I am sorry for the late update guys, but this is a long chapter to make up for it.

Dedicated to  @jag_0306, Thank you, for always waiting for my updates!

Salena Adams.

Sara moved the housekeeper and other staff out of the room and closed the door behind.

I looked at the guy in front of me coldly, "Where did you take my daughter?"

"We got engaged yesterday," he said.

"What?!" I was not prepared for it.

"It was me," Ella's shaky voice came. "I...I proposed to him."

She obviously wanted to protect him from me.

"I love Cinderella. I was planning to propose her after I am graduated, but it doesn't matter anymore, both of us want to be together."

Michael seemed to be defending her in front of me as if he does not want me to blame her for proposing him.

I fisted my hands and tried to control my anger. I am furious at them for doing this, but their stance and body language made me cautious.

I could see that both of them are in a stage where they would do anything for their "love" and if I am not careful, I would end up pushing them to do something I don't want them to, like this so-called "engagement".

It had surprised me when Ella ran away and stayed at the dorms with her friend. I hadn't expected it from the normally good-tempered girl. So I don't want to mess things now.

"You can go to your room, Ella, we will talk later," I said and she didn't move.

"Mama-"

"I won't hurt him. I just want to talk to him."

"But..." she started but stopped as Michael gave her a reassuring look and nodded his head, which instantly calmed her down and got me angry.

"Then I will go," she said slowly and walked inside.

I turned to the guy in front of me.

"So you decided to fight against me? Are you prepared to face the consequences?"

"I don't want to go against you. Since you are important to Cinderella, I want your acceptance. I don't want to run away or anything."

"What if I am against this? What will you do then?" I raised my eyebrows at him challengingly.

"I won't back down," he said firmly. "Both of us love each other. We are two adults and we have every right to get married legally, nobody can deny it."

"I will stop it from happening!"

"Then I will have to expose our relationship in public and get married without your acceptance," Michael looked at me.

"Are you threatening me boy!?" I was instantly angry at his attitude.

"I am not. If anything, I want this to end peacefully so that Cinderella would not get hurt," he looked at me.

I haven't missed the point here. He is telling me that he would get married to her with or without my consent and that if I opposed them, they would do it publicly.

This guy had already gone against me multiple times and had his way, I cannot underestimate him anymore.

"I need some time to think about this."

His eyebrows rose in surprise as if he hadn't expected me to say it.

"Thank you-"

"Don't thank me yet," I said sharply. "I just want to think about it, I am not giving you my consent yet."

"I understand."

"In the meantime, I want you to stay away from my daughter."

"Cinderella and I are engaged, I cannot possibly stay away from my fiancée."

My anger sparkled.

"I don't agree with this engagement, I won't accept it!"

"I don't want to argue with you unnecessarily," he looked at me. "The engagement is real and I cannot stay away from her."

I took a deep breath to calm myself. I know I should be level headed in dealing with him.

"Then don't ever take her away from me like yesterday," I looked at him. "If you want to take her out, you will have to tell me first, I won't allow any overnight stays either."

There was a moment where we looked at each other. Neither of us wanted to yield to the other.

"You said you were planning to propose to her after your graduation, so wait until that time, do not rush this...marriage thing." I continued, "I want you to promise me that you won't ruin Ella's reputation. And you cannot think about marriage until you have a secure job."

He looked into my eyes. I could see that he is not very convinced with my words.

"I agree," he said at last. "I wanted to get married to her as soon as I graduate but if you are willing to give us a chance, I am ready to wait till I secure a good job and get a place of my own."

"Okay."

That's enough time for me to find a solution to this ridiculous situation.

"And if you try to take her away from me, all our agreements will become void. I will take Cinderella away from here," he added.

"Aren't you afraid to offend me like this, Michael?" I looked at him in the eyes.

Nobody had gone against me like this.

"I Am," he said to my surprise. "But I am more afraid of losing Cinderella, so I have no other choice."

I took a deep breath.

"Then give me some time to think about this," I said, dismissing him.

