CHAPTER-2

The early risers chirped, as the morning sunlight found it's way through the thin silk curtains, illuminating Livian's huge white washed room. The morning sun beamed, peaking through every possible cavity of the room, causing the glittering rays ablaze it with various hues of gold and silver, making it look like an aureate.

But that being said, her room already looks like a cascade, that screams elegance and luxury. Almost everything in there is white, contrasted with golden artefacts and other decorative items.

However, regardless of a cheerful morning where each and every soul soaring high with so much zeal and spirit, Livian squinted her eyes to adjust with the sudden eerie glow of the atmosphere with an awfully devastated self of her. She groaned as her sore body coaxed her from making any movement. Her sticky eyes, throbbing head and twinging body made her mind puzzled up. While trying to figure out the situation, the realisation hit her. She recalled last night, when she dozed off in bath tub and Anna somehow managed drag her out to the comfort of her soft- warm mattress, she finally unscrambled the reason of her sickness.

"Rise and shine , dear!"

Anna zestful voice kicked her out of her trance. Her lively face and aura made Livian's edges lift up.

"Good morning.."

She chirped placing the tray full of breakfast and medicines as she shrugged the curtains off.

"Good morning! Though my morning isn't good at all."

Livian squeaked as she struggled to lift her body up. Anna, who's standing alongside the bed huffed and helped her to rest her back on the backrest.

"In what way you expect yourself to end up like..after sleeping in a bath tub for an hour?! Thank god I came looking for you or else nobody would have found—"

"Nobody cares.."

Livian stated blatantly while staring at the void to avoid her eyes. Anna, who looked at her with an empathetic look on her face, snorted heavily before speaking.

"I do. Now lemme check if you have fever."

Her monotonous way of speaking made Livian scoff mentally. She is amongst the people whose words never felt genuine but more like just for spite spoken words.

After checking her body temperature Anna retrieved back to her previous position and exclaimed.

"Good for you that you didn't catch cold. Hurry! Get up and do your morning chores. It's time to—"

"Take my medicines and for that I gotta eat something. I know ..I know .." 

Cutting off Anna in the middle, Livian imitated her everyday's similar words. So far she can imitiate everyone around her like some chants. They repeat the same usual lines everyday like those were the only sentances inserted in their systems along with carrying fake smiles and concerns.

Despite feeling innately lame, she sulkily trudged to the comfort room to do her buisness. As she ingressed in the bathroom, the sight of a huge mirror along with a basin, unfurl before her eyes. Scrutinizing her own reflection in the mirror, her nose wrinkled with dissatisfaction. Her long, dark brown and lucious curls protruding messily all the way down to her hips. Her heterochromic blue-grey eyes, that she always feel insecure about also reflected nothing but dullness. Her honey-gazed skin looks paler than usual. She wondered how can someone be as flawed as her. Snorting sharply she tried to brush off every idle thoughts and embarked on doing her chores.

Coming out of the bathroom, Anna asked her to have some breakfast while she fix her bed linens in the meantime. She stared at the far mirror while chugging down a glass of milk, and what again she noticed is her different coloured eyes glowing disparatly under the morning sunlight. You liked them, didn't you?

She murmured in a soft-inaudible voice. The only reason that stops Livian from hating her differently shaded pair of eyes is the fact that her father used to adore them the most in her.

Like always, the rushing thoughts of her father made her throat tighten with an agonizing pain. The only person who she can imagine would have understood her, is no longer alive. Nonetheless, she anyhow gulped down the lump forming in her throat inorder to flee the grief away. Delving through her bowl of cereals for a long time, she finally finished it.

"All done? Here, take these."

Upon seeing Livian's empty bowl, Anna handed her pills and medicines one after other. Livian nauseated after looking at the addition of medicines in her daily list of medications. As if they already weren't enough

Afterwards, she made her mind not to idle around and rather depart for the university. For her it will be a damn boring day if she chooses to stay at home and do nothing but ultimately will dwell here and there, wasting her entire day. On the top of that, running into her mom could be a highly unwanted thing. After what happened yesterday, she must not face her a while.

"Where are you going?"

As she was about to get off the bed to change, Anna abruptly spoke, gently pushing her back to her previous position.

"Will you prepare a change of clothes? I want to change before we—"

She didn't expected herself to be pushed back but she managed to speak as soon as she made herself stable.

