Shadows of Us

Since that day, Roy did not contact Willow again, nor did he go home.

Willow knew that Roy was angry. He was punishing her for her defiance. Usually, she would cave in to him within three days. However, this time, Willow glanced at the calendar and decided to give herself a break.

The weather turned dreary on the last day of October. That evening, Willow got a call from Roy. He gave her an address and told her to dress up.

Though the nature of the event was not spoken of, Willow knew that Roy’s best friend, Adrian Cavill was celebrating his birthday. From the day Willow got together with Roy, she had taken note of all the important dates of his friends.

Willow agreed to go, and none of them brought up the last fight they had. As she had been wearing slip-ons at home to let her foot heal, her foot protested as she wedged it into stilettos to match her evening gown.

At the party, Willow was surprised to see Roy’s mother. The poised woman took Roy’s arm and brushed past Willow, her gaze fixating on Willow’s face for a moment before shifting away.

Roy’s mother said to Adrian with a smile, “You’ve got your gift. I won’t stay and make things awkward for you young people. Have fun.”

Sierra popped out of nowhere once Roy’s mother was gone. It then dawned on Willow the reason why Roy had brought her to the party.

There had been whispers in the community that Willow could stick by Roy’s side for so long largely because his mother had never openly criticized her. Of course, Roy’s mother could not possibly be fond of Willow. Willow was simply invisible to her.

As it turned out, Willow was just a shield for Sierra, taking the brunt of Roy’s mother’s rage if any, and the thought of it made Willow chuckle silently.

After seeing his mother off, Roy returned to the venue and headed straight to Sierra.

Sierra wore a bluish dress, her long black hair cascading down her shoulders. She looked timid, her eyes darting around curiously.

Roy stared at her, his emotions hiding behind his eyes.

Sierra bumped into a passing server with a tray in hand. As the tray tipped over, Roy snatched her waist and pulled her to safety.

The smashed and shattered wine glasses caught everybody’s attention.

Startled, Sierra clenched to Roy’s collar and recoiled in his arms. “Oh, no, Roy. Did I cause a scene? It’s embarrassing.”

Roy stroked her back to offer solace. “No one will say that you’re embarrassing.”

“I-I’ll clean up the mess right away.” Sierra got down to clear the glass shard, only to withdraw her arm with a shriek.

Roy nervously examined her hands.

On his knees, the terrified server apologized profusely while picking up the broken glass.

“Ha…”

A sneer came from behind Willow.

“This one is worse than the last.” The comment was made right in Willow’s face.

The insult was directed at Sierra and Willow.

In fact, Roy’s friends had never accepted Willow. They looked down on commoners like her. They could be all friendly in front of Roy, but the taunts and disdain would go on behind his back. Besides, no one was worried that Willow would complain, given her history of clinging to Roy and submitting to his wishes.

Willow went outside for a breather since it was freezing for anyone to hang around the pool. However, the warmth from staying indoors was fleeting, and soon, she was shivering.

She eventually regained some temperature from taking two drinks when Sierra showed up. Sierra’s cheeks were flushed as she wobbled her way over, a glass of wine in hand.

“I need a word with you, Willow.”

Willow backed away, keeping a distance between them.

“Don’t try me,” she warned.

Nevertheless, Sierra stuck close to Willow and murmured in her ear, “If we both were to fall into the pool, who do you think Roy would save?”

With a splash, Sierra pulled Willow into the water.