(Elira's POV)
Splash.
Cold water hit my face, and I shot upright with a gasp.
"Princesses are sleeping while we're waiting for breakfast," my aunt Malry snapped in her usual angry voice. "Wake up and cook breakfast for us and finish the rest of the chores. Do you think we opened an orphanage here so you can do nothing?"
She turned and walked out before I could even wipe the water from my eyes.
"Get moving!"
Her footsteps faded down the stairs.
I sighed and rubbed my face, pushing my wet hair back. The water dripped down onto the thin mattress beneath me.
Room.
Well… calling it a room was being generous.
It was really just a storage space on the roof. Old boxes were stacked in one corner, broken furniture in another. The walls were cracked, and the tiny window barely let in any light.
But apparently this was where I belonged.
I slowly looked around the familiar mess.
Dirty walls.
Dust everywhere.
My thin mattress on the floor.
Everything looked the same as always.
But tonight… everything would change.
Tonight was my sixteenth birthday.
And tonight, I was running away.
A small smile tugged at my lips at the thought.
I had been planning it for weeks.
I stretched my stiff arms and stood up, folding the blanket on my mattress. Calling it a bed would be a lie. It was just a worn-out mattress that had probably been thrown away years ago before ending up here.
Still, it was mine.
I didn't even remember how many years I had lived in this house.
Maybe since I was six.
Maybe earlier.
Time kind of blurred together when every day was the same.
Oh—and I guess I should mention something.
I'm an orphan.
That lovely woman who just woke me up with a bucket of water? Aunt Malry. And her husband downstairs, Uncle Ron.
They "adopted" me from the streets when I was little.
Everyone in town thought they were so generous.
"Such kind people," they said.
"Taking in a poor orphan."
Yeah.
If only they knew the truth.
Because I knew better than anyone that they didn't adopt me out of kindness.
They adopted me because free labor is cheaper than hiring help.
And if I didn't do the work…
Well.
Let's just say Uncle Ron had a very quick temper.
I shook the thought away and grabbed some clothes from the small pile in the corner. Most of them were old and torn, but they were all I had.
I picked a beige pair of pants and a loose shirt.
The bathroom upstairs was barely big enough to stand in. The floor tiles were cracked, and the sink leaked constantly.
Still, I quickly washed up and changed clothes.
After tying my dark hair into a messy bun, I hurried down the stairs.
The house itself wasn't fancy. Just a normal middle-class home with creaky wooden floors and faded walls.
Aunt Malry and Uncle Ron were already sitting in the living room watching television.
Neither of them looked at me.
I quietly slipped into the kitchen and started making breakfast.
Eggs.
Bread.
Tea.
Simple things.
My hands moved automatically after years of practice.
Soon, footsteps echoed down the hallway.
"Good morning, Mom! Good morning, Dad!"
Nila.
Their daughter.
"Good morning, dear," Aunt Malry replied immediately in a sweet voice I had never once heard directed at me.
"Oh princess, come sit," Uncle Ron added proudly.
Princess.
Yeah.
Right.
Don't get me wrong—Nila was pretty.
But she also wore so much makeup that her face looked like a decorated cake.
And her personality?
Let's just say princess wasn't exactly the word I'd choose.
"Hey, idiot," Uncle Ron suddenly shouted toward the kitchen. "Is breakfast ready yet?!"
I flinched slightly but answered quickly.
"It's ready, Uncle. I'm just bringing it."
I carried the plates to the table and began arranging everything neatly.
Eggs.
Bread.
Tea.
Jam.
Once everything was set, they immediately started eating.
No "thank you."
No "good morning."
As usual.
Before anyone noticed, I quickly grabbed a slice of bread, spread a little jam on it, and took a bottle of water.
That would be my breakfast.
I slipped toward the door quietly.
Because today I had something important to do.
Today was the last day I would ever live in this house.
And tonight—
I would finally be free.