1 Preface

She walked through a door, there were so many strangers, among them she saw two people in the altar, she looked around and realized she was at someone's ceremony, she couldn't see who those people were, but it broke her heart, all she knew was something is killing her from the inside and she felt hot tears streaming down her eyes burning her cheeks. She ran out of the hall and kept running through the roads. When she reached back home, she walked into her empty house, everything in the house shattered into pieces and broken, she senses that something terrible had happened, she couldn't find her father anywhere and searched for her mother. She walked into one room, and saw her mother, lying on the floor, curled up, crying. "Leave me alone, just get lost, I don't want to see you," she heard her mother yelling at her, asking her to leave. Unable to bear the pain, she decided to kill herself.

She shuddered and woke up very early in the morning. She was sweating badly and panting along. She decided to take a shower and get ready. She packed her backpack and put on her sneakers. She decided to finish off some things before he woke up. So she left the condo silently without letting him know, secretly. She got out on the road very early in the morning. Yet the streets were busy, buzzing with people getting to works and opening the shops. She entered a coffee shop and decided to kill time until the time of her appointment. It was only six-thirty she had another three hours to pass. Miranda stepped out getting her coffee and took out the novel she packed with her from his place. She decided to read them. She walked over to the nearest park in the city and settled down under a tree. She wasn't expecting the book she liked to be turning out exactly as she predicted. She took a deep breath and closed the book, planning to not read it further, afraid of what it holds in between the pages towards the end and in her life. She reached on time for the appointment in a nearby hotel, a breakfast meeting with one of popular the businessmen in the city. Even though she shivered a little, certain words kept flashing in her head that gave her confidence, and a will to face everything until the end of the meeting.

"Why is that everything you touch slowly dies, my dear girl, you must be born with such bad luck," the words haunted her.

"You should have acted wisely and made the right choice not to meddle with us,"

"Us, you mean to mention the status, don't you? Because I come from a very normal background I am supposed to give up everything I worked hard on, is that what you mean?"

Everything echoed in her ears just like it took place a day before. William was sitting right in front of her by the time she finished her thoughts. She stood up and greeted the elderly person before her. She began the conversation by apologizing first.

"Am sorry for asking you to meet with me early in the morning,"

"It's alright, I have been meaning to meet with you anyway," he said. "Tell me," she looked at him for a moment.

"I wanted to tell you that," but he asked her to stop it suddenly.

"Don't, I don't want you to speak for someone anymore, I don't wish to hear that,"

"Even if it means that this is one of the greatest things as a man he could for a whole place and help thousands of people, do you still wish to hold on to your pride? And because I was involved since the beginning?" she bit him with the words. She could sense how he was trying to control his temper. Instead, William laughed breaking her expectation on him to get angry. She looked at him confused and tired. She wondered how people faced him at work every day.

"Stop it, stop it, I know what your point is, I don't wish to argue about it," he said and ordered breakfast for two. "The audacity you had to speak up with me, don't think I have forgotten about it," he reminded her and they waited until the food was served. William asked her to eat but she refused until she settled the matter with him. "Its winter, you should dress warm," William advised her as he sipped his English breakfast tea.

"Thank you for your concern sir,"

"Don't call me that," he said and looked at her with a serious expression. There was complete silence for a few minutes before he began the conversation again. "It will be permitted as sister university of our main campus, along with hostel for exchange program students, request for arts, science, agriculture, and veterinary courses will be applied, nothing more, but I still won't guarantee it," he passed the information even before she began her attempts. "I will set up a meeting with people concerned, why don't you let it go?" she smiled finally and let out a huge sigh of relief. She clearly understood his intentions and concerns. She took the glass of water in front of her and drank them. She dug into her breakfast and thanked him once again. He noticed the tears in her eyes sparkling as she controlled herself not burst in front of him.

"Where are you going," William asked her once they stepped out of the restaurant.

"Where I belong," she said and bid him farewell.

"Why don't you try living for yourself this time?" he said as she walked away. A weight in the chest was put off, the reason that required time and demanded time from her, she solved it for them, for her. But she wasn't sure how the reactions were going to be. Preparing herself to face the worst, she boarded the bus back to her home full of hopes than tears. She kept thinking about the event that took place the day before. She told herself that it was more than enough just to know what was going on with two of them. She counted on all her luck and all of her dreams that stood long away for her to reach for them, even though things were getting difficult for her. She took out the box and opened them. She sat staring at the snowflake pendant and brushed them with the finger. Because she had no idea about which door to open anymore, her mind unsettled and disturbed because this time things were pretty clear in her head.