4 A Hydra Made of Pride (1)

A bare bedroom, devoid of any decorations that would tell you about the personality of person who resided within it. Though, its bareness does tell you that the owner was very practical. It was a very roomy room as well, the double sized bed filling up most of the space. A desk sat to the side, black with a clear glass on top and a steel frame. The thin white curtains were drawn and only the white light from the lamp on the desk provided any source of light.

Yu Yan was sitting in a black office chair, trying to distract herself from the homework by spinning around and around and around. She only stopped when she got really dizzy. As she was living alone, it was natural that her smiling mask was completely taken off, and a really bored looking face was revealed.

Yu Yan felt lucky that she didn't live in one of the school's dorms, or else she might not be able to temporarily put down her mask. It would be nice though, if there was someone she could talk to without having to put up a mask...

'What's the day today?' Yu Yan asked herself, looking at the calendar that hung in front of her desk. 'Today's Thursday....if I finish my work now then I can go work on the company then I'm free.'

With this thought in mind, Yu Yan vigorously worked on her homework, trying to do it as fast as possible with as little error as possible. This was her last year in highschool and she can't really say that she'll cherish it to the best of her abilities. Like most students, Yu Yan is excited that high school will be out in a few months.

Then, her parents would let waste her life at the company. On the condition that they can request three things from Yu Yan. This wasn't a big deal, they were the ones who helped Yu Yan start the company 5 years ago. As her parents were extremely successful business people, it wasn't much starting another business for their daughter to learn from.

With the passing of 5 years and the bits of information she gained from her childhood years, Yu Yan knew quite a bit and the business has grown. Makeup was always very popular after all. To hide the big and small flaws, gain confidence and feel empowered, who wouldn't want to feel that way?

The only thing Yu Yan regretted was that she was too young. She would have to hide her face for now. It was much better this way, less people would dare challenge a power that they were uncertain of. Adding to that, the media won't swarm over her and she would be able to lead a normal life without all her secrets being in the public view. But emotion almost always rules over logic, a small part of her wishes to be known as the CEO of a powerful business, to be envied in admired for her skill and not just her face.

The following day, there was glimmer in the student's eyes and the whispered followed Yu Yan's path to the school. The whispers were loud enough for anyone passing to hear, which was probably the purpose.

A smile on your face while a hydra is near, that takes quite some skill but it only excites the hydra more [1].

"I bet was crying all night."

"No duh, it's probably the first time this happened."

"To think someone would actually have the balls."

'Well....this is surprising,' was all yu Yan thought. She felt rather lucky that no one was talking about how she ditched a confession.

"Perhaps it didn't affect her that much, I mean she is still smiling."

"Heh, she's used to the guys all lining up to her to, offering their hearts. Don't you see how stiff her smile is today?"

When people believe something, their brains create an illusion that match with their belief. In the end seeing things that were never there. If you believe a rumor is true then every action the victim of the rumor does is nothing but a confirmation that the rumor is in fact true even if it wasn't. Unless proven otherwise, this may cause the false rumor to turn into an unshakable fact that will forever haunt the victim until they die.

'Ah, what did I miss now?' Yu Yan wanted to ask. Why was it that she was always the last to know of these things? 'How irritating.'

[1] I'm using a hydra as a metaphor for a rumor because whenever you try to stop it, you usually end up with even more rumors. Or do I have the wrong creature....?