His Plus-Size Substitute Bride

Lilian Sanchez

The sound of my blaring alarm pulls me out of my deep slumber, and I force my eyes open as the blurry ceiling welcomes me. Again, I have woken up to deal with the miseries of my life and choose whether to stay alive or get thrown into depression and probably end up committing suicide. I know that I will eventually have to choose between the two. What do you expect from a young innocent lady that got nothing all her life, but bullies and rejection from the world?

My name is Lilian Sanchez, twenty-one years old chubby, short and ugly young lady. The only child of my sick father and my mom who was said to have divorced my father and abandoned me when I was just six months old. I have no idea about the reason she had to make that decision. What would've pushed her to abandon her six months old baby? That is the question that has been disturbing me for years now, but I never got an answer to it. What do I even expect? Maybe I was so fat that she couldn't stand my presence and had to reject me too. Guess I was born for that.

Realizing that I have an interview at Bradford's empire in two hours, I hurry down the bed and scurry into my bathroom to have my bath before I finally get dressed. Staring at my plump reflection in the mirror, I try so hard not to cry. I don't have good feelings about this. They may reject and bully me, just the way I have always been bullied all my life.

"Believe in yourself, Lilian," I assure myself although I know it's not going to help me. I need this job so badly so I can pay for our house rent later. My strict stepmother will eventually kill me with frustration if I don't get the job. Speaking of my stepmother, my father got married to the witch when I was just ten, and since then she hasn't had a single child for my father, not even a miscarriage. All she does in the house is bully me and call me all sorts of names. I guess being extremely fat is a curse. 'Lose weight already, you pig', 'you're too chubby and not smart enough in moving your body. Are you scared of falling to the ground?' My stepmother would always mock me. For goodness sake, I don't weigh up to three hundred pounds, and I'm 5'2 for crying out loud, I'm not that worse.

Taking a deep breath, I finally pick up my file from the bed and amble out of the room. Stepping into the living room a few minutes later, the annoying glare of my stepmother welcomes me.

"Good morning, ma'am Felicia," I greet her politely, but she only glares hard at me. Don't blame me for calling her that, it's what she prefers. In all the years she has spent with my dad, she has never for once allowed me to call her 'mom', and not that I want to anyway.

"You know the landlord would throw us out later if we don't provide the money, so don't fail us," She says to me like I'm the one that's going to employ myself there. Why does my life have to be this awful?

"I'll take note of that," I reply to her before I finally stride out of the house and take a cab to the company.

Arriving at the company a few minutes later, I stare at the building in front of me as I hold my file tightly. They called me for the interview, but I'm not sure if I should go in there, or if I should just turn back from here to save myself the bully I'll surely get from there.

"You can do this, Lilian. Just believe in yourself that you can," I assure myself one more time before I finally amble to the big iron gate and walk in since it's opened. Stepping into the company minutes later, the stares that welcome me give me a bad feeling and make me regret showing up here in the first place. If I could, I would stay indoors all my life just so I can save myself from insults and embarrassment.

"Why is she so fat?"

"The sight of her is irritates me,"

"It would've been good if she lose some weight," Hearing those whispers as I wait in the lobby for the said interviewer, I can't help the sadness and pain that fills my heart. Do they think that I didn't want to lose weight? Do they think that this is what I wish for myself? I also want to be slim and be called a beautiful young lady. I also want to walk in those elegant clothes and heels, but what was I supposed to do when I was already cursed with this ugly look?

"Lilian Sanchez, it's your turn," I'm finally going to leave these bitches. Standing up to my feet, I follow the lady that just came to call me as she leads me to God knows where.

Arriving at the office of a young man, the interview kicks start immediately.

"Congratulations, Miss Sanchez. You passed the first stage of the interview. You'll be directed to the manager for the second stage, before the CEO would interview you himself," The man says to me with a genuine smile on his face. It's the first time someone is ever going to smile at me genuinely.

Leaving his office to the manager's office as per his description, I arrive at the office after searching for it for some minutes.

A few minutes later

Standing in front of the said CEO's office, my heart beats rapidly against my chest as I clench my sweaty hands. I passed the first and second stages, but I'm so worried about the final stage. What if I don't end up passing it?

