Tangled Threads Of Fate

The Present Day

From the window above her head, first rays of sunshine passed in and fell on her face, causing her to squeeze her eyes in discomfort. She used her hand to block it but realization of the time didn't let her fall asleep back again. Although the clock had only chased the time till 6:20, but there was place where that she had to be at that time.

She got out of the bed that was a mattress on the floor, she stretched her hand for the pleasure of her joints and headed toward the window, relishing in the warmth of the early morning sun. "I hope that by the end of this beautiful day, I become happier," she prayed and turned to take a look inside her room.

"Good Lord!"

She found that the dress that she had laid on her bed in order to return it spotless to the dry cleaners, was not there anymore.

"I'm sure that I laid it on the bed, and I myself slept on the floor because the dress is worth more than me... then where did it disappear it to?"

She panicked and ruffled the covers and pillows in the trace of that dress. She crouched to peek under the bed, there was nothing to be found. She opened the closet, only to find nothing inside it as well. Her anxiety grew as the clock approached 6:30 and she remembered that the dress had to be returned by then.

"Where is it? where is it?" she went outside her room," shouting to Bella's ears, "Bella! have you seen my dress?" She went appalled seeing Bella trying the dress out with her frizzy hair and overly done makeup, standing in front of an old cracked mirror that parted her reflection in two.

"I think I should have gone to the party, I must have certainly caught the eyes of some rich man... unlike you!" she mocked her.

"Excuse me! what do you think you're doing?" she asked, flouncing. "Take if off right now, I have to return it right now."

Bella adjusted the strap that was lose from her chest. She pulled it back to make it look tighter. "But I have just put it on. Wait for some time, at least till I get a few pictures clicked in it."

"Okay fine, where do you want to go to get them clicked?" she asked, taking out her phone.

Bella brought her outside in the open and asked her to click her picture with neighborhood park as a background. "Are you not crazy? At least look at the crowd here, you may not feel embarrassed posing here but I'm not gonna do it."

Bella mended her hairstyle and forced Oriel to capture her on the camera, seductively pulling her leg outside the slit. "Jesus! you look disgusting."

"Just because you are young, you can wear dresses like this and that's not disgusting. But just because I am a few years older, I get to hear such remarks, that's not fair."

Oriel reluctantly took some photos to appease her and showed them to her, "Okay! that will do for now, let's go back."

Bella and Oriel were about to step in their house when suddenly a motor bike came sprinting and whooshed through the water filled puddle on the street. The speed of the motor bike caused the mud water to splatter on the dress, and Oriel was left stunned at the realization that she had messed up big time. Meanwhile, Bella flinched, wiping the mud water off her eyes and cursed the biker who was nowhere to be seen now.

"What.. What did you just do? Do you have any idea how expensive that dress is?" Oriel immediately pulled out an handkerchief and began wiping the stain off it, it only expanded.

"What do you mean I did it? You just saw how that jerk did this to my dress and face."

"This dress is not yours!" Oriel stated with emphasis.

She ran her fingers through her hair and pulled them tightly in frustration. "I can't believe that very beginning of the day is so awful, how am I gonna end up at the end of this day?" she raised her head to the skies and asked.

Bella sneaked out of the place while Oriel lamented her existence to the skies. She meticulously slithered inside before her eyes. "I'll pay for the laundry... everything is fine."

Oriel tried to remove the wide stain of mud with soap and water, she managed to remove it to a certain extent but still it had left its traces behind. She folded it in such way that the faint mark was least exposed and came to the neighborhood laundry to return it. "Here is the dress that I borrowed yesterday."

Her hands trembled on handing it over to the counter, as he took it from her hands and began examining the dress. "What is this mark here?"

"What mark? I don't see anything... maybe it was there all long." She played dumb and rolled her eyes in every corner of the shop to avoid the meeting of eyes.

The shopkeeper was quick to understand the story and tossed the dress aside in disappointment. "Oriel! you are such a good child, why does this always happen to you?" the old shop keeper was well-acquainted to her.

"I have no idea, Mr. John, maybe my fate was written when the almighty was in a bad mood," she sighed. "And I can't also rule out the reason that people around me are. I wish It was easy to abandon them and live my own life."

"The dry cleaning shop manager sent the dress to be cleaned and proceeded further with his advice. "It's hard for you distance somebody because you are person of big heart."

"You don't know me at all, Mr. John, It's really easy for me to abandon someone. It's all a matter of time."

Mr. John shook his head in disagreement, "You are wrong about yourself dear." The young boy that worked in the shop came back with the dress a few minutes later and informed that the stain wouldn't leave.

"Now what do I do, Mr. John? This dress looks so expensive that I wouldn't be able to pay for it even if I starve for another month."

Mr. John thought in morosely looking in the air, "Okay! Don't worry, I'll take care of it."

The young boy jumped in, interfering just as Oriel had began to feel relieved, "Mr. John, don't you know who this dress belongs to?" asked the young boy, putting Oriel in suspense.

"I am very well aware. I agree that the lady is a bit bad mouthed but she is not at all bad. I think she will understand."

The young boy knew what the lady was capable of. The dress was one among seven in the entire world and it was also her favorite one. "I can guarantee that it's not going to end well." The young boy exclaimed. "Her husband is the leader of that drug racket, I think I forgot its name... you know those dangerous people with this huge python tattoo on their chests?"

"Gongbay?" she asked.