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frakadal · 10 months

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The Midnight Beast

Chapter 1: Unexpected Confrontations

"You are what again?! You're fired?! How am I supposed to feed you and your cousins now?! What did you do at work?!" My aunt's voice echoed through the dining room, filled with rage and frustration.

Sitting at the table, I kept my head low, avoiding eye contact with my furious aunt. It felt like being scolded as if I were a child who had forgotten to eat her lunch. But I was a twenty-five-year-old woman who had lost three jobs this year alone, and it wasn't the most pleasant situation, I know, and I'm working on it.

Meanwhile, my spoiled cousins, whom I didn't particularly care for, were in their room, immersed in their expensive PCs, taking turns sneaking glances at me and laughing—typical bullies straight out of the novels I used to read. I wished I could give them a good punch, but I knew I'd only end up with a bright red mark on my own face.

We lived in a simple city apartment with three rooms, accommodating my aunt, uncle, two cousins, and me. It wasn't the grandest place, but it was home.

"... your boss! You seduced your boss, didn't you?! And you got caught!" My aunt's hand slammed on the table, making me flinch. Her accusation took me by surprise, and I raised my brows, widening my eyes, still refusing to look at her, my gaze fixated on the poor dining table that endured her angry fists.

"... I spent so much money on you! Do you have any idea how much I paid for your college tuition?! And this is how you repay me?!" My aunt continued her tirade.

I fought the urge to snicker, managing to hold it in. I rolled my eyes, my gaze still averted. I was certain my aunt had taken the savings my mother had left me—savings worth more than my college tuition. I had attended a public state university, unable to even consider applying to private ones due to my aunt's influence.

"... are you even listening to me?! If you had an affair with your boss, you should have been more careful! And now look at what happened!"

Finally, I lifted my eyes to meet my aunt's fiery red hair and furious eyes. Her cheeks were flushed, probably from anger. It suited her well—the red, just like her soul.

"I wasn't fired because of an affair," I calmly stated, staring back into her blazing eyes, surprised at how composed my voice sounded despite the alcohol in my system.

"I don't believe you, Irene!"

"There was this creepy pervert who tried to grope me! I didn't know he was an important investor, so I kicked him!" I defended myself, my hands involuntarily gesturing as I spoke.

Deep down, I knew I would have kicked him even if I had known he was important. I couldn't stand someone violating my personal space like that.

My aunt glared at me, her hands firmly planted on her hips.

"I kicked him pretty hard, but I didn't mean for him to go flying across the room and break his arm!" I continued, my hands illustrating the incident.

I had been shocked when a disgusting hand grabbed my chest while I was organizing files for a meeting. Without hesitation, I kicked the owner of those perverted hands, and before I knew it, he was screaming on the other side of the room like a banshee. His screams irritated me to no end, and I wished I could have shoved a towel in his mouth to silence him.

Thankfully, my bosses arrived and witnessed the scene before I could worsen my "sin." They were shocked by what they saw—a large man writhing on the floor, screaming and a slender, enraged girl standing nearby. I was certain they would remember that scene for the rest of their lives.

Just as I had hoped during my interview, I had made an impression. Not exactly the kind of impression I had envisioned, but I had achieved my goal. I just wished I had done it in a less embarrassing and infuriating way.

"It's because of your clothes! Why did you choose to wear that? You're just like your mom!" My aunt exclaimed, pointing an accusatory finger at me.

"What's wrong with my clothes? They're perfectly decent," I retorted, rising from my seat and twirling around in front of her, further fueling her anger.

I wore a long, loose skirt that reached below my knees, paired with a brown blazer over a white polo. I failed to see what was wrong with my outfit and what it had to do with my mother.

"Just like your mom! She came here with a big belly! We don't even know who your father is! I won't be surprised if you showed up with a big belly too!" my aunt fumed, smoke practically billowing out of her ears.

My patience reached its limit, and in a moment of defiance fueled by the alcohol in my system, I couldn't help but blurt out, "Well, at least she gave birth to a beauty like me! Unlike you!"

My aunt gasped, a look of surprise and betrayal crossing her face. I scoffed and rolled my eyes, trying to mask my own shock at what I had just said. I couldn't believe those words had come out in front of my aunt.

But what I had said was true. I was indeed beautiful, with my black raven hair contrasting against my pale blue eyes. My body was slender yet strong enough to send a grown man flying across the room, as had happened earlier. I often projected a cold and harsh personality, quite the opposite of my true self.

"Are you saying my kids are ugly?! How dare you!" my aunt retorted, anger flashing in her eyes as she scrutinized me from head to toe. "You're the ugly one here! My children are fine and beautiful!"

"Their faces may be fine, but their personalities are far uglier than their looks," I shouted, pointing an accusing finger at my cousins, who stared at me in disbelief.

Anger consumed me, releasing years of pent-up frustration. I had never felt this liberated and angry before. It was an oddly satisfying feeling.

"What are you saying, you b-" My cousin's words were cut short by my aunt's stern glare.

"Look at you! Such foul language!" I accused my cousin, my eyes wide and filled with judgment. My aunt's glare turned into anger, and she slapped my hand away, leaving a stinging red mark on my skin.

Rubbing my hand, I glared back at my aunt, a defiant expression on my face.

"You! Shut your mouth!" she exclaimed, raising her hand, ready to strike me across the face.

My eyes widened, and my hands instinctively shot up, prepared to catch her hand. But then the door clicked open, and we both froze, our hands suspended in mid-air.

Standing in the doorway was my uncle, my real uncle, the brother of my mother. Unlike my demonic aunt, he was handsome and kind. I had always adored him, and it was unfortunate that his children hadn't inherited any of his traits. Sometimes I wondered what he had done in his past life to deserve such a stroke of bad luck.

"What's going on here?" he inquired, his voice laced with concern.