Bound By Fate

"Shattered Wings, Silent Tears"

Today began with a glimmer of happiness, a feeling I hadn’t known in years. Kim, my sister, had baked a cake for me. A cake. For me. I couldn’t believe it. I stared at it, a tiny, uneven thing with a single candle flickering on top. My heart swelled with a warmth I didn’t recognize. For the first time, someone had thought of me, remembered my birthday, and cared enough to make it special.

But happiness in this house was fleeting, like a breeze that slips through your fingers before you can grasp it. It didn’t last long.

The door flew open, and there stood my stepmother, her face a mask of fury. The cake was gone in seconds, smashed to the ground like it was a crime for it to exist. She didn’t stop there.

Her words stung more than the stick she wielded. “You’re a curse! A wretched child born to ruin this family!” she screamed as she lashed out at me. Each strike felt like it wasn’t just my skin breaking but pieces of my spirit shattering.

Then, as if that wasn’t enough, she dragged me to the door. My feet barely kept up as she pushed and shoved, hurling me out of the house with a force that sent me stumbling. I thought I was going to fall, my knees giving out beneath me, but before I hit the ground, a hand caught me.

I looked up, dazed. She was the most beautiful person I had ever seen. She looked like she had stepped out of a dream. Her presence was soothing, her touch light, and her voice… her voice was a melody that whispered words I couldn’t quite hear but felt deep in my soul. Was I dreaming?

I barely had a moment to comprehend what was happening before she stepped away. Her expression turned steely as she turned to face my stepmother. “Hello, Mrs. Adrian,” she said, her voice calm but carrying an undertone of authority that made even my fiery stepmother falter.

Anya quickly masked her surprise with a wide smile. “Princess Sam,” she said with exaggerated sweetness. “Welcome. This… this is the girl. The one who could be your maid. We’re selling her.”

Selling me? My stomach twisted, and the air left my lungs. How could someone sell another human being? But this wasn’t a question I needed to ask. It was clear that to her, I wasn’t human. I wasn’t her stepdaughter. I was nothing but a burden, a mistake, something to dispose of.

Kim tried to speak, her voice small and shaky. “Mom, what are you saying? You can’t—”

“Go inside!” Anya snapped, cutting her off. She shoved Kim toward the house, slamming the door behind her. Kim’s protest was swallowed by silence, leaving me alone with the woman who had stolen my moment of happiness and the stranger who now held my fate in her hands.

The princess didn’t argue. She simply handed over a bag—a bag full of money. My father, standing in the shadows, said nothing. He didn’t even flinch as the deal was made. Not a single word of protest, not even a glance in my direction.

I felt hollow, as though the last shred of hope I had clung to had been ripped away. Tears pricked at my eyes, but they refused to fall. I had cried too many times, and now even my tears were tired.

This is my fate, I thought as the princess led me away. I didn’t resist. What was the point? If my own father didn’t care, why should I? Maybe I had done something terrible in a past life, and this was my punishment.

The carriage ride was silent. The princess didn’t speak, and I didn’t dare to. I stared out of the window, watching the trees blur into nothingness. My heart was heavy, but my mind was strangely calm, resigned.

When we finally stopped, I stepped out and froze. Before me was a mansion unlike anything I had ever seen. Its towering walls gleamed in the sunlight, and the gardens were alive with colors I didn’t know existed. Flowers of every kind bloomed in perfect harmony, their sweet scent filling the air.

It was breathtaking, like stepping into another world. But I knew better. To me, this wasn’t a palace. It was just another prison.

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