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ACT 1

THE 'PERFECT' COUPLE

"It was too late for her to climb back up,"

In the Great reign of imperial Russia, the great empress herself had declared the house of Kadamskiynov's members as duke and duchess, as a reward for their fierce loyalty to her and the empire, with even some cousins -predicament distant- intertwining with the members, but now with the title irrelevant they had not used it so often.

Bogdana Kadismkiynov walked into the manor with a small army of her friends behind her. Katya her closest cousin, Galina a brunette haired woman and wife to one of Bogdana's husband's closest friends, and newcomer Ekaterina.

"Your house is as beautiful as you described it!" Ekaterina gushed as Bogdana gave her a smile.

"Thank you," 

"Is Mikhail home?" Galina asked

"Ah, yes. He is. He's probably in his study or somewhere," she answered.

"Ah! Will it be a bother if I meet him. I've heard many good things about him!"

"I don't see why not," she chuckled, "Now, why don't we go to the sunroom... well I'm not sure if we should call it that in this weather," she joked as the ladies laughed as they were guided to the room. The room was a small atrium-like designed place as frozen vines snaked their way down from outside the frozen glass, cobblestone had decked the two floors. On the platformed floor a silver table was filled with cutlery and a tray equipped with pastries. Plants guarded around the edges as the sound of the trickling water from the fountain, decorated with dull fake roses had completely enchanted the room.

"It's so lovely!" Ekaterina exclaimed bewitched with the setting. 

"Thank you, my daughter-in-law thought of it," Bogdana replied as she was seated.

Ekaterina blinked, "I'm sorry, your daughter-in-law?" she said confused, taken back as the two other women exchanged looks.

"Yes, Mikhail's fiancee', betrothed," 

"Mikhail- i-is, t-taken?" she stuttered.

"yes, Maxim arranged it, they're quite the couple," Bogdana mused as she then whipped her head around of the direction laughter was heard.

"Is that Mikhail-? Oh, looks it's Talia!" Katya pointed, wiping the window as she watched the couple from the distance skate on the ice of the pond together through the cold pellucid glass.

The sound of Talia's laughter of a beautiful symphony to the platinum-hair male's ears. As Mikhail had spun Talia around, as they skated on the ice, Talia in a light coloured terracotta knitted jumper and a Caribbean blue beanie danced on the thick frozen liquid exuberantly holding Mikhail's hand as they skated around the pond. 

"Tala! You're going too fast!" he shouted as she stuck her tongue out.

"Hey remember that time when you fell, and the ice broke-,"

"Tala!" he stopped her from finishing the sentence as she laughed, "You just stood there and laughed at me!" 

"Excuse me, I laughed then jumped in with you," she pointed as she let go of his hand and glided faster.

"Hey!" he exclaimed as he tried to catch up with her.

Momentarily, after the two had enjoyed skating on the frozen pond the door letting a moment of the chilly breeze sweep in only be followed by the warmth of laughter of the two.

Mikhail's eyes then transmitted to the rest of his body to freeze as he laid eyes on his mother's fawn orbs glaring at him as he gulped, Talia automatically shutting her mouth.

"Misha," Bogdana spoke with equanimity, "If you can walk with me in the hallway with me," she stood up as Mikhail followed her looking back at Talia who bit the side of her lips trying to suppress her laugh. 

It's either she's going to complain he doesn't have a thick enough jumper, followed by his lips turning blue she thought.

"Talia," Galina greeted exuberantly at the female.

"Galina," Talia replied smiling.

She's on a first-name basis with her Ekaterina noted.

"And Katya," she nodded as she turned her head to the unfamiliar blacked haired woman, gazing at her eyes.

Great another person who doesn't know me she picked up. 

"This is Ekaterina Povlonova," Galiana presented as Talia gave a gentle smile, "Would you like to join us?"

"oh, no I couldn't possibly,"

"It would be rude of us not to offer tea to the future lady of the house," Katya chuckled as Talia silently sat in an extra seat pulled for her as the dark liquid was poured graciously by Katya as Talia added a spot of milk as she delicately paced her teaspoon in a six to twelve rotation.

This girl's etiquette is impeccable, who the hell is she?! How is this Chinese the future head lady of the Kadamskiynov fortunes?! Ekaterina screamed in her head still bewildered at Talia presence. 

"Are you going to drink your tea?" 

Ekaterina snapped her head to face Talia who simply looked in a tranquil state, her hand still holding her cup of tea. 

"Wh-?" Ekaterina blinked.

"Pardon my manners but your tea is getting cold," her eyes looked at her teacup as Ekaterina looked at it and flushed. 