"We aren't going anywhere. You can't even walk properly. It will be better for you to rest today."

Anna, who seemed unsatisfied with her words, rebutted.

"I don't wanna spend my whole day idling in this room. Please Anna..."

She pleaded after observing Anna's stern face. For her getting exhausted after the studies and other works is far better than relaxing all day and doing nothing

"And what if your condition gets worse?"

But rather, Anna on the other hand seemed to be determined as she again refute back in a reprimanding tone.

"It won't. I promise it will not."

She tried her best to wear an assuring look on her face as she implored. Upon seeing her entreating face, Anna finally surrendered.

"You are going to answer your mom if you get sick!"

Livian let out an exaggerated boxy smile and then ran across the room to get herself changed. Afterwards, Anna meticulously groomed and tufted her long locks into a ponytail. After that, Anna left the room, saying that she would wait for her downstairs but then Livian suddenly spoke.

"Did she leave for the office?

Somehow she deliberately wanted to avoid her mom as much as she could, so she finally managed to ask Anna about her. At first it seemed like Anna got confused but then she answered after figuring out.

"She hasn't yet. Why?"

Livian hesitated for a while thinking about what to say because it will not be appropriate to say that she wanted to avoid her her mother knowingly.

"Umm—"

However, when she was about to say something, the door knob twisted and the door opened, revealing her mother.

"Good morning angel!"

She chirped in zest as soon as she entered inside her room. For a fleeting moment, Livian felt like her heart was going to jump out when she saw her mom standing next to her.

"G-Good morning mom."

Even though she was feeling like she might will pass out any moment out of fear, she still managed to be as normal as she could and replied.

"How can you so careless about yourself?"

Nieth, whose zestful aura was long gone and now is replaced with a stern look on her face, reprimanded. Livian froze at the moment when she realised what her mother was talking about. How could she just come to know about such a small thing regardless of her busy schedule, Livian couldn't help but asked herself.

"I am s—"

Livian found herself squirming under her mom's gaze. Nonetheless, she lifted her head to apologise but Nieth cut her off in the middle.

"Anyway, I am leaving for office. C'mon, I will drop you."

As if the words were spoken just for a formality, she quickly changed the topic and moved on to the buisness she has to do with her and for which she came to her in the first place.

"Why all of a sudden?"

Upon hearing what her mom just said, she instantly interrogated back but then realised that she shouldn't have had done that and pursed her lips. So far according to what Livian could remember, it has been three years since her mom last visited her study campus or dropped her somewhere.

"Nothing much though. I just have something in my mind."

Livian's forehead wrinkled 'cause of her mother's assertion as she swallowed the urge to probe further. She immediately asked Anna to prepare her things as soon as her mom left the room. She didn't even get time to consider anything what her mom is upto. Even though she felt something that she couldn't put her finger on, nonetheless, it wasn't possible to buy some time to do useless things.

So, without any further due, she strode her way downstairs, trailed by Anna. Upon reaching the hallway, she saw her mom waiting for her while Simon stands few steps away from her in a corner. Upon seeing Livian coming downstairs, Nieth flashed her a smile and chirped in a high spirited tone.

"Oh! You're here already. You look beautiful, young lady."

On the other side, Livian tried her best to be as cheerful as she could even though she knew very well that her mom was only showing such affection because of the presence of the servants surrounding them and infact deep down she still holds grudges against her. And as she thought, her words were again like some formality as usual 'cause as soon as she finished her worda, she strode away, without bothering herself to listen to Livian's reply.

As she avowed before, she indeed had every intention to drop her. As always, the ride to the university was also full of silence. It's always the same. They never talk to each other 'til it's highly necessary. Livian always avoid her to the very extent and in case of Nieth, she avoids her because she doesn't have much time to pay attention to her.

The vehicle brought to halt when Simon, who was sitting in the front seat, hurriedly got out inorder to open the door for Livian. Taking her rob with her, Livian climbed off the car. But to her surprise, Simon also opened the door for Nieth, who also mirrored Livian's action.

"You..are coming with me?"

Unable to assess the situation, Livian carefully asked.

"Oh yes! Of course. I want to visit the new physics department that you're going to be attending from today onwards. Now hurry up!"

Livian's body didn't move & stiffened further as her face gradually became paler.

"What?!! ...."

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