CHAPTER 25: THE GOSSIP ABOUT CECILIA AND THE INTERVIEW

"I have not checked the group chat this morning?" Cecilia muttered to herself, her thumb trembling as she scrolled through the endless messages on the family's WhatsApp group. She rubbed her temples, a headache already forming from the sharp comments and the passive-aggressive questions she could feel lurking behind every word. The subject was her again. It always was. Her phone buzzed, and she sighed as another message popped up. "It's really unfortunate what's happening with Cecilia... married so fast after that scandal. You have to wonder what's going on with her." — Aunt Margaret. "We should have seen this coming. She was always too headstrong." — Uncle Tom. Cecilia clenched her fist so hard that her knuckles turned white. It was the same nonsense over and over, the same people passing judgment without ever considering her side of the story. She swallowed hard, her Adam's apple bobbing in her throat as she tried to ignore the heat rising to her face. Her cheeks flared red, bu