Chapter 03: Back Home

A scent of familiarity welcomed Ginger as she opened her apartment's door where she's been living independently. "Home sweet home," she muttered to herself. She closed the door behind her and locked it before running towards her bedroom and plopping on the queen-sized soft bed. 

She buried her face in the comforter and smelled the lavender she left before going to the hospital. 'It felt great at home! I'm happy that I don't need to get locked up inside that hospital anymore.'

She rolled over so her back was on her bed and she was now facing her ceiling. 'I'm just surprised that my place is clean even though I was out for months. I wonder if someone has maintained the cleanliness of my apartment..'

She got up from her bed and went to her balcony. She opened it to feel the freshness of the breeze touching her face. Then suddenly, she remembered Charlie because that balcony was the place where they first kissed. She started longing for him because even after what he had done and left her, they shared so many memories especially that something happened to them already.

'Should I get back to him?' 

Ginger pulled out her phone and checked Charlie's social media. She was so focused on recovering back in the hospital and never touched her phone or stalked anyone. Now that she had already recovered, she started checking out the things that she missed. The lost times that she could have spent if she didn't get ill.

In those months, lots of things already happened. Her colleagues got married and already settled down, others got promotions while others decided to switch their careers and find other companies to work for. Some even started building their own business. 

"Good for them," she found herself saying out loud and smiling. She was genuinely happy for her colleagues even though they were not close. Then she started to stalk Charlie's social media and her eyes widened after seeing that, she got married to Charlotte. In their wedding photos, Charlotte's baby bump was already noticeable. Although it was not that big, you'd be able to tell that Charlotte was pregnant with Charlie's baby.

Charlotte was the heiress of the Vines Winery, the rival bar business of Ginger's old bar business — the one that fell into bankruptcy. Her hand trembled as her heart started to pound faster against her chest. 

"What in the —" she felt so weak and sick to her stomach that she found herself dropping on the floor with her eyes glued on their wedding photos. Ginger continued scrolling through his social media and saw that their wedding day was two months ago, a week after Charlie broke up with her. The realization started to sink in. 

"Did he...did he cheat on me and get Charlotte pregnant that's why he broke up with me and married her?" she said out loud. "H-He was playing around during my darkest times instead of being there for me?"

Once again, Charlie tore Ginger's heart into pieces. 

She aggressively got up on her feet and threw her phone on the wall, crushing her phone into pieces. "HOW COULD HE?!" she yelled with tears falling down her cheeks uncontrollably. She pulled the picture frame of them hanging on the wall and then threw it hard down the floor.

CLASH 

"All I did was to love him with all my whole heart! Why?!" she yelled again and picked up the glass of the frame that she shattered on the floor. Using that glass, she almost hurt herself with that but thankfully, she was able to control herself from doing self-harm.

No, she was not crazy. She was never crazy.

She was hurt — the pain that she failed to handle well.

All Ginger could do now was to drop on her knees and cry.

Or maybe not.

She stopped crying and wiped her tears away. 

"I should not cry over spilled milk," she clenched her fist and slightly punched the floor in anger and sadness. "I'll get back up again and make him feel what he made me feel."

ᯓ★

She was thrown out of the building because of the complaints she received from her next-door occupants about the noise and violence she made inside her apartment. 

"That girl was dangerous! She should be kicked out!" someone said and everyone agreed.

Majority won. So now, she ended up going back to her mother and her boyfriend's house in the meantime. She wanted to leave her apartment, anyway because her apartment was the place where Charlie and Ginger made so many memories — they slept in that bed, they had a simple dinner date, Charlie cooked for her that won her heart, and other happy memories that were all wasted because of what Charlie had done.

'It's time to move on and never look back,' she thought to herself as she rode a cab heading to his mom, Venus, and Bryan's home. 

As soon as Ginger arrived at Venus' house — mansion, she rang the doorbell and one of the maids answered. Venus had a huge garden with a fountain statue in front and five cars that they rarely use parked inside their huge garage. 

"Lady Ginger!" the voice said. "Is that really you?"

"It's nice to be back, Fionna," Ginger responded and smiled. "Can you open the gate for me? I'm looking forward to hanging out with you like the old times."

Ginger was close with Fionna, one of their servants that she treated as a close friend. They became friends when they were still little kids. They would play everytime Ginger wasn't allowed to go out and live a normal life as a child, playing with other children at the park.

"I'd love to!"

And with that, the gate automatically opened and Ginger started walking inside. While Ginger was heading inside, she saw Fionna running to her and hugged her tight. "We missed you so much, Ginger!"

"I missed you too," Ginger said and hugged her back. "I'm glad you're not acting too formal like before."

"Well, you did say to address you in a friendly manner, right?"

"And I am more comfortable with that," Ginger said. The two girls pulled away from each other then Fionna grabbed her stuff and carried them inside. "Is my mom there?"

"Yes, she's there. She's in the backyard, having a barbeque picnic with her boyfriend, Bryan," Fionna said. "But you know what, it's such a relief that you're now doing well. Sorry, I haven't got the chance to visit you. Your mom wouldn't let me near you."

Ginger heaved a sigh. Ever since they were young, Venus forbade Ginger to make friends with Fionna, or else, she would fire her. That's why Ginger and Fionna decided to keep their friendship a secret because knowing her mom, she would do everything that she says. Which is why she always gets what she wants. 

Bryan suddenly appeared. He looked more handsome now compared to the last time Ginger saw her.

"It's nice to see you again, my future stepdaughter," he greeted with his hands inside his pocket and a charming grin flashed on his face. "Glad to see that you're still alive."

"I would never be your stepdaughter. First of all, we're just the same age," she told him. "I personally don't like you but I could see that you love my mom and I just want to make her happy."

"Even though she never cared for you?"

Ginger didn't respond to that statement because she felt like Venus didn't care about her. If she did, she would have visited her in the hospital and been there for her. Where was she when she was battling cancer? Where was she when Charlie broke her heart and did her bad? What did she do to save her business?

Ginger just continued walking in silence as Bryan followed her inside. But then, Bryan made the wrong decision and wasn't careful about his words.

"I heard that you and Charlie broke up and a week after, he got married to your business rival," Bryan said. Ginger stopped in her tracks and shot her a sharp glare. "Want to do some revenge?"