Memories were a labyrinth and Natalie found herself lost whenever she tried to enter them by herself.

The portal that helped her get there was often something ordinary — a familiar scent, a photo or a song that reminded her of a certain time in her life. But today, all it took her to get lost in the shadows of fading reminiscence was an email.

Bright light emitting from her phone screen, she reread it — from end to end — to make sure she wasn't dreaming again. Giving in to the urge, she tried to tug her lips upwards into a smile but one meek step into the world in her head dissuaded her right out, leaving her with a bitter aftertaste of regret.

Would things ever get better again?

Against all hope, she knew the harsh truths of her past were very real unlike the nightmares she lived through every other night. But if she wanted to be accepted, loved even, the only way was to hide her scars. Pretend they didn't exist and deny the way her soul was tainted, probably damaged beyond repair at this point.

Squirting a few drops of concealer onto the blender sponge, she dabbed it on her skin until it looked flawless, clear — unlike her conscience. Her eyes were swollen from the tears they had shed earlier but a sharp line of black liner would mask it all up. There was nothing makeup couldn't fix.

Nothing apart from her twisted mind.

Practising her rehearsed smile to apply the bold lipstick perfectly, she wondered if she would ever be able to smile for real again. The answers that followed scraped at the hidden wounds on her heart and once again, they were left out to bleed. She wondered if the blood would run out before her will to live did.

"Nate?" An unsure yet comforting voice reached her ears, immediately fighting against her dark thoughts with its shining light. Her only ray of sunshine in the dark end of times. The only hand she would hold onto when being chased by a swarm of monsters.

When she stayed still, lost in her thoughts, she felt warm hands wrap around her from behind — pulling her closer against him till all she could feel was his warmth. Resting his head in the dip of her neck, his raspy voice gave her goosebumps before his question ever could. "Were you crying, love?"

"No." She lied, not turning or looking at him. Because one look at her and he would know. He always knew. The moment their eyes would meet, her carefully built facade would fade away until all he could see was her true face. Her true self. A very guilty, angry, broken version of Natalie the world never saw. The kind she didn't like facing in the mirror. "You just caught me a bit off-guard." She covered up, catching hold of herself.

His hands were on her shoulders now and he turned her to face him instead of the mirror. "My girlfriend-" Cradling her face in his hands, he bent to press a little peck on her forehead before speaking again. "-doesn't need to uphold this bold and fearless image in front of me. I know who you are. And I love you for it."

"Nick, I-" Her breath lodged in her throat.

He certainly knew her in a way that no one else did. But no matter how close they came, she could never let him see the darkest corners of her mind.

The true version of Natalie he saw was the one she wanted him to see. Pushing her worse vices and flaws into the depths of her soul, the only Natalie he met was the kind that was a little broken but fixable. A little angry but pacifiable. And it haunted her daily that one day he might see her for who she really is. A monster hiding in the guise of a victim. An archer pretending to be a prey. A lethal woman who lived for one sole motive — revenge.

"I wouldn't have it any other way." He smiled at her reassuringly. "Trust me."

If only he knew-

Trust- Don't trust anybo-

Don't- Don't remember that day.

Blurry flashes played before her eyes and Nick looked at her as if he could see them in hers too. Fire. Screams. Deaths.

He crossed the distance between them and hesitantly held Natalie in a tight hug while she barely held in the urge to cry again. His warm embrace erased all memories of her past and the scent of his perfume infiltrated her nostrils till the only thing she could remember was him. Nick. Her business partner, her only friend, her boyfriend- wait, she wasn't sure if she should call him that.

Though they had been dating for a few months now — right after the cursed accident that changed everything — Natalie still couldn't bring herself to believe Nick was real. After all, when all the world had done was point out her madness and faults over and over again, how could someone love her so much? How could someone like Nick be for real?

But what scared her most was not Nick and the surprising goodness of his heart. What terrified her was that if she ever dared to love him, she could end up losing him. He could decide to walk away one day and she knew she didn't have the courage to pick up the pieces of her broken self if that ever happened.

When it happens, a voice in her head mocked.

All of a sudden, he remembered why he was here in the first place. Waving the papers in his hand, he shone his winning smirk at Natalie and the creases under her eyes softened at his happiness. Grabbing the papers from his hand, she quickly scanned through them — mentally digesting the numbers and statistics before her excitement could vanish.

"Millions, Nate." Nick's eyes were filled with pride. "In less than a month. All because of this pretty little mind." He pulled her close again, appreciating the mastermind before him.

A fashion designer by profession, Natalie was very fond of using scientific illusions in her designs — living in a family full of scientists had definitely rubbed off on her. While researching the light phenomenon to understand colour theory better, she had recently come across a concept that could wreck havoc in the market.

Working on it, she created a blue and black dress which would appear to some as white and gold from a different angle. And she knew the heated opposing opinions on this dress would soon grow into an ego issue where people would come up with newer theories to prove themselves right for validation, immediately turning the dress into a social media buzz.

All she had to do next was hire a certain web designer — a hacker, to say it informally — who would start the buzz on certain popular web pages and keep bouncing the signal so the one posting these vague theories could never be traced. The steps that followed were easy — explain the true logic on various websites simultaneously after creating confusion and earn from the ads, get interviewed by multiple people about the dress and pretend none of this was intentional.

