zarina harvard. d2. fin. cbd1

She was supposedly a nobody, raised to be a somebody. A family that did not bear the crest of a prestigious career family. Liu. At a time when she still had that childish sparkle in her eyes, she thought she liked the name. Liu was attached to strong memories—holding melted ice cream cones with her father when he still knew how to smile—walking through the District Square with her mother, posing for pictures by the fountain. She often wondered when her mother's touch lost its warmth. She couldn't remember.

She was made to believe she was invincible. The grueling hours of career training hardened and humbled her, yet it did not produce the intended confidence. She didn't feel invincible. She could see behind that arrogant façade of career families; they did not think of their children as strong, they thought of them as disposable. Only the victors would be worthy, while the rest belonged in a grave.

It was a difficult realization. She was an only child, and her parents had shaped her future from the start. She would find glory or be sold off to marriage. If she didn't succeed, she would produce heirs that did. There was no second guessing, no questioning, no free will. If they thought of her as a real person, would they act this way? Is that how a parent acted toward their child? Using them as a puppet, a means to an end? Happiness was never taken into consideration.

So she ran.