Chapter 36: A Text to Lucien

Chapter 36: A Text to Lucien Seraphina’s POV No matter how often I reminded myself that I’d been reborn... but deep down, I was still the same. The same girl from the past, who was timid and fragile! And right now, I was again being weak. Like how I used to hide and let others demean me. But not this time. This second chance was a gift for me, and I couldn’t waste that. If I wanted to survive and to live... then I couldn’t afford to be a coward anymore. "Seems like you’re the one who is mentally disturbed," I said coldly, doing my best to stay calm. "Maybe you should be in the hospital instead of me." Her eyes widened in fury. "How dare a wench like you talk back to me!" she screamed, stepping forward with her hand raised like she was about to slap me. But I moved before she could touch me... I sidestepped smoothly before she could reach me. I couldn’t help but chuckle at her actions and turned toward her. "You say I belong in a mental hospital," I said in a sharp tone, "yet here you are... screaming, and throwing a tantrum in public. Who’s the mad one now?" "Security! Where is the security?!" the girl shouted when she had nothing left to say to me. Two guards rushed over soon after she called. One of them was an older man who looked at both of us. "Yes, Miss? What’s going on here?" "Throw her out!" she snapped as she pointed at me. "She was banned from this mall before! Don’t you remember?" Banned? I froze for a second. What did I ever do to deserve that? The older guard looked uncomfortable. I didn’t know why he was acting this way. Even when I entered the mall, he was looking at me. But I ignored that. Then his eyes met mine, and something rushed over to my memory lane. I knew this man. Damn! It seemed like I knew almost everyone but couldn’t recognize them. "Miss Lia," he said carefully, "that was in the past. We can’t just throw someone out like that anymore." Yes! Now I remembered him. He was the same man... the one who had helped me before when I was thrown out from here and was getting humiliated. He’d been the only one to show me kindness. Lia’s face turned red with anger. "So, now you’re on her side? Do you even know who I am?" "Yes, Miss," the guard said, his voice firm but calm. "We know. But we also know what’s fair." Lia was speechless. She looked stunned and furious. I took a small step forward and looked her in the eye. "Scream all you want. Say whatever you like. But I’m not that weak girl anymore." Lia’s eyes widened. The people around us began to whisper, watching the scene unfold. But this time... I wasn’t the topic of their discussion; rather, it was Lia herself. "I remember your name, old man!" Lia hissed in anger through her gritted teeth and turned on her heels. "Just wait. I’m going straight to the manager. Let’s see how long you keep your job after this!" Her heels clicked loudly as she stormed away in rage. What’s wrong with her? I thought as I watched her leave. It was one thing to hate me, but dragging others into it was pure evil! Why talk about taking someone else’s job? I clenched my fists. She didn’t even know how much that guard’s small act of kindness had meant to me in the past. And now she wanted to take his job away from him, just because she couldn’t humiliate me like before. But what should I do? How could I stop her from doing all such things to that man? There were only a few people in my life who had shown me kindness, and I didn’t want anyone to suffer because of that. I had already seen what happened to Emma in my previous life and how cruel they could be just for being associated with me. The memory still sent a chill down my spine. I was still racing my mind about what to do, and at last, the one name that came to my mind was ’Lucien’. I pulled out my phone as my hand trembled slightly. I was about to call him, but my fingers froze above the screen. What would I even say? That I was being humiliated again? That I couldn’t handle it alone? I didn’t want to sound weak. But... I needed him. I needed someone to stand beside me just this once. So instead of calling, I opened our chat and typed a message. ’Mr. Lucien, can you please come pick me up from the mall?’ I paused, swallowed my pride, and added, ’I have pinned my location. If you could come soon... I’d really appreciate it.’ I hit send and stared at the screen, hoping and praying that he would show up. "There she is! That’s the girl!" I was still staring at my phone screen when I heard Lia’s loud and sharp voice, which sounded far too smug. I looked up slowly. She had returned, but this time she wasn’t alone. There were three or four men in suits behind her. They looked clean and had sharp eyes. They didn’t look like ordinary staff to me. No, they were definitely from the higher-ups. My chest tightened at the sight. Why? Why all this fuss? I had just come to look around and stepped inside quietly like any other customer. And yet now... it felt like I was standing trial in the middle of a mall. "You’re here again!" one of the suited men stepped forward, pointing a finger directly at me. His voice boomed across the space. "How did she even get in? Didn’t we make it clear—anyone who looks like her is banned from this mall!" "And who gave you the right to say that?" A cold voice sliced through the tension. It was low and commanding, yet terrifyingly calm.