but you'll have to be my sleeping partner. How does that sound?"

In short, he was asking her to become his toy.

"No thanks, I'm good." She rejected flatly before pushing the boy away without hesitation.
His pride snapped instantly. He spat out a "bitch" before storming off in humiliation.

Tempting as his offer might have been in her old life, Eve brushed it aside. In this school, everyone was rich except her and the three scholarship students per grade. She wasn't stupid, settling for a small unknown fish like him would ruin her one chance with Edmund, the best catch of them all. Still, she hadn't expected things to turn ugly this quickly. Anxiety coiled in her stomach, a quiet dread whispering that the day had only begun.

This was the first semester, and the teachers hadn't assigned permanent partners yet, which meant everyone was scrambling to find one, except her. With her reputation in shambles, Eve knew no one wanted to be paired with the fallen Ryleigh heiress.

Determined to secure Edmund as her future husband, she started planning her next steps as she headed to chemistry class, taking her usual seat by the window. She had no friends left— not after the news broke that she was no longer the Ryleigh heiress. The death threats, insults, and curses flooding her social media were unbearable, even when it's on private. When she tried contacting her so-called close friends, every message was either ignored, rejected, or blocked. She finally turned off her phone.

"Hey, Eve, want to be my partner?"

The voice was painfully familiar— an arrogant prick she had already rejected once, someone who had previously called her a bitch and a whore. Now he had the audacity to ask again.

"Uhm... no. Thanks." Her voice was soft but firm. She'd rather partner with girls, if there is anyone who is willing than risk pairing with him— or better, with her actual target, Edmund.

"You're still arrogant even after becoming a fallen." He sneered before walking away.

A few decent boys tried to approach her afterward, but the rejected boy quickly warned them off, telling his friends she wasn't worth it— that she'd only dismiss them cruelly. His influence spread fast. Soon, the entire class even the boys avoided her. 

Eve wasn't surprised, instead she had expected this, and she prepared to work alone.

Her former sidekicks were already paired together, leaving her isolated, with a smug on their face, ignoring her and mocking her. She scanned the room one more time— Edmund was supposed to be in this class, according to the schedule. But he was nowhere to be seen.

"You! At the back by the window! What's your name? I can't see you clearly," Mr. Patrick called.

"Uh... Eve, sir." She hated answering loudly. With her fallen status, invisibility was safer. The teacher only asked because she was alone, hidden behind a much taller student.

"Where is your lab partner?" He shouted, in response, Eve stuttered, "I—I don't have one, sir."

Before things turns to worse, the classroom door opened.
Every head turned at once and seeing the appearance of this person, admiration instantly lit up the room.

Yes, Her target had finally arrived.

Edmund Kingsley.
The kind-hearted prince.

Honestly, Eve would have lowered her pride— asked the guy beside her, or even the one who insulted her earlier. But Edmund's timing spared her the humiliation.

"Edmund Kingsley, you're late. Again," Mr. Patrick said.

The girls squealed, delighted by his entrance.

***