Drowning Into Grievance

A man and a woman standing on the footpath by the street, looking at each other, forgetting about where they were. They were so immersed in looking at each other's eyes that they didn't even care about what was happening around them. They didn't know they were captured by some reporter's camera.

The moment was beautiful and so was the picture. Both the man and the woman looked so beautiful together that the picture alone could make people envy the perfectness of the couple.

Beautiful moments can no longer be beautiful when you are someone unforgettable to the outer world. Annabelle was a little careless that day. She didn't know why she did that, showing all of her courage by wearing some clothes which would draw people's unnecessary attention. She knew that she wasn't standing in a position to freely walk around in the streets like that. But it was pretty long ago when she was seen in public like this.

She thought maybe she won't be followed by any creepy reporters anymore. After all, three long years passed after her retirement.

Then, why is this happening all over again? Why can't people just leave her alone? Why are they still so interested in a fallen star which had stopped giving any light long ago?

It was like each passing day, her life was becoming more and more dramatic. And here she was expecting that people would soon completely forget about the 'Annie' and then she could make a comeback as 'Ai' to them. But no, maybe it wasn't possible in this lifetime. She hates recalling her past connected with this name more than anything and still, this thing keeps coming to her life over and over like a vicious cycle.

That's why people say, you can never escape from what you did in the past, no matter what trick you pull out. All you can do is accept it calmly and live with it until you die.

Anna has to accept it too. Or else, she will suffer more than she is suffering now.

Yesterday, when Kiera barged into her apartment all of a sudden, she still didn't know what was going on the social media. There were huge shit talks about her. Some were saying she left the entertainment industry to find some sugar daddy-type guys and finally found a handsome and young one. The picture wasn't that clear to be exact, as it was clicked from a bit distance. But it was good enough to prove that the lady standing facing the tall guy was, of course, Annie, the former singer who retired early for some unknown reasons. The picture of the guy was not clearly captured but the paparazzi were able to capture his tall figure and one side of his flawless face. It was enough to alone understand his godly handsomeness.

Annabelle or Annie, she was a goddess to all her fans. But now, they feel hesitant to call her goddess anymore when they saw the tweet.

So, these years she was busy doing some nasty things rather than singing songs for her dear fans? That was kind of a betrayal to fans.

Is she in need of money that much? Didn't her company pay her enough? Or she needed more money as that was not enough for her?

At a point, they started to compare Megan with Anna. Megan was surely a woman without virtue from the start. But at least she didn't act like a goddess from the start and backstabbed them later. She never pretended to be someone perfect. On the other hand, Annie, who showed her perfectness over and over making people stuck in awe but inside, she is worse than Megan, isn't she?

Checking through those news, tweets, and comments, Anna was already tired. Her eyes were hurt. She didn't say anything until the morning. When she woke up today, at first, she asked Kiera if they are going to take a visit to Mr. Kavin's now. Somehow, she also trusts that old man. Things can't go on like this if she wants to live a peaceful life. If he can solve this messed-up situation, it will be a great help.

Kiera was at least expecting a little bit of reaction from Anna. But Anna was silent the whole night. She didn't utter a word. As if she has gone numb. She was acting quite normal but a lot quieter than usual days. What can she say to her when she herself didn't find a proper word to utter? She didn't know that right now consoling her would be better or not.

Why does God always make her life hard to live?

Soon after having breakfast, the two of them went to meet Mr. Kavin in his penthouse. This time he didn't risk meeting with them in his mansion or his office as it would be a little bit dangerous for Anna right now.

On the whole journey, Anna said nothing. Finally, they reached their destination. The penthouse looked quite lonely and quiet. Mr. Kavin came out himself to receive them as he heard the car screeching sound from inside.

After seeing the old man silently looking at her she couldn't help but greet him with a little bow. No one could understand her inner feelings by seeing her right now. She is like a black stone right now, not reflecting or showing any kind of picture in them but only gulping all the sadness into them.