"This is for you," Michael said and took a few steps toward me. He opened his palm and I saw a USB drive.

"What is it?" I looked at it suspiciously.

"I just wanted to give you a fair warning about Roopak, don't trust him, he is a snake."

"I know about him."

"I am not talking about his drug cases or financial situation," Michael looked into my eyes. "If you are not careful while dealing with him, he will come back to bite you."

He is making me more apprehensive.

"What's in this USB?"

"Something you should know about," Michael said. "As I said, his intentions towards you are not good and it's completely up to you if you believe me or not."

"Why would you...give me this?"

"You are Cinderella's Mama," he said simply.

He placed it on the table and nodded at me.

"Thank you for hearing me out," and with that, he walked out of the house.

Ella.

I released a deep breath that I was holding while listening to their conversation through the partially closed door.

I waited till Michael was out of the room before walking inside to meet my Mama.

It scared me to do this "talk" with her, but I know that it's high time I do this.

"Mama."

She was looking at the USB and turned around at my voice.

My lips were dry as soon as her eyes fell on me.

"What is this rubbish about getting engaged?" she looked displeased.

"It's not rubbish, we are really engaged."

"And you did the initiative to propose him!? Ella, how did I teach you?" she gave me a stern look that she used whenever she wanted to discipline me. "This is why I was against your relationship from the start; this guy is changing you the wrong way! You would not have run away from the home if it was before, you are starting to get influenced by him."

"Michael has no role in my decision to stay away from the house," I looked at her firmly. "I did it because you targeted me during the tech-fest. You ruined the hard work of 11 bright students."

"You had a choice, Ella, I clearly warned you-"

"You played with their hard work as if it's nothing. Do you know that even though only three people could present the project during the tech-fest, my whole team had been working hard all this time? Most of them have two or three part-time jobs to support them, but they gave their all to this project," my voice trembled. "They...they were the best team, they were trained and prepared to get the first price. But...because of me..." I stopped slightly, trying to control the emotions inside me. No matter what, I want to get it off my chest today.

"All they did wrong was to meet someone cursed like me. If I was not involved in it, they would have made it," Those were Angela's words, but I finally started to see that she might be right after all.

"What the hell are you talking about, Ella? You are cursed?" Mama raised her voice slightly. "I raised you like a princess! People would fight to be in your place, but why are you acting as if it's a burden to you?"

"I don't want to be a princess, Mama; I want to be an ordinary person who can hang out with people without feeling like an outcast."

"You...you-"

"...And more than anything, I don't want my loved ones to get hurt because of me," My eyes started to fill again. "The people around me got hurt because of me and nobody wanted to stay beside me after that."

"If you are talking about Angela, she betrayed you first, Ella, don't forget that she set you up to take her essay papers and then she accused you of stealing it!"

"She would not have done it if you didn't bribe my teachers," I said. "And it was not just Angela, every time I encountered difficulty, you bought things and people for me, but those people always despised me, Mama. I was miserable and never happy," I wiped my tears angrily. "Then when I thought you have stopped, you just did it to Michael and my team too!" I looked at her shocked face.

"Mama, I don't want you to buy things or people for me. I won't be happy with that. Let me free, let me experience life," I looked at her. "And stop targeting me intentionally to have your way. Please respect my choices."

"The situation would have resolved if you had listened to me, but you-"

"I won't let you control me like it anymore, Mama," I said firmly. "And you are wrong about Michael, he never approached me, it was I, who chased after him. I was the one who proposed to him as well. I wanted to get married to him secretly but it was Michael who stopped me, he wanted me to stay and fight for us," I looked at her with my blurry vision. "Because he knew...how much I love you, mama."

"What's so special about this guy Michael?!" Mama exclaimed.

"He is the person who understands me the most, Mama," I said. "He doesn't seem to care that I am bad news, he is willing to be with me. And the love and feelings we have for each other are genuine." I looked into her eyes. "Despite everything that happened at the tech-fest because of me, Michael stayed with me and wanted to take the blame instead of me when everyone accused me of ruining the program."

