His words were like a blade, sharp and unforgiving, stabbing directly into their throats and twisting their hearts into chaos. The two women’s faces turned green with rage.
“They’re ugly!”
Someone had actually called them ugly!
“You… who are you? What nonsense are you spouting?” The plump woman’s face flushed red with fury, her nostrils flaring upward like an angry sow.
Annie quickly chimed in, “Mom, isn’t it obvious? This is Felicity’s loser boyfriend. What poor taste he has, liking someone as hideous as Felicity.”
Kayden calmly sat down beside Felicity. He reached out, gently brushing a strand of her hair aside, and said, “Why wouldn’t I like someone like Felicity? She’s breathtakingly beautiful, a woman of unparalleled charm. Why shouldn’t I like her?”
His words made Felicity’s face flush bright red. Her heart raced uncontrollably. For someone as conservative as Felicity, Kayden’s actions felt like a bold confession. The way he touched her hair-it was almost flirtatious. Such behavior, especially in front of elders, was far too forward.
Felicity’s mother looked on, stunned. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. When had her daughter become so close to a man? It was utterly shocking.
“Hahaha!” The two plump women doubled over with laughter, nearly collapsing.
“Breathtakingly beautiful? Unparalleled charm? You’ve got to be kidding me!” The plump woman gazed at her own daughter with pride. “My daughter may be a bit on the heavier side, but her delicate features are unmatched. If she loses some weight and learns some beauty tricks, she’ll be stunning!”
“And her? Just look at that red birthmark on her face-it’s disgusting! Breathtakingly beautiful? Boy, are you blind, or do you just have a taste for the bizarre?”
Felicity’s mother felt even more embarrassed. Kayden’s words, though meant to defend Felicity, sounded so exaggerated that they only invited ridicule. She knew her daughter’s appearance well enough-it was far from what Kayden claimed.
Kayden didn’t respond. Instead, he took out a small bottle, poured out a single pill, and handed it to Felicity. “Soon, Felicity will be breathtakingly beautiful and unmatched in charm,” he said. “Here, take it. Once you do, the birthmark on your face will disappear.”
Felicity frowned slightly, staring at Kayden. Her voice trembled as she said, “Kayden, I…”
“Say nothing. Trust me. Once you take this, the birthmark will vanish,” Kayden said gently, his tone carrying an undeniable conviction.
“Felicity!” Her mother looked on nervously, worried she was being duped.
Felicity nodded firmly. “I trust Kayden.”
Without hesitation, she took the pill and swallowed it.
Annie and her mother said nothing, merely watching Felicity in silence, waiting to see if the pill would work.
A minute passed, and nothing happened.
Annie sneered and burst into laughter. “Felicity, oh Felicity, I can’t believe how naive you are to trust someone like him! He’s clearly a fraud. Do you really think someone like you can be saved?”
“You were born this way! That birthmark is a mark of your lowly fate, a-”
Before she could finish, her voice caught in her throat.
“This… this… how is this possible?”
Annie stared at Felicity in disbelief. The red birthmark on Felicity’s face was fading-slowly but surely, it was fading.
The plump woman’s face underwent a dramatic transformation as well. Her eyes widened in shock. “It’s fake! It has to be fake! How can a pill make a birthmark disappear?”
Felicity’s mother was equally stunned. It was real! The birthmark was truly fading. What once covered half of Felicity’s face was now reduced to a third, then a fifth, then a mere trace.
In about five minutes, the birthmark was completely gone.
Five people. Ten eyes. All watched in astonishment as the birthmark vanished right in front of them.
What stood before them now was a completely different woman. Felicity’s beauty was breathtaking. In this small town-no, even in the entire county-there was no one who could compare to her.
Every single person gawked in disbelief.
Felicity herself was unaware of the change but could feel something extraordinary must have happened from their stunned expressions. She blinked, looking at her mother and then at Aunt Clara, who had come to stir up trouble.
Kayden stepped forward and held up a mirror in front of Felicity. “Take a look. It’s gone.”
Felicity’s heart raced. It had been a long time-years-since she had dared to look at herself in a mirror. She knew she was unattractive. She knew her appearance sometimes frightened others.
The only time she ever looked in the mirror was when she was alone, in secret.
Sometimes, her reflection brought her sorrow and confusion, but she always reminded herself that her appearance was a gift from her parents. She blamed no one for it.
Though life hadn’t been kind to her, Felicity had never given up on it.
Now, with her heart pounding, she slowly raised her eyes to the mirror.
When the reflection of her face appeared, she couldn’t help but gasp in shock.
“My God!” she exclaimed, the words escaping her lips instinctively.
She was stunned-utterly stunned.
She had never imagined that without the birthmark, she could look so beautiful. Was this really her? Staring at the mirror, her mind was flooded with questions. Was this truly her? Could this possibly be her?
She couldn’t believe the woman in the mirror was her. Not even a little.
The story of the ugly duckling turning into a swan-something she’d never dared to dream about-was now her reality.
A warm, gentle hand rested on her shoulder. Kayden’s voice came from behind her. “This is the real you. I told you-you’re beautiful. I never lie.”
Felicity listened to his words, overwhelmed with emotion. She didn’t know what to say.
This man had brought such a miracle into her life that she could no longer find words to express her gratitude.
Like anyone else, Felicity had dreamed of being beautiful. But that was just a dream. Now, it was real, and she couldn’t process it all at once.
Suddenly, the plump woman’s voice broke the silence. “So what if she’s beautiful now? Does that mean she doesn’t have to pay back the money? Pay up! Pay up! That money is for my daughter’s future! Mona, give me the money!”