Mr. Kavin is an experienced old man after all. He had witnessed many ups and downs of life with his own eyes whether it was his or some other person related to him. He knew very well that Anna was trying her best to put the strong facade on when she was probably completely broken inside.

Kiera was constantly checking if there are any paparazzi or reporters hiding near the penthouse though Kavin told her that this place was totally safe. It was quite far from his mansion and Anna's apartment but still, Kiera couldn't help but feel a bit wary.

At last, Kiera agreed to go inside the house once she confirmed there was no one lurking around here suspiciously. The old man sat beside the sofa where Anna was sitting. He slowly put a hand on her head and caressed her hair slowly. He didn't know what to do for this child but he wanted to do something for her.

"Annabelle? Do you know what the main thing is in this whole situation?"

Anna was both shocked and surprised by him suddenly calling her by her name though he always addresses her as 'Miss D'Costa'. His sudden question made Anna a little puzzled. She couldn't say anything in an instant but gazed at the old man with a questioning look.

"It is so fortunate that some people like Miss Simmons are still by your side. Acting strong in front of a close person like her would make her sadder. You should be happy knowing that in this difficult time of yours, there are some people like her who are so much concerned about you, right?"

Annabelle looked at Kavin's eyes as if she was trying to find the real intention of this old man. But what she saw was pure affection. Though she doubted her ability to know people by seeing their facial expressions because of what happened last time, she still had a little bit of trust in it as she could tell by seeing that Mr. Kavin was someone she could trust.

It's been a long time since she had heard such consoling words. No matter how she sees him, he just reminds her of her father. If he was here today, would he reassure her samely as Mr. Kavin? Or would he neglect her like she was nothing to him again?

Actually, she wasn't ignored, to begin with, but she was the one who always ignored her own parents, who hurt her own family, who scattered her own happiness. It was completely her fault from the beginning for what was happening in her life.

When Mr. Kavin got no reply, he bent down a little to see her face. He lifted her face which was facing the floor with his hands. But his eyes met her, he was stunned.

Anna was crying. She couldn't hold back anymore. Teardrops were dripping from her beautiful big eyes like pearls. How can she hold back when she is being consoled like that? The more she looks at Mr. Kevin, the more remembers about her father. Acting strong in front of the people who are like our family is really something foolish. The moment when you realize that they are your strength, there's no point in acting all mighty in front of them.

Right now, Kiera was more than a family member to Anna. In this big town, she could call no one her family except her. Of course, seeing her this way would really hurt her.

Also, there was another reason for her acting this way. The day before yesterday, after what happened between her and Theodore, she was more than sad about it. She didn't know why she felt so betrayed when it was not that big of a fact. But still, somehow she always feels more affected than she should be by everything he does.

This was already quite enough to give her stress, and now this came. She didn't know that someone followed them to the streets that day and captured them. Actually, she was quite clumsy that day, thinking she could actually walk like normal people on the streets. She thought everyone already forgot about her, so she can walk in the street freely from now on. But never in her wildest dreams, she thought she would be captured by some paparazzi. Looks like she really can't live her life like a normal human. Now she also made Theodore involved in this. Thank God, his face was not that clear in that photo. The picture was clicked after running away from the cafe that day.

As all these things came attacking her together at the same time, her grievance knew no bounds. She was so shocked and grieved that she became numb like that. Numb to all human feelings until this old man's caring words. He said nothing but a few words but enough to give her reason to feel secure which was something she needed to feel the most at this moment.

Seeing her crying face, Kiera felt like her heart was broken. That pained her so much but still, she was happy that Anna could let it out from her heart. She really is grateful to Mr. Kavin. If not for him, she couldn't make Anna normal this soon.

Anna soon regained her composure while Kiera was expressing her gratitude silently bowing her head to the old man. If he was not there for them today, maybe she couldn't make Anna free from her burdens. After all, people say shading tears help to wash out all the anxiety from people's minds.

"So, what is the plan then?"

Annabelle looked towards the old man as she wiped her tears. Damn… her eyes were already red like tomatoes.