~~~~FEW WEEKS BEFORE~~~~
"What would you like to do after college?"
"Probably work at Flores Corp. It has been my dream since I was little. I heard they value potential."
"And you think you are the potential they need?"
"Yup. The heiress' potential husband." The others mocked him.
"Potential husband? Gabriela doesn't even look at you. You're just like a crumb under her feet. She's so mighty."
"You're right. I wish I could have her. But it'll remain nothing but a wish."
"Same. Her picture of her at her father's wedding has been my wallpaper ever since." He turned his phone screen to his friends.
"Fuck, she's beautiful."
"Beautiful is an understatement. She's drop-dead sexy. Her lips are so kissable and plump."
"She is a sumptuous meal."
"I saved another picture of her on the internet. She was wearing this pink gown that hugged her curves so tight. I was so hard staring at that picture."
"True! When I laid my eyes on that photo, I imagined her naked on my bed."
"Have you seen her playing dodgeball? My eyes moved at the pace of her boobs."
"Someday I'll suckle them."
"And her waist? She adorns it with the most expensive chains!"
"I'll draw her boobs and glue the picture to my room's wall." Miguel came out of nowhere and punched the last speaker on the face.
He fell to the ground and his friends were shocked. He bent, pulled the guy back up and held his shirt tightly in his fist.
"You asshole! If you wanna draw, why didn't you go to the arts department? Did you study business administration just to stare at Gabriela?" He was roaring in anger.
"And you," He faced another guy who was already trembling.
"You imagined her naked on your bed. Don't you dare talk about her like that ever again."
"Miguel, c'mon dude, we were just chatting – " The next punch made another guy pass out. Blood was oozing out of his nose.
"This should be the last time I hear you or anyone else talking about Gabriela in such a disgusting manner." He snatched the phone.
"Change this wallpaper..."
"I...uhm.."
"Fucking change it right now! Are you going to do that or I take this phone with me?"
~~~~PRESENT~~~~
"I – I'll like to go home, now, guys..." Claudia's voice slurred. She was tipsy. Sandra was asleep lazily on the table.
"Are you sure you can go home? Right now? Its late and you're drunk. You should sleep over." Miguel offered.
"Sleep over? O..okay...thank you Miguel. Thanks for being...a – good ... friend. Thanks for not forgetting the old times..."
"Hey, Sandra." Rafael touched Sandra's arm to call her attention and she raised her head.
She was extremely drunk.
"Rafael...." She smirked.
"Did you call your driver to pick you up?"
"No...put me on your bed instead..." Isabella and Michelle giggled.
"Hey..Sandra, what about Dedra?"
"Huh??"
"Dedra. Your little sister."
"Who's Dedra??"
"The girl who had her quinceanera just recently. Your little sister." Rafael raised his voice.
"Ohhh! Her. She doesn't know I'm here."
"Okay. Where's your phone, let me call her."
"M-Miguel...where's my room? I mean, our room." Claudia stood up, staggering towards him.
"Room? There are no rooms prepared for your stay. Some of your friends are asleep over there on the terrace with their sleeping bags. You could share with someone."
"Share? How could you? You're a bad host. You knew you were having guests...why didn't you prepare any rooms for them? Is this how stupid you are?!" Claudia screamed drunkenly.
"Hey. You are so drunk. You can't go home. Sleep on the rooftop. Daniel and his friends set up a tent. You could share with them. You could share with anyone else."
"Daniel. You keep throwing me to Daniel. Why can't you have me? Why can't you love me?" Claudia fell to the ground.
"Stay there." Miguel shrugged and left.
"We only invited everyone for a basketball practice. Not to get drunk and end up sleeping over. This isn't our home." Damien rolled his eyes.
"We'll get going now." Diana chipped in.
"Are you sure you can hit the road like this?"
"Drop us off. I have a night shift, Diana and Carissa needs to get home too." Damien nodded and they were set to leave.
"Isabella?" Rafael called.
"Yeah. You arrived back home to your little puppy. Is that what I am?" She questioned, sounding serious.
"Um...I don't understand you. There are no rooms for a sleepover so I have to drop you off."
"You don't understand me. Why did you get Sandra home first? Does she matter so much to you?" Rafael smiled a little.
"She must have done wrong but she's our guest and I have to get her home. Plus, she's Dedra's sister and Dedra's a good person."
"What about me? You tell me everyday that you like me yet you don't show it. If you like me, you should get me home first." She threw her head back with closed eyes and Rafael pulled her close to himself.
"I'm sorry. Shall we?"
"Humph. I didn't like the way she was smiling at you."
"Are you jealous?"
"I'm jealous. I can't share you with anyone." His heart leaped for joy.
She was drunk and was finally going to trust him for a moment.
"Let's go home, Isabella. Can you walk?" She shook her head.
"Lift me." Isabella whispered.
~~~THE NEXT MORNING~~~
Gabriela didn't have any dreams until this one.