"He is someone I love with all my heart, if you hurt him again, I won't ever forgive you, Mama," I said. "I have never begged you for anything but I am now pleading with you...please open your heart and try to see without any prejudice, I am sure that you would like him."

"Ella!" She clutched her fist tightly and shouted at me.

"If I ever have a life partner in this lifetime, it would be Michael. If you do anything to him, I would do everything to protect him."

Mama looked shocked and rooted to the spot. I waited in front of her. I know it's not over yet. But no matter what happened, I am ready to face it.

Mama took two deep breaths and closed her eyes for a moment. I could see that she is trying to control her emotions. She released the tight clutch of her fist and visibly relaxed.

She opened her eyes and looked at me.

"Are you so sure about this guy?" she asked me calmly.

I was surprised at that and stared at her.

"Ella, Are you sure this guy?" she asked me again and I nodded quickly.

"Yes, Michael is the only one for me."

"Then I will give you a chance," she said. "But you will have to listen to me and accept my decision if I don't agree with this after this particular time."

My heart trembled. It's a tempting offer, but I cannot trust mama to be unbiased.

"Don't worry; I won't be prejudiced about him. I want to know what's so special about this person."

"Mama-"

"So that's it. I will give you three months. But during this time, you shouldn't do anything stupid like yesterday. No overnight parties or staying out of the house," her eyes bored into me.

I was still contemplating the offer, but I was still wary of her.

I nodded slowly.

"If you try to double-cross me on this matter, I won't come back again," I looked at her rather challengingly. "We want a fair chance."

.....................................

Salena Adams

I was sitting on the settee when Sara walked inside with my medication.

"Ma'am, you look stressed. Your headache will start again."

I took the medicine and turned to the USB on the table, "Sara, see what it is."

"Do you trust that guy?" she asked me. "What if he is trying to trick you?"

"I want to see what it is about first," I said slowly.

"Do you...intend to approve their relatio-"

"No!" I looked at her sharply. "I won't allow it, no matter what."

"Then why did you give him your time? Why did you hear him out?" Sara looked confused. "You even promised to give them time."

I know why she's confused. I would never have even agreed to meet him if it was before.

"Things are different now," I said. "This is a matter of my daughter's life; I want to consider everything carefully before making a decision. And the three months would be enough time for me to prepare everything quietly to move Ella out of this place."

"If only she understands that you are doing this for her..."

"She has been an obedient kid, I am sure that I will be able to convince her slowly," I said. "But I cannot underestimate this guy anymore. Nobody ever faced me squarely as he did and he even got away with the traps I placed for him."

"That's because I messed up. I thought he would be finished with it, but apparently, he was more powerful than that."

But no matter what she said, I now knew that Michael is not a guy to be taken simply.

"Monitor Ella closely, don't interfere until I tell you," I said. "I don't want her to disappear suddenly like she did yesterday."

"I understand, Ma'am," She said.

"When the time is right, I will move her out of here quietly. But before that I want to correct some things I need to," I looked at Sara. "Find that Professor who worked with us during Ella's competition."

Sara's eyes widened slightly, "The judge?"

I nodded.

"Yes," I confirmed. "I am not listening to Michael," I told her. "But I agree that I hurt my daughter without thinking much about it. I don't want Ella to suffer because of it."

"Okay, Ma'am," Sara nodded again, but I could still see the surprise in her eyes.

Apparently, she is surprised at the fact that I had let that guy's words get to me. Even I am irritated about it, but I know what he said is true. I am only making things straight so that my daughter won't suffer because of it.

"You may go," I looked at Sara, who was waiting for my order. "Take the USB and see what it is about."

.......................................

Michael.

"Why aren't you back in college?" I asked her through the phone. "Is your Mama still angry with you?"

Cinderella had missed the college and I called her when the evening college got over.

"No," she said. "I have a lot to tell you, I am waiting for you at the restaurant opposite our college."

"Cinderella, what's this about?" I asked her. "Are you seriously considering quitting college?"

