Reputations-Beiguang

Chapter twelve

"Beidou," a concerned feminine voice calls out, "Beidou, are you in there?" The faint sound of knocking occurs after. The one eyed woman laying on her bed doesn't answer, even though she can hear the clear worry in the tone. Beidou can only feel a sense of numbness and disappointment. How was she going to be able to explain any of this to anyone? Nobody was going to understand.

Beidou's feelings were complicated. Ningguang was such a good friend and watching her not only be with a man she hated, but being with anyone in general, stung. It stung to think that she could be so happy with someone who she'd thought she hardly knew her whole life. Beidou knew more about her than Childe or probably any other man that she was aware of.

So there she was, body weak and wrapped in the red velvet and Pearl shaded sheets. Her head didn't even turn to the sound of the door opening when it did. Click click! The door knob twitches and the entrance to the bedroom was revealed. Never turning around, she sensed the pair of Ruby eyes staring down at her. Beidou could only clutch onto the blanket and pillow for support. Her ears pick up on the sound of the key being pulled out the door and it being shut right behind the footsteps that seem to be drawing closer.

The weight of the bed shifts as another presence makes herself known, sitting on the bed. Beidou's ears detect the sound of person removing their shoes and jewelry, setting it all to the side. Clanking sounds became irritating very quickly along with her mood.

"Beidou. I'm so sorry."

Silence.

A long sigh was released from the individual on the other side of the bed. Beidou could only close her eye, hoping that she could just disappear from this moment.

"I know this sounds unbelievable, but do you know what the chances of being successful is for me?"

Silence.

"It's not a lot. I spent my entire life working to be successful and build a company from the ground up. Only reason it's been doing so well is because it was labeled as a family owned company. In reality, it wasn't. I did all the dirty work. People criticized me from day one because of my age and gender."

Silence.

The woman continues, "I have to leave my mother to handle most of it because I was underaged and people didn't want to work with me because they thought I was to incompetent. All those magazines of a teenage prodigy? They're lies. I'm not a prodigy. I'm just a girl who worked day and night making anything and everything for money. A natural bread winner since birth."

Silence.

Weight on the bed shifts again, this time, she could tell the person was now laying down. "So what can you do when you're at a disadvantage for something you can't control? Get an advantage you can control. Which is why Childe- no- which is why I had decided to marry him." she admits at last her true intent. Her eyes still peering on Beidou to see if she's okay.

Silence.

"I'm not asking for forgiveness because I don't expect you to get over it. I just want you to know why I did it. Why I had to go to such measures. I..I don't love him. I never have. He's not my type and frankly he's not that attractive, but don't tell him I said that."

A small huff prompts from the laying brunette. Her words were getting through, if only slowly. Small curves formed onto Ningguang's corner lip.

"This isn't me trying to give you a sob story, it's the truth. He's my best shot of making things work for me and my family. If it were up to me, I'd never marry him. Not in a million years. Not even if we were the last people on earth. I'm sure you knew that already, but I thought I'd make that clear. To set the record straight."