After all, she knew the marvel and fascination around this dress would die down once she would reveal she made it deliberately. Because humans — being the curious little creatures they are — live off of the intrigue. The possibility of anything remotely magical, bigger than themselves astonishes them. While in reality, the mystery behind this dress was in their own heads, stemming from the way their minds perceived light and contrasts differently.

Pushing Nick out of the room, Natalie adorned herself in a ruffled blue organza gown with a sweetheart neckline. Topping it with her diamond studs, a fuzzy feeling took over heart when she pictured Nick's reaction as she observed the way her dress shimmered under the white light. They had designed this dress together on their first date and she had promised to wear it on a special occasion but never did. Today was different, the perfect time to wear it, she thought while combing her wavy hair.

Walking out of the room with one last look in the mirror, she saw Nick leaning against the wall, head buried into a newspaper and suddenly, she was a teenager who had forgotten how to breathe after seeing her crush in the hallway. He was wearing a classic three piece suit that brought out his light brown eyes and she inhaled sharply, shaking her head at the cliché moment.

And there stood Nick, reciprocating her actions with a jaw dropped, as if he was looking at her for the first time. Holding his hand out for her to hold, they silently left for the celebration in honour of this project's success, unable to piece their thoughts into words.

Before Nick could open the car door for her once they had reached the venue, Natalie got out and he frowned at her. "And they wonder why chivalry is dead."

"I'm very capable of opening the door for myself, Nick. Don't be so formal with me." She pursed her lips, not wanting to smile in public.

"My girlfriend hates being pampered." He announced to no one in particular and winked at her, huffing as they walked through the doors together, hands locked into each other's. She could barely hide how violently her heart was beating after that gesture of his.

Once inside, they separately greeted and thanked the people involved in the project, her words always short and calculated while Nick overcompensated them with his excitement.

"Sebastian, my man." He shook the web designer's hand, without whom this project would never have worked out in the first place. "We owe this one to you."

No, we do not. Natalie wanted to say but chose to secretly roll her eyes at the man before her instead. If looks and thoughts could kill, his man would be six feet under a million times already.

The crowd was a small one, after all Natalie believed too many cooks spoil the broth and to execute a project so sneaky, the fewer people the better. Especially when someone — she didn't know who — was secretly chasing on her scent like a bloodhound. Could it be one of the people present here?

A small presentation later, she thanked the keepers for this grand success and raised a toast to celebrate them. Once the champagne glasses clinked and the attention on her faded away, she excused herself to check her face in the mirror. Once near the basins, a hand sneakily pulled her out of public view.

Eyes widened, she groaned in disgust while his warm, furious breaths tickled against her throat. "What do you want, Sebastian?"

"To kill you." He replied as a matter of fact, looking right into her eyes and she feared what he could find in there. "But you need to pay for your sins first." He took a step away from her but his eyes still shot daggers at her.

"Please." She scoffed. "Go have a drink or something."

"You know I don't." Gritting his teeth, he let go of the restraint and asked Natalie the question that was crushing him ever since. "Why am I here, boss? Why do you not let me go?"

Natalie smirked at him, knowing there was no way he could escape the cage she had built for him. Truth be told, this project never mattered to her. Money was not something Natalie Creations Studios was ever short of and there was no way she would let herself be under the public scrutiny for something as invaluable as a dress that left the world in shock. It was a mere decoy, a bait to lure this man into her captivity without him having a single clue until he was in too deep.

Lest we forget, if Pillows & Dreams was ever to see the wake of reality, it wouldn't be possible without this man. The person she hated more than anyone else in the world. The person she would kill within the blink of an eye given the chance. The person she had vowed to ruin — until he begged her for mercy and freedom.

Darting closer, she whispered poisonously into his ear, only for him to hear. "You know what they say. Keep your friends close and enemies closer."

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RANDOM QUESTION: What do you think is stronger? Love or Hate?

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A/N: Heya, guys! I have decided that I cannot go on without talking to all my readers, active as well as silent; hence, there will be author's notes in this book and I will feel very grateful if you take some time out to read them.

Yes, so the tips to writing say you need to have a strong start where the readers will connect to your characters since the beginning, itself. Fortunately for me, I am not of the same opinion. I believe we need to give humans some time to get attached. Just like we take time to adjust with the people around us, we may need time to get attached to the characters that have been newly introduced to us, too. Hence, I won't feel bad or offended if you haven't been able to have a crush on the characters after reading the first chapter. I believe in character building and love at first sight has chances of dying down as early as it is realised. So, I wouldn't call this a very mind-grabbing start but I would be satisfied if you're happy with it and like the way things are being shown to you, slowly, one by one leaving hints for the story that lies ahead.

Let me know what you think of this story & the characters so far. Do you like Natalie? Nick? Sebastian? What do you think the revenge is all about? And who do you think will succeed in the end? Share your theories here, super excited to hear them *_*

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The next chapter will update when this chapter hits 101 votes (after 11 more votes) :)

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Love,

Jhalak <3