There was silence at the other end.

"How many times did I tell you, I have already contacted the other colleges and submitted a request to the vice-chancellor of the university!"

"Michael, I was planning to stop after this semester before, so it doesn't matter anymore-"

"It does matter to me! I don't want you to leave like this; I want you to hold your head high when you walk out of here!" I said firmly.

"Michael, I have already promised everyone that I won't trouble them anymore-"

"Let's meet at the bougainvillea canteen in 10 minutes, we will talk after that."

"Michael-"

"10 minutes then."

.............................

"But why did you ask me to meet here?" Cinderella asked me as she looked around the bougainvillaea canteen. "I asked you to meet me outside!"

I looked at her, "Why are you hiding when you didn't do anything wrong?" I asked her.

"Michael-"

"I am the team leader of this group and you cannot just drop out of the group at your will."

"But...I am...scared..." she avoided eye contact and looked uncomfortable. "Your team might get into more trouble if...I join back."

"What does it mean?"

"Angela might be right," she looked at me slowly. "I might jinx you...I don't want to ruin anything anymore-"

She stopped as I clutched her hand. She looked at me, startled.

"Listen to me well, Cinderella," I looked into her eyes. "You are not going to talk like this anymore," I said. "Don't let other people's opinion get you."

"But Michael-"

"Prepare yourself, I will talk to the team about this," I said in a final tone and Cinderella looked troubled.

I squeezed her hand gently.

"Is everything okay at home?" I asked her. "Did mama give you a hard time after I left?"

She beamed wildly and shook her head, "No, in fact, I give her a hard time," she smiled. "I made her realize that I won't give up on you, no matter what."

I looked at her in surprise.

"Mama was angry. But she said she would give me my freedom," she looked at me excitedly. "She also said that she's ready to give us a chance! I am so happy!"

I raised my eyebrows at that. As far as I know, Salena Adams isn't the kind to give up easily. It's difficult for me to believe that she would give me a "chance". I didn't have the heart to correct her when I saw her happy face.

"That's...good," I nodded.

Cinderella nodded enthusiastically. "I am sure that she would like you."

"Okay, it's good that she's giving us a chance, I guess." I smiled.

"Here you are!" Sam was walking towards us followed by Nisha. Both of them sat opposite to us. Since their classes were over in the morning, I guess they especially came here to "meet" us.

"So you guys just decided to leave after everything we arranged for you!" Sam said dryly.

"It's a good thing that we came back in the morning itself," Cinderella said. "Mama knew that I was not in the dorm with Nisha yesterday, Uncle Jose said she was angry and nearly sent someone to bring me back!"

"But she wouldn't have known where you were-"

"We are talking about Salena Adams, Sam," I said. "If it's about Cinderella, she wouldn't hesitate to turn the whole world to search for her; it would have been more troublesome then."

"Then all of it was a waste?" Sam looked disappointed.

"I don't think it was a waste," Nisha looked at us and said mysteriously. "I can feel some love vibes even from here." she smiled.

Cinderella blushed red and tried to pull her hand out of mine, but I just tightened it with a smile.

"That's right. And I would suggest you two to take a leaf out of our book and be honest with each other," I said. "There is no fun in playing hide and seek with each other."

Cinderella gasped and the other two looked at a loss of words.

It was the only way for me to swift the attention away from us and it seemed to work well.

"Um...We are not playing hide and seek now," Sam muttered, making me surprised.

"Are you two dating now?" Cinderella looked at Nisha for an explanation. "Why didn't you tell me!?"

"Um...It's not...like that, I mean-"

"We decided to take it slow," Sam cut across her. "Both of us...um...admits that we have feelings for each other, but we want to take it slow and see."

"What does it mean? Are you dating or not?" Michael looked at him.

"We are trying to get to know each other," Nisha said slowly. "I asked him for some...time."

"Why?" Cinderella looked confused.

"Sam might move abroad once he gets all his CA papers cleared and I am already selected as an intern in one of the leading newspapers here," Nisha said.