The Sea queen begging her to break the Prince's curse. Her eyes opened wider in shock when she realized where she was lying.
At the doorstep.
Her phone and bag were on the ground next to her.
"Oh gosh..." She recalled that Damien had dropped her off outside and she didn't go inside.
She just spent the night there.
The hangover made her head spin. She had too much to drink.
She dialed the first contact that came to mind.
"Hey...Miguel..."
"Gabriela, what the fuck happened to you? Where did you spend the night?"
"Um...me, Damien gave us a ride. I spent the night at..home. At my doorstep, actually." Her voice was still groggy from sleep.
"Doorstep? Ah. I was searching everywhere for you. I never knew you were with Damien. Gosh, I was so scared." Miguel's voice was laced with relief.
"Are you cursed?" Miguel was taken aback.
Gabriela's hand flew to her mouth.
"Sorry - I wasn't thinking before I spoke..I was just too foolish to ask you that question...I apologize."
"Cursed? Do you want to talk about it?"
"Maybe. There's a Prince in my dreams. I wouldn't say he's haunting me but he's always appearing. I told you about it sometime."
"Oh yeah. You did. Is he in love with you?" Miguel grinned.
"No. He's in love with some other girl named Sophia. That girl is the sea witch's daughter. And he just - fell for her. Actually, the sea witch was the one who cursed the Prince."
"Is this a fairy tale?"
"No, I swear, I'm telling you the truth. This marine world's always appearing in my dreams every fucking time and whenever I tell Isabella, she's always saying its about you and I. I never believed her and now - I still don't. It can't be. You don't like a girl named Sophia, do you?"
"Of course I do! Didn't I ever tell you about Sophia? I'm so into her." He teased, trying his best to sound serious.
"Miguel, I'm not joking."
"I'm not joking either."
"You're in love with Sophia, it means you're cursed."
"I'm not cursed."
"Then how are you in love with her?"
"It just happened."
"Damn you." Gabriela cussed and hung up.
"He doesn't seem to understand how frustrating this is!" She shouted.
~~~~9PM, GABRIELA'S APARTMENT~~~~
"Hi, Dad."
"Gabriela! What's up?"
"Nothing's up, Dad. Its just boring preparing for our final exams. But, exciting. I can't wait for this whole thing to end. Its still a month away but I feel like its tomorrow. The notes are all piled up for me to study, I don't know what to do!" She yelled childishly.
"Hey. You have to calm down, okay? Anyways, there's an assignment for you."
"Geez, what's that?"
"Mr. Lander's marketing team is coming for dinner tomorrow. They want to meet you and discuss business. I want you to make a very good impression as usual. And I know you can do this."
"Dad, can we talk about something else other than business?" Gabriela sounded uninterested.
"Will you do this for me?"
"Sure, Dad. I can't say no. I know we'll have a healthy partnership. Veronica Lander and I are very good friends already."
"I'm glad. Thank you sweetheart. Did you visit your sister?"
"I've been busy lately. I'm sure Miguel's checking up on her."
"Did you just say Miguel?" Gabriela was flustered.
"Y-Yes, I-he said I shouldn't worry too much about her. He's paying the bills."
"What? And you allowed him? He shouldn't have gone that far..."
"It's nothing. He's happy doing it." Gabriela couldn't stop herself from smiling.
"I'm glad. He's such a nice guy."
"He is." Her grin lingered.
"Are you smiling?"
"How do you know that?" She was surprised.
"I know how you sound when you are grinning uncontrollably."
"Dad, I wanted to say something important." She mentioned to change the topic.
"Um...I'm all ears."
"Dad, I need help. I don't wanna sleep anymore knowing I'll have really confusing dreams. And I'm not happy about it. Isn't there anyone in the world to tell me what the dreams mean?"
"Have you tried telling any of your friends?"
"They keep talking nonsense. And it irritates me that they think that way. I want someone who would think deeper and look from a different angle."
"I understand you, dear. But for now, I want you to focus on your exams. Focus on your graduation - focus on being successful, focus on being the heiress of Flores Corp. Focus on everything you need to. Forget those dreams. We'll talk about it, much later."
~~~~~THE WHITE'S ACADEMY~~~~~
"Hey, Gabriela!" Kendall waved. Gabriela walked towards her with a lit up face.
"Hi, Kendall."
"You look amazing as always, Gabriela."
"Thanks." She wanted to walk away.
"Wait. Can you please help me with something? My sister has a presentation tomorrow and she really needs aid in her project. Do you have any ideas about consumer behavior in marketing?"
"Oh, that. Its exactly the topic my dad just texted. I also have a meeting today. We'll be discussing the exact thing. Follow me with your pad and pen, I'd be happy to teach you a lot of things!"
"Alright, Gaby! You're the best!"
"Here are the tips. All you need to do is to read and understand, then you're good." Kendall handed her notes to Claudia, who was glancing through.
"But how did you know the topic?"
