ManyWriters

To help his childhood sweetheart win an award, my fiancé locked claustrophobic me in a tiny, dark basement for a day and night.
I trembled and cried helplessly in fear, while his childhood sweetheart basked in the spotlight on stage with my work.
He once promised me forever, but now he shields her behind him.
"You've lost your edge, Mr. Langdon. Wouldn't you rather be a leisurely housewife? Why do you have to compete with Aria for everything?"
I laughed bitterly, my eyes sweeping over the trophy in his hands. I didn't tell him.
The mastermind behind this competition was none other than myself.

Claustrophobic Me Locked In the Closet

The painful memories suddenly flooded back, and I forced myself to keep scrolling despite the ache.


As I looked through the designs, I suddenly noticed something off about them.


They were messy and lacked aesthetic appeal, yet there seemed to be some common pattern.


The colors were layered densely, as if concealing something underneath.


Recalling a habit I shared with my mom, I held up the design sketches towards the sunlight.


I adjusted the angle of the sketches in the sunlight, trying to make out what was hidden inside.


There appeared to be two names, which I strained to decipher.


The person who had claimed my mom plagiarized her work back then.


My heart tightened as an ominous feeling began to spread.


All the blood in my body seemed to freeze, then rush back into my feverish brain.


I checked and rechecked, making sure I hadn't misread that name.


Two names were hidden in my mom's design sketches.


Chapter 6