"I won't move if Nisha is together with me," Sam said.

"But I don't want him to compromise his career for me!" Nisha exclaimed.

"See, this is the problem," Sam said.

"This is ridiculous!" I looked at them. "If you two truly love each other, cherish each other before you regret it."

"Michael and I decided to stay together after his graduation. Either he would move to where my institution is or I would accompany him and find a Violin class nearby, whichever is best." Cinderella said. "So figure something yourselves."

I looked at her in surprise.

When did she think of it? I have already told her that I could move with her, but it seems that she doesn't want me to compromise my job.

"Wow! You guys have already planned everything? But would your mama allow you to move?" Sam asked.

"Um...mama decided to give us a chance. She would give us three months time," she said. "That's enough time for Michael to graduate and get into a company."

"Ella," Nisha said slowly. "I don't want to be pessimistic, but I know your mama well, do you really think she would accept Michael? What if she rejects it after three months?"

"Um...Mama looked quite serious when she promised me this. And...I wanted to give mama a last chance. If she breaks my trust and does something behind my back again, I am planning to...move out of the house," She said.

All the three of us stared at her.

"And where would you move?" I looked at her. "Will you move in with me?"

"That might cause you...trouble, my mama would hurt you," she didn't look into my eyes and I got angry.

"So you have decided to give up?"

"I will never give up," she looked into my eyes. "I am your fiancée; I will stay as your fiancée until mama approves our relationship."

Silence filled the table again. There it is again, Cinderella's weird logic. I am once again stunned by it.

Even though I am happy that she won't give up on us, I am also worried about her plan.

"What if you have to wait a really long time?" I asked her slowly. "Say 10 or 20 years?"

Cinderella didn't look at me.

"Cinderella?" I didn't back down. I want to hear an answer.

"Um...I will still wait for you as your fiancée...but..."

"But?"

"I won't...blame you if...if you don't want to...wait anymore..." she said so slowly that I had to listen well to hear her. "I...cannot ask...you to...waste your youth for me, but-"

I got up from the table and looked at the equally stunned Sam and Nisha who turned their gazes to me now.

"Excuse me," I nodded to them and grabbed Cinderella's hand and started to walk.

"Hey Michael-" Cinderella exclaimed in surprise, but I just dragged her away with me.

Ella.

Michael didn't stop until we were in front of the trauma care club.

"What...what are we doing here?" I looked at him as he opened the door and dragged me inside.

The room was slightly dark as all the windows were closed and the lights were off.

"Michael-"

I gasped as I felt myself being pushed to the wall and before I could react; his lips came down on me.

The kiss was punishing and demanding, it was hot and urgent, it was making me weak and trembling.

"Michael-" I pushed him back, but stopped once again as he came back to me with double the speed. I was prepared this time but froze as his lips pressed against the lower jaw, then slide down my neck while his hands held my waist, holding me against the wall as he kissed my skin.

Goosebumps erupted all over me; I could no longer stay sane. My hands wound around his neck on their own and I welcomed it when he kissed me again. I liked the way he was pressed to me and his unique scent invaded my senses.

"Cinderella..."

I opened my eyes slowly to see the dark, desire filled eyes of his.

"Can you wait till 10 or 20 years?"

I blinked, not understanding what he meant.

"We will make use of these three months, and we will get married even if your mama rejects us," he said firmly.

My brain cells started to work again. I started to move, but Michael held me in place.

"I...um...I don't want to...abandon her..."

"Marrying me doesn't mean you are abandoning your mama, It just means your mama cannot take you away from me anymore," he explained patiently. "Besides, we will do everything to get her approval even after that, so please let me handle this situation, okay?" He looked into my eyes.

It was hard to deny him when he was so close and his eyes were this tender.

But his plan does sound reasonable in our current situation.

I nodded once. "Okay," I said.

Michael moved closer and pressed his lips on mine for a second.

"That's my girl," he smiled and my heart skipped a beat.

"Can you move back now?" I looked at him.