Taking a deep breath, I muster courage and push the door open after I knocked and he ushered me in. Stepping into the office, my heartbeat stops abruptly as I behold the most charming young man I have ever seen in my whole years of existence. His raven hair is clinging to his head with some strands curled on his forehead, he has thick eyebrows, small heart-shaped pink lips, long eyelashes, and his skin. I guess his cream must cost so much money to be able to afford this smooth skin. Gosh! He's so handsome.

"You are the new assistant my manager talked about, right?" Still having his gaze on the screen of the desktop, he speaks up in his deep baritone voice, and my heart melts slowly.

"Yes, Sir," I finally find my voice. My breath seizes for seconds when he finally raises his gaze to look at me, as his brown charming eyes pierce into mine. Is he a human or a magic creature?

"What are you doing here?" His voice sounds angry this time, snapping me out of my world of fantasy, and the disgusted look on his face scares me.

"Sir, I..."

"Who let you into my office?" He snaps at me angrily.

"I was sent here by the manager for the final stage of the interview as..."

"You're not qualified. Get out," He cuts me off with pure disgust written on his face and sounds in his voice.

"But Sir... You have not interviewed me yet," My heart beats rapidly as I pray silently that it's not what I'm thinking. I hope it's not my bad luck again.

"I can't work with you. I can't let a pig work in my company. Do you want to see yourself out, or do you need the security to help you out?" He spits at me, and my heart sinks into my stomach. My fear has finally come true. I shouldn't have expected less, this was bound to happen anyway.

"You could've asked me to leave without calling me a pig, right?" The tears I have been fighting back finally find their way out of my eyes as I turn and walk out of his office, slamming the door behind me...

Lilian Sanchez

The past three days have been the worst days of my life. I am used to people bullying me for my look, but the only person that ever referred to me as a 'pig' is my stepmother, but hearing it from a stranger for the first time hurts so much. If anyone ever told me that an innocent-looking man would be so mean, I would never have believed the person.

Trying to get myself distracted with the novel I bought recently, the sound of the knock on my door pulls my attention, and I groan angrily. Not that I need anyone to tell me that it's my annoying stepmother. What does she want now?

"Lilian..." Her voice sounds from outside, confirming my curiosity.

"Yes, ma'am Felicia," Standing up from the bed, I stride to the door and pull it open, revealing her ugly-looking face.

"Good morning, ma'am,"

"This is why you're not losing weight. What time is it, and you're still sleeping?" She scoffs as she rolls her eyes. The last thing on my mind now is to argue with her. I have no strength for that now.

"Do you need me to do anything for you, ma'am?" I ask her politely.

"Come with me," She turns and walks away afterward.

Dragging my feet sluggishly along the hallway, I arrive at the living room, but the sight that welcomes me makes me freeze on the spot. It's the CEO from the company. The one that insulted and called me names the last three days. What the heck is he doing here?

"What are you doing here?" He tilts his head to look at me, and his face dilates in shock as soon as our eyes meet.

"Is she the one you're talking about?" He ignores me and turns to ask my stepmother instead. I'm getting confused at this point. What's going on?

"Yes, Mr. Ren. I'm sorry for her manners," I have never seen this hypocritical woman smile this genuinely.

"Behave yourself, Lilian,"She turns to scold me before turning her attention to the man again.

"Mr. Ren, this is Lilian, the one I was telling you about," She smiles at him politely. I have heard so much about Ren Bradford. He's said to be the heir to the Bradford empire, and the successor of the empire after his father passed away some years ago. I didn't expect less from an only child anyway.

"You're expecting me to consider this thing? What makes you think that I will accept her?" He scoffs after he scrutinizes me carefully with his eyes while having a dissatisfied expression on his face. As much as I want to insult this man and throw him out of our house, I can't help but get more curious about what he's doing here and what he and my stepmother must've talked about.

"Hey, Mr., my name is Lilian, and not..."

"Oh, shut up. You don't talk when I'm talking..."

"I don't know you, and I don't care to ever know you, but you have no right whatsoever to come to our house and insult me like you did back at your company. I won't take that ill manner from you," I fire at him.

"Shut your dirty stinky fat mouth, you shameless pig," My stepmother finally cuts me off as she glares hard at me.

"Your daughter is not just fat and ugly, but also mannerless. How can you expect me to take her in exchange for the money you're owing me? Do you think two hundred thousand dollars is a joke?" His words ring in my head, and for some minutes, it feels as though my ears are deceiving me. Wait, don't tell me it's what I'm thinking.

