I'M THE BEAST BILLIONAIRE BRIDE

PENELOPE

My tears are still overflowing in my eyes while staring at the two coffins in front of me.

Until now, I couldn't accept the fact that the two people who were so important in my life were dead just because of a car accident.

The people around me are just quietly staring in my direction. I could hear some of them sobbing silently, and some of them were just staring at me while having a worried look on their faces.

Thirty minutes had passed, but I still couldn't let go of the two coffins to get buried in the ground yet.

No, I am still not ready yet.

"Penelope, please. Let go of them now. I know that they are already happy wherever they are now."

I didn't bother to listen to Auntie Martha's whispers into my ears. Until now, I couldn't manage to talk back with them or even reply with a single word.

"Please, Penelope. They didn't want to see you crying and still mourning over them."

I was stunned by the last statement of my auntie. I stand up straight while staring at the coffins. I couldn't help but burst into tears like rain suddenly pouring in our faces when I suddenly remembered some words from my memories.

"Pen, you need to be independent and keep your smile without us."

I could feel thouns and needles burning in my heart while staring at the coffins of my mom and dad.

Even if I don't want to, I get the flowers from my aunt's hand and look in my mom and dad's direction.

"Wherever you are, always remember that I love you." I cracked my own voice after saying those words.

I threw the flowers in my mom and dad's coffin, and for the last time, I looked at their grave while tears were still falling into my cheeks and I formed a sad smile.

*

Seven days had passed since my mom and dad had died. I thought I could go back to the past even if I don't have a parent anymore, but I was wrong.

For all the years that I have been living in this world, I couldn't believe that my mom and dad have a huge amount of debt to the bank. I tried to talk to some of my relatives, but I just failed to convince them to help me, and none of them want to keep me. Now, I could count the days where I suddenly lost the house of my parents as well.

I miss my mom and dad so much. I wonder what kind of solution they would think of in this kind of situation.

"Penelope, are you fine? I told you that you should not go to class yet."

I looked in the direction of my friend, Raelynn Ximena. She's been my best friend since we were children. I could hear the sound of the lollipop that she was eating while looking at me with her worried hazel-brown eyes. With her snow white skin, I could see her kissable lips more. She's a goddess, if there is one.

I shrugged my head in response to her question. "I'm fine, Raelynn. I'm fine." I took a deep breath when I felt the tears that wanted to fall from my cheeks again.

I just realized the situation I have right now when I suddenly received a hug from my friend. Action speaks a thousand words. That's why she's been my best friend until now.

We just stop talking with each other when a man suddenly stops in front of us.

By the way, we're college students, and right now, we just had our break time. A bachelor of science in psychology is our course. I stared at the man while he was fixing his shoe tie that was removed earlier. I am not familiar with his face. Is he a new student?

He has a back-slicked hair style, white American skin, is tall as six feet, has a round face, a pointed nose, and I could almost think that his lips kiss a liptint.

I snapped my own eyes when he suddenly looked in my direction.

"Kennedy? Oy, first time that you walked around here. Are you tired of using the school roof whenever we had a break time?"

I looked in my friend's direction when I heard her statement. My eyebrows met with confusion while looking at her. My friend also looked at me, and her eyes suddenly widen while looking at me.

"You don't know him, Penelope?" She even pointed her finger in the man's direction in front of us. To our loud voice, I suddenly feel embarrassed.

"He's our classmate, Escanor Kennedy. Are you really that stressed?"

I glared in my friend's direction. We both looked in Kennedy's direction, and we both looked at our surroundings when we noticed that he was not standing in front of us anymore.

I am not looking at my surroundings often because I am one of those nerds, and I don't want to get a center of attraction, especially from those bullies. I'm truly glad that Raelynn is here, so I haven't experienced bullying yet.

Anyway, our conversation stopped again when another student approached us again.

"Ms. Eleanor, you are called to join the Dean's Office now." After giving a statement, she immediately left us.

My friend and I stared at each other, and after a while, I took a deep breath.

"Yeah. Maybe they will talk about my deceased parents too."

I stand up without energy. I feel like I am exhausted from all of my afternoon activities. I just looked in my friend's direction before I walked to the principal's office. My friend even wants to come and join me, but I stop her from coming. I don't want her to hear negative news, and she will be worried about my situation again.