He chuckled and moved away from me.

"You are very cunning, Michael, you just...manipulated me," I gave him a fake glare.

"I was just letting you know that you cannot stay away from me." He looked rather proud of himself.

"Michael!" I exclaimed and he laughed.

"I was just kidding, Princess," he smiled genuinely and my insides warmed.

I looked around the place.

"Why did you take me here?" I asked him and he gave me a look.

"Uh, I mean, why did you take me here of all the places!?"

"It was nearby and doesn't have a CCTV," he shrugged.

"I thought you were angry with me!"

"I was," he said. "But I already got used to your way of thinking, so it was less shocking this time."

"Hey! You are insulting me!"

"I am just telling you that you should discuss it with me before you take any major decisions regarding our relationship," he looked serious this time.

My phone started to ring.

"It's Nisha!" I looked at him. "What...what should I tell her?"

"I think you don't have to tell her anything," he shrugged and I gave him another glare before attending the call.

"Uh, Nisha, We...Michael just showed me the...Trauma care club," I said before she asked me anything.

Michael was giving me an amused look now.

"Then take your time admiring the club, I will leave with Sam. I left your bag in the locker," Nisha laughed and I nearly died of embarrassment.

Michael.

"Take it easy," I tried to console her as we walked back.

"You are a villain, Michael!"

I laughed at that. She looked so adorable that I wanted to kiss her again.

"Actually you didn't have to tell her that," I said and pulled out my phone as it started to vibrate.

The name across the screen made me pause for a moment.

Salena Adams?

"I need to take this call," I looked at Cinderella.

"I will take my bag from the locker and meet you here," she nodded and started to walk.

I moved to a side and swiped it open.

"Hello?"

"I want to meet this guy, Rijo." She said without any preamble, she sounded furious. "I want to personally make sure that his statement is genuine!"

I guess she has gone through the USB. Since I couldn't give her the morphed photos and videos as proof against Roopak, I had given her the statement from Rijo that explained everything in detail.

"Rijo is hiding from Roopak after giving me that statement against him," I said. "But I can help you contact him if it is absolutely necessary."

"Why didn't you take that bloody bastard to the police!? Why did you bury everything?"

"Would you take it to the police if it were you?" I asked her. "I stopped the video from getting uploaded and I kicked Roopak out of the college so that he won't bother Cinderella again."

"That bloody bastard..." Salena Adams cursed in a low voice that set off alarm bells in my mind. "I am going to destroy him; I will get him for this! How dare him!"

"I suggest you calm down and think about this carefully," I said slowly. "Since the Video is not published, we can just use the evidence to control him. As long as he stayed away from Cinderella, that's fine."

"It is not fine! That son of a bitch lied to me and dared to go after my daughter!"

"I am telling you this because I know Roopak well," I said quickly. "The evidence with you is the last card to control him. If we take revenge on him now, we will lose the only card we have on him."

"Ella is my daughter. I won't let go of this easily. I am going to teach him a lesson."

She disconnected the call.

I sighed. It looks like Roopak and his company is going to get buried with this.

For some reason, I felt uneasy about it.

"Michael," Cinderella walked towards me with her bag. "Let's go, Uncle Jose is waiting for me."

I nodded and walked out with her.

"Is something wrong?" she looked at me.

"Your Mama just called me. She knows about Roopak now, I gave her Rijo's statement."

"She believed you!?"

"It looks like she did," I said. "But I am very uneasy about this, Roopak targeted you before to get back at your Mama. I don't want him to come after you because of this matter."

"Don't worry unnecessarily, I don't feel bad for Roopak though, he deserves it after what he did."

"You are your mama's daughter," I smiled.

"That's me!" she smiled proudly and I opened the car door for her.

"Then take care, princess, and be safe." I touched her cheek.

"Bye Michael," she smiled brightly and waved her hand until the car disappeared from my sight.

----------------------------

Q: Mama finally knows about Roopak's true colours and believed Michael. Do you think Michael could convince her about their relationship after three months?

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Shakthi.