There was a common misconception that people have.
Beautiful women do not have to work hard.
Some even say they do not have to work at all.
But this was not always the case as some beauties who reached the top needed to prove themselves, as they stereotype the beauties in the world.
Once they reach the top of their career, people would start to question how they attained that level of success. This is when the doubts turned and spread into rumors, in some cases, they go to certain heights to disparage the beauties.
How often have you heard office rumors stating that one woman was able to climb the ladder of success due to being the mistress of the boss of the company?
Most people would prefer to think in a negative way, saying that woman would do anything for the sake of a promotion.
They assume that everything would be given on a silver platter as long as one had the beauty to attract all the males around them.
This might come handy in some cases but it does not mean that it will work all the time.
This was something Anne has experienced firsthand. What was worse is the women around her treated one another as enemies. They would start rumors behind each other's back in order to pull them down before they could even have the first steps towards success.
How often would she receive late notices from her co-workers when she was starting out as a model?
In the beginning of her career when she had to visit different modeling agencies for go-sees, other models would go out of their way to say something despicable behind her back just so they can one up in their careers.
These experiences from the past were almost forgotten due to the passage of time. She forgot how hard she had to work in order to reach the top.
After becoming successful, her lifestyle changed.
Everything and anything was one call away.
She had her manager and assistants to do everything for her, so she forgot.
It took her a while to finally realize that it was not the end of her life after experiencing her tragic accident.
Albeit she was still saddened as her one arm was gone and her relationship has turned sour, she planned to keep on going.
She planned to change.
She will change.
Anne was walking in the hallway with slow steps.
Two weeks have passed as she performed her physical therapy with diligence.
She followed her schedule to the tee, without complaining. Her improvement was slow, but she could feel the difference in her body. It was not long when she felt always tired and out of energy.
She had no exercise as she sat in front of her laptop doing nothing but browse the internet. She continued to live an unhealthy lifestyle by consuming fast food, cigarettes and alcohol.
She was never one to drink and smoke as she was too conscious of her skin, but after the accident, it was the only way for her to forget her problems.
She was released from the hospital.
She stopped in front of her door and put the bag she was holding on her doorstep.
She crouched down to find the keys to her apartment, she rummaged inside her bag and felt the familiar keychain.
She opened her door, the light from the opened curtains made the apartment visible from the inside.
If his husband saw the difference from before, he would surely be surprised. In fact, he might close the door and question if he had entered the right apartment.
The floor was clean, there are no remnants of empty bottles, cigarette butts or photo's scattered on the floor. Everything was arranged on the shelves and table. Her kitchen sink was empty, there were no used dishes in the sink that pile up like a small mountain. The room was well ventilated, the smell from the smoke of cigarettes are gone. The darkness from the room was now well lit.
She closed and locked the door once she picked up the bag she was carrying. She went straight to the kitchen table and laid the bag filled with food.
Anne looked at the clear containers filled with healthy food inside the bag.
She wanted to cook for herself, but she was still having problems adapting her left hand. It was difficult to use the knife with one hand, so she had to give up the notion of cooking for herself until she finds a way to be able to do things on her own.
She looked around her house, appreciating the cleanliness. It would have been easier to hire a maid to do everything for her, but she thought that would not change anything.
She wanted to try doing things herself, that's what she had decided, so that's what she will do.
She put the clear containers inside the refrigerator. It was now filled with food and drinks. However, there is no alcohol inside. She gave everything away to the guard downstairs.
She wanted to throw them away at first but some of the items were branded and expensive alcohol.
She decided to give it to the gentlemen who called for her husband to ask for help. She put everything in a basket with other items as a "Thank you" basket.
She decided to be kinder to the people around her especially those who treated her same after her accident.
It was easy to do as there are only few who maintained the relationship with her after everything.
She gave out a sigh as she took out one of the containers and a fork from the drawer.
She sat at her favorite spot on the couch.
The laptop was left in the same place as it has always been, but she never opened it once she got home. She did not want to go back to the same pattern she once had. She did not know if she was strong enough to face the news articles about her or her husband.
Once Anne thought of her husband, she bit her lip. She was still saddened by the fact that her husband was with another woman. She felt the betrayal piercing through her heart like a knife. She wondered how he could throw away everything…
They have been together for years. It was not something that could be considered as short.
She was caught up in her emotions when she suddenly heard the intercom.
Sfx *ring ring ring*
She was surprised. No one has visited her for a long time. She slowly stood up and went to the interface. It was the face of the guard from downstairs. One of which she gave a gift basket.
"Yes?" Anne asked while looking at the face of the man.
"Ms. Hale there's someone who is looking for you. We have not seen this person before so we like to confirm if you know this person." The guard said while calling for the person to show his face on the camera.
She could not see the face of the person as a bouquet full of flowers was covering the camera. The person must have been holding the flowers when he faced the camera.
"Sir, you have to put down what you are holding so your face could be seen by Ms. Hale." Anne heard the voice of the guard over the intercom and this made her curious as to who the person was.
The flowers were slowly removed from the camera angle and the shape of the person's head was starting to show in the interface.
The person looked mature and manly. He had a clean-shaven face with a clean-cut hairstyle. His jawline was prominent that perfectly matches his nose and lips while his piercing eyes gave a dignified look. His was wearing a well-fitted suit.
Once his whole face was seen on the interface, he gave a charming smile as he said, "Hey Anne, it's been a while."
Original novel by Chuchuwachuwa.