"Oh, goodness me!" she sheepishly chuckled as the double french doors swung open with Talia's mother-in-law.

"Ah, Tala dear, will you please accompany me," Bogdana asked in a sweet tone as Talia silently got up, smiling at the three women as she left the room.

As she left, there was a rather odd silence before Ekaterina opened her mouth.

"Who is this Talia. I mean, what family does she come from? How is she betrothed to Mikhail... she's Asian," She rambled as the two other women interchanged looks.

"Ekaterina," Katya began, "You see, Talia, comes from a prominent Chinese-,"

"Oh, yes Chinese, they're always in the top twenty, ten or something in Forbes these days," Ekaterina effused.

"No, not those families, god forbid! Maxim would never allow such a thing!" Galina laughed, "Talia doesn't come from these new money, second-generation money families. Noooo, Talia is of Chinese descendant. First her mother's side, Angelina's! Talia's mother's father comes from the oldest family in the Philippines, the Padilla's, they practically own all of those beautiful islands. Angelina's father came from two pedigree family lines reigning back to when settlers came to the Philippines. You have the Spanish, one of which descended distantly from the House of Bourbons, and the second the Chinese side, which dates back horrendously with all sorts of royalty and nobility. 

Angelina's mother is of British aristocracy, it was a big shock apparently to intertwine with European and Asian lines of wealth but Filipinos are so nice these days you know. Anyways though of British heritage, Angelina's mother is the second oldest, after her older brother. I heard they hail from the richer side of the House of Capet, and some slide down the house of bourbons.

But that's not even it, her Talia's father's side is what's so much more interesting. They're basically like the Kadamskiynovs of all of Asia. From playdates with future sultans to god knows what. Talia's father, Richard. Where do I even begin?! To be fair, there are so many relations with them that I can't even list half of them, the only one I can remember now is that they were direct descendants from the Tang dynasty, then something and such. They're spread all throughout South East Asia nowadays. But Talia is the eldest daughter to Richard, which technically makes her the next head after Richard retires, but now that Talia is marrying Mikhail god knows what!" Galina caught up with breath as Ekaterina's eyes were wide-eyed.

"No wait, Calix, Talia's younger brother, is the next head. But Talia is still the oldest so could do whatever she wants by birthright," Galina thought as Katya shook her head.

"No, Richard is quite adapted to nowadays. Yes, Calix is the male and is technically the next head but Talia can take control if she wanted to," Katya revealed, "goodness that girl, must be so hard managing both cultures," she praised as she looked at Ekaterina who seemed completely phased.

---

"Thank you so much, Tala, again," Bogdana thanked as they walked arm in arm down the hallway.

"It's alright, Bogdana," Talia graciously replied.

"He loves you very much you know?" she smiled, "Yes, maybe before he was lost and unsure but he knows now that you were there for him, and he's so grateful for that,"

"Bogdana," she chose her words carefully not wanting to use the word 'duty'. "Even if Mikhail didn't confess to me like that, he's still my best friend, and I'm alright with that,"

"Even as his mother, I believe I don't know him so well, especially not as you do," 

"I didn't discover everything about him on purpose," she responded.

"I know, he just opens to you so easily I suppose. God knows if there is a side of him I don't know," she joked as Talia sheepishly chuckled.

If she only knew 

"I'll take my leave now, I have tea to host," Bogdana nodded as Talia smiled as she continued to walk down the hallway, her slippers walking on the polished floors as she opened the door of Mikhail's study. 

Talia had always found the room rather calming, with its nostalgic ambience radiating off from the elegantly carved wooden shelves stocked from head to toe, the ceiling of an opulent renaissance painting with golden flakes.

"Don't you have volleyball practice?" she asked as Mikhail's head was raised from his desk as he put his pen down.

"Mother cancelled it," he uttered, "Cause I didn't wear a thicker jacket and should have made Tala wear a thicker jacket, do you want your future wife to walk down an aisle with blue lips and hyperthermia or worse a coffin?!" he mocked his mother tone as Talia chuckled as he sat on his lap, hugging him. 

"I can't believe I listened to you," he sighed as Talia scoffed.

"Me?!" she gasped.

"Yes you, I told you we should have got my special jackets from my wardrobe, but someone was too eager to skate," he accused.

"You're the one who agreed to my idea of ice-skating in the first place!" she remarked, "So don't be bloody inane," she jabbed her finger at his chest.

Mikhail chuckled as he pulled her closer to his chest as he caressed his left hand on her cheek. Talia's expression softened as the convivial atmosphere had flipped into a loving one as the ebony-haired female was pulled into a passionate kiss, ritually letting her fingers run through his platinum locks. 

