1 Pitiful

POV: Serena Laratje

"Serena!"

The voice of my counterpart sounded more than surprised. The same applied to the two others seated at the table, as well as servants who surrounded them.

However, I paid no attention to the cry.

My gaze inevitably slid to the other end of the table.

This place was actually and also legally mine. However, it was taken.

The person seated seemed to be more than just embarrassed, or at least he found the situation uncomfortable. Otherwise, I could not explain the nervous fidgeting on the chair and also facial gymnastics.

"We didn't know you were going to attend the dinner.", the younger one squawked.

There really was no other way to describe his voice.

"I wasn't aware that my presence would change anything about the table order.", I dryly let my younger half-brother know before paying him no further attention.

My gaze inevitably slid to the frantic servants who immediately wanted to set the table for a fifth person.

"That won't be necessary.", I let the surrounding people know before my gaze slid back to the head of the family of this estate.

"I'll have something to eat later on outside. Heading into town in a bit.", I let my father shortly know before indicating a light bow.

Without waiting for a reaction, let alone a response, I headed back towards the door.

It was a rarity for me to stay longer on the first floor, where most of the living rooms are.

After all, I felt like a troublemaker, almost a parasite, in the lovely, perfect world of the Laratje family.

Or rather, the former owner of this body felt that way. Serena Laratje.

Not even two weeks ago, following the logic of a classic Isekai novel, I was hit by a car in the middle of a rainy road.

Of course, the collision and my resulting death had been unavoidable.

Following the clichés, I also found myself in a huge bed in an even bigger room.

I also quickly understood my current situation.

I'm currently in the body of the eldest daughter of the Laratje family. As such, I should actually grow up carefree and have nothing to complain about. However, this is not the case.

At a very early age, Serena had to watch her mother slowly die due to an illness. Neither her father, the rest of her relatives nor servants protected her from the consequences.

The moments with her sole child were the only ones that could make Odett Laratje smile or even laugh.

Serena never liked spending time in that heavy herb and disinfection smelling room that let in hardly any daylight.

Worst of all, however, were the regular seizures and obvious misery Serena witnessed.

And yet, every day Serena came to her mothers bedside with a laugh.

She gladly refrained from going into the garden or even the city.

Her mother couldn't.

Then why should she be allowed to?

Most of all, however, Serena worried that something might happen to her mother in her absence.

After all, she had been aware very early on that no one could help her mother anymore.

It was just a matter of making death more pleasant for her, or at least less painful.

Despite this, the death of Odett Laratje had been very sudden. For a long time it wasn't even certain if her death had a natural origin or if someone had been there to assist her.

The years that followed were probably the loneliest for Serena.

In addition, Serena's father remarried after the death of his wife.

His second marriage spawned a son and, three years later, a daughter.

Serena was already neglected when her sickly mother passed away after a long and painful time.

After the new marriage, her situation worsened once again.

However, it officially hit rock bottom after the birth of Eric, her half-brother.

After all, Serena's birth parents have always prepared her for her role as the next head of the family. She had to take on more and more responsibility at a young age due to her ill mother.

As a result, she has made few friends and even fewer that she can actually rely on.

Her father, in his grief due to his loss, took a very long time before he could look at Serena again.

After all, she had been the exact image of his dead and dearly beloved wife.

He completely disregarded the fact that his daughter needed her father right now. Especially since she also knew why the sight of her alone made him unhappy.

Serena was aware why her father no longer looked at her, smiled at her, or approached her.

That's why she spent most of her time in her bedroom.

Felt abandoned when her father suddenly remarried.

It all got really bad, though, after the birth of her half-brother Eric.

Suddenly, her lessons were no longer important.

She was no longer strictly raised.

All the attention she received, at least as an heir, slipped away as well.

After all, she was now replaceable.

Being a woman in general had been suboptional. After all, everyone preferred to see male heirs for the families.

Then, when Emira, her younger half-sister, was born, she lost her position entirely.

After all, up to that point she had at least been the only daughter in the family Laratje.

In her despair and ever-growing depression, Serena finally tried to take her own life.

She spent hours thinking that by informing her father, or even the rest of her family, of her death, they would be at least momentarily grief-stricken.

Ironically, however, the dosage had not been high enough.

All she did was sleep all day. Not a rare occurrence.

Serena was constantly tired and rarely left her room either. Skipped meals often, too.

Therefore, when she went to the living room for once the next day, no one had noticed her failed suicide attempt.

Serena had cried.

Cried alone in her room for so many hours.

And finally made a second attempt.

This time successfully.

That very night, when she had taken way too strong sleeping pills, I took over her body and thus her life, her memories.

In fact, this was supposed to be the end of Serena.

The only reason I knew all this was entirely due to the memories of that body.

After all, Serena was only mentioned in two lines in the story »Twisted Ways of the Heart«.

She was the half-sister of the main character Eric, who took her own life at a young age.

The reason was unknown. However, because the Laratje family had always taken great care of their children, it came as a great shock.

In fact, no one from the Laratje family was a bad person.

They were just incredibly ignorant and Serena too cowardly to point out their wrongdoings.

As a result, it became normal that she never participated in the family meals.

That the role of head of the family went to her brother, because she became more and more reserved.

It was natural that nobody knew the eldest daughter of the Laratje family.

That her skills and knowledge were forgotten as her brother Eric and his own achievements grew.

That the image of the cheerful, bright girl was fading more and more into the background.

Made way for a quiet and almost stoic wallflower.