When I finally arrived at the dean's office, I saw the dean together with the two people wearing black tuxedos. They both bowed to me, which makes me more confused.

"Ms. Eleanor, we are glad to talk with you and let you come with us. We want you to know that starting today, you will live in the mansion together with our master."

I am even more confused because of what I heard from one of them.

"Huh? Mansion? What mansion? Who's the owner?"

"The mansion that was owned by Master Kendy. This is what Master Kendy and your late parents agreed on. You are going to marry our master."

I feel like I suddenly lost my sense of hearing. K-Kendy? I don't even know that person!

"What kind of bullshit is that? Do you even have evidence?" I glared in their direction.

They smiled at me. After that, they gave me some white paper. I get it, but I fell to the floor when I saw the signatures of my mom and dad. Not only that.

They let me marry a man who was twenty years older than me.

He is forty years old, for goodness sake!

PENELOPE

"So, you are called here because they asked permission for them to get you to go to the mansion that they were talking about earlier."

I looked in the dean's direction. I went silent for a moment. If I refuse to come with them, who knows what will happen to me? However, I also don't want to come with people that I don't even know.

I bite my own lower lips. Maybe this is what they call the situation where, whatever I choose, I am still going to be hurt in the end.

I took a deep breath, silently. There are no relatives who are willing to get me anymore. There's no use if I'm going to think right now and choose what I want in the end.

I looked at the two men again and nodded in response to their statement.

"Okay, fine. I will go with you."

A smile formed on their lips when they heard my statement.

"Thank you. Come here and leave with us."

One of them looked in the dean's direction and bowed down to her.

"Thank you so much."

After they are done saying goodbye to the dean's office, we immediately leave her office. We immediately got out of the university when I suddenly remembered that I hadn't even bid farewell to my friend.

Maybe I am still going to study here, so I'm sure that I am still going to see Raelynn.

We get inside the black car in front of the university's gate. It looks expensive, but I could notice the brand of the car right away because I am not in the mood to look at its brand name or my surroundings. I am just sitting silently in the car for the whole ride. One of the men is driving the car, and the other one is sitting beside him.

I didn't even bother to look out the window of the car because I feel like if I did, the people with me right now would look like bad people trying to kidnap me.

I suddenly remembered my parents. Is it true that, from the start, they already want me to marry a person that I haven't met in my whole life?

I don't understand.

However, I am finding it difficult to understand why they let me marry a person who is as old as my dad.

My own family, but it feels like I don't know them a lot.

"Mom, Dad, you did this for my own good, right?" Tears fell into my cheeks when I stated those words that kept lurking in my mind.

My mind just went to reality when the car suddenly stopped moving.

The person sitting in the passenger seat should get out of the car first. After that, he opened the door for me.

After I finally got out of the car as well, I saw a gigantic gate in front of me. I could even see that a trespasser would not be able to get in this house because of its huge and tall gate. The gate automatically opened when we walked in front of it.

"This is your first time arriving here at our master's mansion, so we will walk here first until we reach the main mansion in order for you to see the whole place and its surroundings."

I nodded in response to the two men that I had been with earlier. We started to walk with one of them while the other one was left behind because he would be the one who would drive the car inside this paradise.

We just walked for a few minutes, but I am already in awe of our surroundings right now. A space-catcher garden was viewed from both sides. From afar, I could also see a small pond. I already guess that the owner of this house is awesomely rich.

"May I know where the owner of this mansion is right now? Maybe he is already inside the mansion and waiting for me since he let me come with you today, right?

I pouted my lips when I heard a not-so-loud laugh from my companion in response to my question. I looked at him with a blank expression, but I am not going to be surprised if he is really laughing right now.

Who's woman is going to marry a man who is the same age as her dad? I just think that mom and dad just wanted to think about my life. They're just maybe thinking that there's no normal person who is going to marry a nerd like me and doesn't even know how to look pretty. That's probably why they want me to marry an old man instead, so even if I could experience the hardness of my love life, at least I would not experience a worse life.

I just shrugged my head at my own thoughts.

"Ma'am, I'm sorry. However, our master is not around right now. He will arrive later in the afternoon."

I stopped walking when I heard his words.