"I know she's not worth it, but she's all I have... I don't have anything I can sell to..."

"Wait, let me get this straight. What is going on here?" Unable to keep quiet anymore, I finally ask curiously.

"What does it look like to you? Your mom borrowed money from me and couldn't pay up at the allotted time, so she's using you as collateral," He replies to me sarcastically as if what he just said is not even a big deal.

"You're joking, right? What's going on here? Can you just speak up already?" My lips tremble as I turn to my stepmother questioningly.

"Where do you think we got the money to pay for your dad's surgery months ago? You thought I sold my kidney to raise the money, huh?" She snaps at me, and I shake my head, still confused. Some months ago, my dad was diagnosed with stage two lung cancer of which he needed surgery, and she paid for it. She told me not to worry when I asked where she got the money from.

"But..."

"Since there's no one else, I'll take her with me," He cuts me off before I even started talking, and my heart sinks into my stomach. Staring at the woman, my heart wrenches in pain as the tears I have been fighting back finally find their way down my cheeks. Would she have done this to me if I was her child?

One hour later...

My stepmother has successfully sold me out to a stranger and she didn't even care about what happens to me there. Is this how heartless she is? Glancing at the man sitting next to me in the backseat of the expensive car, I find him staring down at his phone keenly while having all of his attention on it. I wonder what fate has in store for me, or rather, what this man has in store for me. I wonder why our fate has to be entangled in this manner. Just three days ago, this man bullied me for nothing and I didn't want to ever see him again, but now it seems like that can't be dodged. I'm going to be spending maybe the rest of my life with him, depending on what he wants.

"We're here, Sir," The driver's voice pulls my attention, and I quickly look out through the window to find us in the compound of a magnificent building.

"Are you not going to get down from the car?" His cold voice pulls me out of my dreamland, and I push the door open, stepping out of the car afterward. I must confess that this house is extremely big and beautiful, just like the ones I do see in magazines and on TV.

I trail behind him as he strides to the building. My mouth almost drops open as soon as we step into the large living room. The couches are sparkling neat and beautiful. The house is extremely beautiful but too bad that I don't even have the energy to admire it now. I have so many things going through my mind, and the last thing I want to do is to admire the house.

"Lisa... Lisa..." He calls out, and a young lady of same age as me, came running into the living room.

"Sir..."

"Take her to the room next to mine," He says to her before he walks away.

"Hi, my name is Lisa, one of the maids. It's nice to meet you," She says to me while having a smile on her lips.

"I'm Lilian," I reply to her, and she nods her head. I thought she was also going to look at me the way other people do, but it seems like she's not even thinking about that.

Hours later

I have spent just a few hours here, and it already feels like hell. I wish there's a way I can escape from here, but it's like being in a pit of hell that one can't escape from. I miss my poor dad. How will he feel when he wakes up from coma and finds out that his wife sold out his only child? How wicked of her.

Crying my eyes out the whole day, I finally drag myself into the bathroom and have a long relaxing bath. The house is filled with luxurious things, but I don't find them attractive enough. I just want to go back home and be with my dad.

Walking back into my room after I have my bath, I stop on my track as I spot Ren, sitting on the edge of my bed with his white robe on. What's he doing here?

"Wha...what are you doing here?" Scared, I step back as I hold my towel tightly around my chest, causing him to raise his gaze to look at me.

"I have been waiting for you, Lilian. It's time to do what you're here for," With a smirk dancing at the corner of his lips, he stands up to his feet and loses the rope, connecting his robe.

"What are you doing?" My heart beats rapidly against my chest as I feel my back pressed hard against the wall. Don't tell me it's what I'm thinking...

"What are you doing?" Her hands tremble nervously as she presses her back hard against the wall like she wants to disappear into it. Her heartbeat increases rapidly whilst clenching her fingers tightly around the towel wrapping around her chest like she doesn't want it to fall off.

"Don't make that face, Lilian. I didn't bring you here to enjoy life in my empire, OK? You're here to satisfy me..." He pauses as he finally lets the robe falls off his body, revealing his half-naked body with just his brief on. She tries not to drool at his perfectly toned abs, his firm nipples that keep screaming for her attention, but the more she tries to resist the urge to stare, the more she find herself looking down there.