"My mom simply asked Dad about it. She even told him that I have some great ideas. And coming from that bitch, Gabriela, he'd be so proud to hear me tell those people such great things!" Claudia smirked.
"Aren't you doing mandatory cleaning anymore?"
"I wouldn't do something that dirty. I'm Alejandro Flores' daughter. I'm from such an influential and powerful family. My dad donates billions to this bloody school. They wouldn't dare treat me like garbage." Claudia said proudly.
"You're absolutely right. Now Miss. Flores, I'd like to get paid and vanish into thin air. Before Gabriela sees me with you."
"Get paid? Do you actually want money for this?"
"You promised me money, Claudia! What the fuck are you talking about?" Kendall raised her voice.
"Hey. I'll pay you later, okay?"
"You never said later! Why are you changing your mind? I need that money urgently!"
"Shh, what if someone hears you?"
"I want them all to hear! How you sent me to get a job done and you're refusing to pay me. I won't lose money and lose my man! You stole my man!"
"Stole your man? How did I..."
"Why were you staring at Clement like that? Since you laid your button eyes on him, he doesn't talk to me anymore. He ignores me."
"Ew, he's not even my type."
"Yeah right. Pay me right now, Claudia Flores! Or else, I'll yell."
"You are already yelling."
"Pay me, Claudia!"
"Alright, keep your voice down. Let's go into the bathroom and I'll pay you."
~~~~~
Gabriela twinkled like a star, notwithstanding her casual attire.
She was wearing an ash colored midriff top and a high-waist baggy pants. Her hair was tied in her usual evening messy bun with curly strands adorning her face.
She took a few selfies, stared at the mirror, twirled and bounced on the bed, still admiring herself when her phone buzzed. It was Michelle on video call.
"Michelle!" She greeted her, smiling cutely.
"Gabriela, I saw your pictures! You look great."
"You're looking great too."
"Well, I called because of my...new friends. They are dying to meet you."
"Guys," Michelle called out.
"Gabriela's here."
"Gabriela!!!" The two girls were squealing.
"Hi."
"Wow you're stunning!"
"She's so gorgeous!"
"Gabriela, is this really you?"
"I'm such a big fan of you!"
"I saved your latest post. I'll never be able to get over that pout."
"I'm a big fan of your pouty lips!"
"My gallery is full of your pictures!"
"We adore you!"
"Thank you so much, girls. Its really nice to meet you. What are your names?"
"I'm Charlotte."
"I'm Wren!"
"And we work at Lumi's Kitchen!" They chorused.
~~~~~
The marketing team arrived and took a seat after being ushered to the living room.
"Where's your daughter? We can't wait to meet her."
"She's upstairs. I'll call - "
"Hello, our esteemed guests! I'm Jennie Flores, Alejandro's beautiful wife," Jennie interrupted.
"Oh, thanks for the hospitality."
"My pleasure. Make yourself comfortable while you wait for the oldest daughter of this family. You wouldn't wanna skip her like an irrelevant ad because you're so excited to meet the heiress. Her name is Claudia. You must have heard a lot about her." Jennie's expression was graceful.
"Oh, we haven't heard about her." Her smile faltered a little.
"It's okay. Tonight, you'll see and chat with her." Their team leader was getting impatient.
"Um...sorry ma'am, but we are here for Gabriela."
"It's okay, I know. Speaking of Claudia, she's right here." Claudia stepped out of her room wearing a long black evening gown with high slit and a pair of black kitten heels. Her long hair matched with her outfit's color.
Alejandro was confused.
"Honey, Claudia here also has something to say about consumer behavior. She has also learnt a lot and she deserves to express her feelings, too. Can you please give her a few minutes? Her speech could change everything positively." Jennie spoke.
"C'mon, sweetie. Show them what you've got." Jennie sat next to her husband, giving Claudia a motivating look.
Claudia sat in front of the marketing team, who had developed a bit of interest in her speech.
"Hi, everyone. I'm Claudia Flores and just like my mom has said earlier, I'm here to share a few ideas that I hope would help this partnership. Firstly, knowing our target audience in and out is really important. We should know their pain points and what they expect from us. Secondly, we need to leverage our social proof. We can't go around with the previous ratings to keep our company going. We need to build trust with ratings and reviews."
"Does that include creating fake accounts to give our companies' positive reviews?"
"I never said so."
"Then how do we build our social proof?" The team leader questioned.
"I-I think its all about making them understand what they need to buy from us."
"Buy? Miss. Claudia, you're getting it all wrong! How do we make them approach us? You didn't start from scratch. You started giving us tips all of a sudden. And plus, those are old strategies. We're partnering with Flores Corp to make a change. Don't take us back to those old stories!" The team leader was annoyed.
"Sorry, I'm late." Heads turned.
It was their director, Veronica Lander looking hotter than ever, walking towards them elegantly.
"My team and I will not listen to Claudia's tips for the rest of the night. She literally stole those ideas from an outdated source. Those strategies sound too lame for a billion dollar partnership project."