"Alright," she pulled away, "I'm not going to leave if you keep acting like this,"

"Success," he winked as she flicked his forehead.

"Ow," he rubbed the spot she harmed as he then laid her head on his.

Mikhail had enjoyed the moment as the thought of Talia's friend's relationship, it would probably be the most proper chance he would have to discuss with her. 

"милая," he looked up as Talia moved her head.

"Yes, Misha?"

"I have a predicament I've been wanting to talk with you about," as she raised a brow, "It's about Gigi,"

"I'm listening," as Mikhail got out his phone scrolling through his gallery as he got the picture.

"Do you know who Lorenzo Corsellini is?" Mikhail asked as Talia tried to recount the person.

"There's a lot of people with that exact name, but anyone special I know of. The last name doesn't ring any titles-. Yeah no dear, I don't know. You know you should be the one telling me who he is," she chuckled.

"милая, that's the thing, I don't know who he is. I've even looked but none,"

"So did Gigi hook up with him or something? Misha, I'm surprised she's remembered his name, is he some important duke or something?" she asked.

"That's the thing, my love, I don't know who he is. And on TakeIt, he's got nothing except only five posts about himself," he emphasised. 

"So what Misha? I've hardly even posted anything on my social media accounts, I've posted two things and their photos of you and I, and us and our friends on that yacht at that island near my Lolo's* beach bungalow," she reasoned.

*Tagalog (Fillipino) for grandfather, pronounced as Loh-loh

"милая, Gigi's been dating this person for almost over a year now," he revealed as Talia's jade orbs widened.

"I'm sorry, did you just say an entire year?" she repeated as he nodded, "So, maybe this guy is like super private like my family. My mother only had facebook so she can watch TFC on her friend's account for free,"

"Okay one, that's false your mother has her own account, I know it cause I remember watching some little girl's pageant with along with someone singing, and that gay or lesbian host or something- sidetracked, like I said I don't know who the hell he is," as Talia sighed as she looked at his serious appearance.

"Don't overthink it," Talia dismissed.

"милая, I'm serious. Can you please ask her, your her friend, maybe you can find out which family he belongs to?" he pleaded.

"Misha, it's none of our damn business. You know how she is, maybe she's in a long-lasting threesome," she shrugged.

"Talia," he said firmly as he trailed kisses on her neck though not physically seeing it she was taken back. Serious manipulative son of B*tch she cussed in her head, "Don't you want to be a good friend to Gigi? I mean she deserves as well a good relationship like us, a perfect one. I mean if she gets too emotionally attached and this guy we don't know, she's worse as you when you get moody," as Mikhail looked up and rubbed his thumb on the side of her cheek.

"I know it's going a bit too far, and its not any of my business-,"

Of course its being too far 

"But just for the safety of our friend, I mean yes it might be a good thing if she's in commitment of a relationship, but with the right guy," he tilted his head, leaning on his fingers, with his elbow on the desk.

Talia glanced the other way as she looked at the books on the shelf behind Mikhail. There were times, many times when Mikhail was like this and she had picked up on this, sure he had OCD but that healing and him getting his way was a completely different thing and she knew it; and with all her heart despised it. He was good, truly good, for many years he had fooled her and she had only picked up on it a year ago, and even now as she confronted him before he still did it and used that still to his advantage. 

He would twist her own words, and what he just did now wasn't even lifting a finger of how he did things. Mikhail was always ten steps ahead, predicting what would she say next and how to counter it, while Talia was too caught up in her perfect fantasy that once she realised what he was doing it was too late no matter how well she talked, and worse she was one of those emotional and sensitive about family and Mikhail knew it and took it to his advantage.

The perfect couple rung in her head as she laughed inside of her, too perfect she scoffed.

"милая," she snapped out of her gaze.

"Fine," she sighed as Mikhail smiled lovingly.

Don't cry Talia you idiot

"Thank you, милая. Anywho you better get back to Alderbridge," he said as he quickly pecked her lips, "I'll arrange a flight, and I'll tell your mother it was an urgent meeting you had attend to with me," he smiled as she got off.

"I'll just take one of your cars to the hangar," she said as she fought back the tears as she walked towards the door.

The moment she drove in her betrothed's diaphanous black Marussia out of the driveway, guard point, and finally the gates tears finally fell along her small mandu cheeks, as the snow trickled down the road.

I JUST WANT TO MAKE IT CLEAR THAT MIKHAIL'S OCD HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH HIS MANIPULATIVE ANTICS, THIS A TRAIT HE HAD DEVELOPED FROM HIS FATHER!

 THANK YOU

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