6. Ella

The nights and the days were now filled with fear. Ella wasn't hearing things. She wasn't imagining that someone was looking at her every minute. The guy she saw in front of the convenience store was the one who had been following her.

She was successfully manipulating herself to believe that it was all in her head but now she has clearly seen him.

There were so many theories and so much to think about. Only if Denial was here, her life would have been a little easier. He would have solved most of her problems. But he wasn't here. He disappeared leaving a message that he had some work to deal with and he would be black in some time. It's been months and he has not come. She was really on her own. No one to look up or to rely on.

Ella was lost in her thoughts when she felt like bumping into someone. There should be a person who reads spells on her on a regular basis or how else was her life supposed to be this difficult naturally?

Ella cursed on herself a million times for being careless. She smashed herself into Julie Clarkson and all of the food on her tray was on her dress; not any dress but a dress from Louis Vuitton's, winter collection. She was doomed and there was no way to be rescued

"What the fuck have you done?" Julie yelled, her voice was itching, really itchy. Ella had nothing to reply with.

Why did she even decide to eat lunch? She asked herself angrily

"You ruined my dress!" Her scream was ear tearing. She knew the only option was to apologize but her self-esteem wouldn't let her mouth utter the word sorry to someone like Julie. So, she stayed silent.

She was staring at Julie, she should have kept her eyes low but she wouldn't. She wanted to yell at her face that this position belongs to her. That she was still the Queen, not her.

"What the hell are you staring at?" Julie shouted, looking at her with wide eyes. Ella lowered her gaze. She was already in a lot of trouble and couldn't ask for more. "Hey! I am talking to you" She screamed again and hit a hand at her forehead. Ella inhaled sharply. If it wasn't for how poor she has become, she would have thrown double the amount of money at her face "You should have walked with your eyes open" even though her inner self was pleading that it is not a good idea to talk back, she didn't listen

"What the hell did you just say?" Julie was left in shock as if she never expected her to talk like that "Have you freaking lost your hearing?" Ella said with a smirk. She had to live a moment of peace, even if it resulted in a disaster.

"You lost everything but haven't lost that attitude, huh?" Julie's cries were thunderous and for a reason it was peaceful. She made her pissed. "Will be saying the same to you, soon" Ella was definitely overconfident and reckless. Since she had no control over her nerve and caused a lot of problems to herself, she has to disappear before Julie regains her senses and asks for money.

To vanish, she took a step in the opposite direction. Someone was there and this someone was blocking her way. She wanted to kill him right at the moment.

Ella looked at Alex with a furious gaze, he told her to turn around with a moment of his eyes and she listened because it was the only choice

"Pay me the money for my dress," she said. Ella laughed because she was penniless. "It wasn't my freaking fault" Julie took a step back "Who's fault was it?" She yelled to the students present in the cafeteria and all of them replied in a collective scream "Ella's" Julie smirked and Ella's confidence started to shed. "Pay me" Ella kept her mouth shut. She called by really foul words to herself for not doing it soon. "Now you have lost the nerve, huh?" Ella didn't lift her eyes. It was humiliating and she needed to stop doing anything stupid.

"Have you finally realized that you are just a mere shadow of what you used to be?" For another time she stopped herself from thinking about what would be the consequences as she walked a step. She grabbed Julie by her collar and yanked her hard "Don't think you freaking own this place. Just wait until I dethrone you and take this position back, You bloody fool" Suddenly Julie's screaming voice went hush. She looked at Ella just like she remembered it to be; with fear.

Ella wasn't herself so calm when she felt someone grabbing her by hand. She looked around and it was Alex "Let go of her collar," he said with a deadly stare and it involuntarily made Ella act on his command. She let her go and the next she felt was her face burning with pain. It was a sharp sting. Julie slapped her, making her feet tremble. Alex's hand was the only thing that gave her support from falling down.

"How dare you threaten me, Ella? Have you forgotten your place?" Ella didn't say anything but stared at her and jerked his hand away. She was feeling angry. She just wanted to punch Julie to make her stop talking. After a second, she parted her lips "You need your money right? Fine, send me your account details, I will transfer your freaking money!" There was blood in her eyes, a stare that could burn her into ashes. She has hurt her pride.

"Do you even have money?" Julie mocked a laugh. "If you love causing drama this much then you should be in movies," she said with a click of her tongue. It felt peaceful leaving Julie speechless "Stop crying and send me the bank details. Everyone has seen how greedy you are for money" Julie's face went red. Ella embarrassed her in front of the entire school but this wasn't the time to celebrate.

Ella turned around and saw that face again. She gave a tough stare to Alex and then walked away.