"Yeah, that right there... You like what you see, huh?" His hush voice brings her back to reality, and she snaps her eyes up to see him walking toward her, and her heart quivers.

"I don't like pigs... I mean, look at me. I am handsome, wealthy, and I have women throwing themselves at me..."

"Th...then leave me alone," Her voice quivers as she grits her teeth. Hot tears well up in her eyes before they find their way down her cheeks. It was never her fault that she's fat, right? She was born like this, and not what she wished for. Why are they all so mean to her? Why is he calling her a pig?

"Why should I leave you alone, Lilian? You're my property now, remember? I have never laid a chubby girl before... Starting from you won't be a bad idea, right?" He finally stops in front of her and touches her cheeks while having a dirty smirk dancing at the corner of her lips.

"Maybe after I have a taste of you, I would know what it is like to have a chubby girl in bed," He bites his bottom lip seductively as he slowly raises her gaze to look up into his eyes while having his hand on her chin.

"Let me go..." She tries to turn her face away, but his firm grip on her chin wouldn't let her move her face.

"Save yourself the stress, Lilian... You would need it on the bed later," His smirk finally widens into a wide smile as he whispers in her ear.

"Drop the towel and show me what you've got there," He suddenly pulls away from her and licks his lip seductively, scrutinizing her body with his charming eyes. Seeing the look on her face for some reason, he finds this fun. Not that the young girl did anything to him, but why on earth is it so fun to treat her like this?

"No... There's no way I'll do that," He squints his eyes for seconds before he suddenly chuckles dryly.

"You don't say no to me, Lilian. You're my property. You belong to me!" His voice is calm, yet the scariest she ever heard, and she shivers on the spot as she stares at the dangerous and scary man in front of her. How she's suddenly here in a lion's den with no hope of escaping, is what she never imagined. She has always known her stepmother to hate her, but she never imagined that she'll go to the extreme length of doing this to her.

"Re... Ren... Don't touch me..." Her voice quivers as she presses her back further into the wall, tears streaming down her cheeks uncontrollably.

"I beg you, please... Leave me alone," She suddenly falls to her knees when her legs can't carry her anymore, and he rolls his eyes momentarily.

"I'll spare you tonight, Lilian... Not because of your pleas, but because I am in a good mood. When next I want you..." He pauses as he squats in front of her.

"I'll torture you until you can't take it anymore and beg me to f*ck you so hard, Lilian. I'll make you hit orgasms five times in a row, and I promise that by the time I'm done with you, you'll never remain the same again," He whispers against her ear as a dirty smirk plays at the corner of his lips.

Picking up his robe from the ground, he wears it and glances at her for the last time before he finally strides out of the room, while she breaks down in tears.

How she started as a little girl that was loved by her dad regardless of her looks, how she was bullied in school all her life but was still his princess, how her stepmother treated her like a piece of trash, and now she is stuck with this stranger that's suddenly demanding for sex from her? How's she going to survive this?

With all the strength left in her, she drags herself up to her feet and hobbles over to the bed, crashing on it as more tears pour down her cheeks.

"Everything will be fine, Lilian. You have to be strong. Crying won't solve anything," She mutters to herself even if she knows that everything will never be fine, she still can't help but cry, even if she knows it wouldn't ever help her.

Taking a deep breath, she wipes the tears from her eyes as she stands up and walks over to the closet to pick out some clothes to wear. She strides out of the room after she wears casual cloth.

Striding down the hallway, she finds herself in the garden minutes later as the gentle wind blows on her face. For some seconds, she finally sees a reason to smile as she pushes all her worries and pains to the back of her mind.

The noise coming from the other side of the garden pulls her attention, and she finds herself tracing the voice until she finds two maids trimming the flowers.

"Wow! I still can't believe Mr. Ren is getting married tomorrow. Ma'am Tracy must be so lucky," One of the maids whines dreamily, and Lilian pulls a puzzled look.

"Yes, she's lucky. Mr. Ren is every woman's dream. Tomorrow is going to be a big day in Bradford's mansion," The other one squeaks excitedly.

Lilian stares into space in shock. Ren is getting married? 'Why did he bring me here to molest me if he is really going to get married? Why was he flirting with me earlier knowing that it was cheating on his fiancee?' She questions herself as she slowly turns around and hobbles out of the garden...