Love's Dark Legacy

|Price Of Privilege

Weeks had past and life felt slightly normal, which is strange for Herculeana. On the other hand she felt off about Brian. How could one betray his friend like that? Was it a trick? Did James send Brian to her? Things just felt off. So she stuck to herself for a while.

Even in school things were so normal. no one spoke about the games, and people were just being simple which was strange. Students would innovate new ideas at their school everyday or even have a few disagreement. Herculeana wondered if it was because it was October, October has its ways, October hardly stands out, until it's Halloween.

Herculeana sat in the large, lavish cafeteria of Alvaynia High, her eyes scanning the room. At the round table where she sat, the privileged kids would gather there. Celia, Azeilia, Brian, and a few others. All eyes seemed to be on them, as usual, but Herculeana couldn't help but feel a pang of discomfort. She didn't feel like she belonged.

Celia was at the center of it all, as usual. Her laugh was infectious, and the way she spoke effortlessly drew people in. Even without trying, Celia was a magnet for attention. Boys fawned over her, and girls looked up to her. Her sleek blonde hair glistened under the lights as she threw her head back, recounting some story of a party over the weekend that everyone seemed eager to listen to.

Next to her, Azeilia was a little quieter than usual. She sat with her arms folded, her intense gaze occasionally flicking over to Celia with a mix of longing and fear. Azeilia's usual rebellious edge seemed softened today, perhaps because of the proximity of her secret crush. She was trying to hold it all together, but Herculeana could see how anxious she was, even if no one else noticed.

Brian sat on the other side of Herculeana, staring into space. He seemed distant, lost in thought. Herculeana wondered if it was about her. He had been trying for weeks now—flowers, letters, gifts, but she had been too caught up in her own head to reciprocate.

As Celia kept talking, Herculeana couldn't help but think of her parents— Lamia and Sebastian. Her father was a man of immense political power, always surrounded by secrets and conspiracies. People respected and feared him. But her mother, Lamia, had come from nothing. She'd grown up in a poor part of the city and had worked hard to reach where she was today, though she still had family who struggled. Herculeana often visited her cousins in the poorer district and witnessed what real struggle was. Her mother's side of the family still lived with barely enough to get by.

She didn't share this with her friends, though. How could she? They lived in a world so detached from struggle. They didn't know what it was like to live paycheck to paycheck, to have to make tough choices between food and rent. For them, it was all about appearances, wealth, and prestige. But Herculeana remembered vividly the cold, cluttered apartment her cousins lived in, the stark contrast to the opulence she was surrounded by at school. The echoes of her grandmother's tired voice still lingered in her ears, reminding her to stay humble.

As if on cue, Celia turned to her and laughed, "Selenayou're too serious sometimes! You should really learn to loosen up. Don't worry so much about what people think. " She gestured around at the rest of the cafeteria—the 'others,' the regular kids, though they might have had rich parents they were merely anyone compared to Herculeana and her friends. That's why she remained silent and humble and she wondered what would happen if people really knew about her family background.

Herculeana forced a smile, but inside, the words stung. *Not like them*. Celia didn't know what it was like. None of them did.

Brian broke his silence, leaning in closer to Herculeana. "You okay?" he asked quietly, his voice soft with concern.

She nodded. "Yeah."

Azeilia shifted in her seat, finally breaking her silence. She looked at Celia out of the corner of her eye, her mouth opening slightly, as if she was about to say something, but then quickly closed it. Herculeana could see the internal struggle in Azeilia's eyes—the battle between friendship and desire. Azeilia had confided in her once, in a rare moment of vulnerability, about her feelings for Celia. Herculeana knew how much this scared her friend, but it was never easy to act on feelings, especially when the person you liked was your closest friend.