When she threw cold water at her face in the school washroom, she finally came to her senses. She looked at herself in the mirror and then blinked "What the hell have you done, Ella?" She asked her reflection and neither of them had a memory of whatever happened in the past few minutes. "Oh, shit! You know that you are poor af. You have only a hundred dollars in your bank account and that dress cost 3,550" She hit her head hard but it did nothing. She was in a messed-up situation. Her life hasn't been so nice to her and now this "Julie you freaking pieces of shit! I am going to kill you" She yelled. She could have checked if there was anyone in the bathrooms because it would be embarrassing. Too late. A girl came out of one of the bathrooms, staring at her, weirdly.

She didn't look at her and pretended to be busy, washing her hands. She looked calm and could swear that she had not even heard a single shout "If one of Julie's friends was here instead of me, you would have been in trouble" the girl said.

Ella recognized her. The girl with amber eyes and brown shoulder-cut hair was the same person she had always tried to keep her distance from. It was Hanna, one of a few scholarship students studying at Veritas Law School. She didn't really dislike Hanna but something happened a few months ago that made every encounter with her awkward.

"Didn't ask for your advice" even if not by words, she was embarrassed by the face, too much embarrassed.

"Get this one advice from me, Ella. You are no longer in that rich club. I don't intend to mock you but the more you stay away from those people the safer you will be" It was funny how this felt like she was insulting her. Ella was in the rich club. Hanna used to stay away from her, she was talking about her and telling Ella to stay away from people like her.

Ella didn't give her a reply and Hanna just walked out.

For that one moment, she might have forgotten about the life-threatening situation she was in.

•••

Thinking about two different things, making sense of none, she walked to the building.

The feeling of being followed was becoming more vivid with every passing day. She could almost feel him walking step by step with her but when she turned around there was no one.

She didn't really have time to think about it right now. What Hanna said was actually right. She should stay away from Julie and all of her friends but there was a tiny little problem. She has already gotten herself involved with her "Oh you freaking, Idiot" Ella yelled to herself, hitting her head with knuckles. She was done with this attitude now. She tries to control it but sometimes, living the moments of peace is more important.

Ella could stand in front of the building and curse at her for hours but if she keeps standing outside on a cold winter night, she would definitely catch a cold and she does not want to pay those frightening hospital bills.

She decided to go in.

As she walked in, a couple of other residents passed by. They greeted her with a moment of their heads and she ignored them. She yelled at herself to behave and greeted the other neighbors herself.

When she reached her apartment door, something was waiting for her there, a shopping bag.

A moment of scare passed over her. She looked around and there was no one just like the last time. She waited for someone to come and take it if they left it there but no one came.

After a while of waiting, she took a deep breath, she picked it up and there was her name on it.

For Ell. Her eyes stretch just like her lips "Is it from Denial?" She almost yelled in excitement because he is the only one who calls her by this name.

Ella opened the door, closed it, threw her bag on the couch, and went straight to her room. She sat on her bed and took a deep breath. Her lips weren't letting the smile go, even her breaths were heavy.

After a moment of trying to breathe and not really trying, she opened the bag, and then the smile was gone at the first sight of it.

There was money in it.

A lot of money is in the shopping bag.

Why would Denial send her money, she asked herself.

Her face was pale and her heart was beating low. She has the slightest clue about it and to prove it wrong, she started to count them

And when she was done counting, it was clear, the theory was right, "3,550" the exact amount of money she owed Julie.

Ella looked around with wide eyes. This was not normal.

It was him.

It was her stalker. This was going crazy. He knew everything about her. He knew every detail of her life.

Ella abruptly left the bed and ran to the window. No one was there. She held her head in her hands

When she started to think about it, it all made sense. It had to be someone who had been observing her every step.

Ella has received so much money in these two months. They were all from anonymous accounts and always at the time when she needed them the most. She didn't take a penny from it and sent it back every single time. It always has been him. It always has been the stalker who was doing it. It wasn't about these days. It has been happening from months.

As soon as she confirmed it by recounting the money, she put it back in the shopping bag and walked to the door. The moment Ella put the bag on the ground, her phone vibrated in her hand.

She went motionless for a moment. "It- it can't be," her hands were shaking as she unlocked her phone

Unknown: If you don't take them you will lose the last gift you received from your father

She read it for another time and no matter how many times she read, it was the same. It was from the same number she received a text last time.

The confirmation was done.

It was really him.

The last gift that her father gave her was a diamond necklace. She always keeps it in her closet, behind her clothes.

Ella rushed back to her room. She opened her closet. She threw all the clothes on the floor and started to find the box.

She was panicking, her hands were shaking as they moved swiftie to locate it. And then she found it.

It was there

Relief flooded through her body as she found the box at the same spot where she placed it.

It was a lie.

He was lying and while smiling with relief, she opened the box.

Terror grabbed her from every side as she saw the necklace gone. It wasn't there. He has taken it. She checked the box thoroughly but it was useless. There was nothing in it.

The last gift from her father was gone.

And then the phone buzzed again

Unknown: You will get it back once you have sent her the money