"Huh? Are you kidding me or your master is playing prank on me? Did you know that this is the first time that I left the school early in my entire life? Then, you are going to say something like that? Maybe you called me after class after all?" I deeply sighed.

I don't want to get mad at this time until I can talk to the man who is stated in the paper that I read earlier. I shrugged my head and continued to walk.

After a few minutes, we finally reached the door of the mansion that they had been talking about earlier. We are welcomed by a lot of maids. They are bowing their heads while standing in order.

"Welcome here to this mansion, ma'am Penelope."

I was stunned when they all stated my name. I suddenly feel like I am the lost daughter of this mansion.

We went inside the mansion, and my eyes got wider because of what I saw. All of the things inside the mansion, even the floor or the ceiling, are shining and shimmering. Chairs, stairs, and even the rellings. Is this the right place? Is this not the mansion of some kind of king of some country?

I shrugged my head and took a deep breath. I should not base my happiness on what I can see here.

"Madam, come, and we will show you your room."

An old lady walked first, and I just followed her. I think she is the same age as the man I am going to marry. We walked until we reached the second floor of the mansion and stopped at the last room on the floor.

The maid that was with me was the one who opened the door of the room for me. I went inside, and I could already smell the good smell of flowers that were used in my room. It is also screamingly elegant.

"Please stay here while Master is gone." She bowed to me before she finally left me alone.

I still want to ask her a question, but I choose to ask when the person I am waiting for finally arrives.

I sat on the gigantic and soft bed. I held my own hands and stayed quiet for a moment.

Could I really stay here in this kind of mansion?

I didn't even stay here for too long yet, but I couldn't breathe properly now. I feel like I do not belong in this kind of mansion.

PENELOPE

I am thinking a lot of things, and because of that, I couldn't talk right away when the person I was waiting for suddenly arrived.

While I am staring at him, the things that I am thinking about him slowly disappear.

Who is going to think that he is really in his 40s?

His face looks so young, and if only not for his mustaches, I will probably think that he is just pranking me about his age.

He is a good body builder, his face is smooth like a young man, and his hair is not something any old man should have.

I blink my own eyes when he suddenly smiles in my direction.

"Welcome here in my mansion. I'm sorry if I let you wait for too long." He bowed down to me and walked a little closer to my direction.

"Y-you are that Kendy?" I asked him with amusement.

His smile still didn't vanish from his lips, and at this moment, I could feel a butterfly in my stomach.

Why did I think for an instant that I already knew him before?

"Yes. I am indeed that Kendy. I'm sorry if I introduced myself to you this late." He smiled at me again, and after that, a mix of sadness and worries flashed in his face.

How could he smile differently in a moment like that?

"Actually, I didn't want to break the deal with your parents that after you finish studying, then I will introduce myself to you. However, I heard the news about them passing away and all the things that happened in your family."

His stares become darker and grayer, and even his tone of voice is like he is going to cry right away.

"I don't want you to experience the poor state of life, and you don't have your parents anymore, so I think this is the right time for me to show up."

I stayed silent for a minute and didn't answer him right away. I want to understand all of his words.

I looked in his direction.

"I understand what you want to do, but do you think this is not right?"

I couldn't finish my sentence. I want to get mad at him, but when I see his face, I suddenly feel weak.

I took a deep breath while staring at him.

"Okay. I mean, can I go home first in order to get some of my things? One more thing, I still didn't solve the problem about the house of my parents." I couldn't help but to bowed down.

When I just think that the house of my parents is going to get away from me as well, the only memories I have with my parents, I feel like I am losing myself already.

I looked up when I felt Kendy's presence near me. He touched my chin and forced me to look into his eyes. A smile flashed into his lips immediately. A smile that suddenly makes me feel fresh

"Don't worry about those things. I will pay all the debt of your parents, so you will not lose everything that your parents left to you."

Instead of feeling grateful for his words, my eyebrows met each other out of confusion. I also feel uncomfortable because of the space between us. He is so close to me!

"But you know well that I don't have a huge amount of money to pay you back."

"Don't worry, Penelope. You are going to be my wife, so I want you to stay happy and kind all the time."

I couldn't speak right away because of those words. I don't know what to say or what to feel about this. Should I be happy or sad because who knows what kind of things he will ask later?

It looked like electricity sparked in my whole body when he touched my face.

"Don't worry. I will not do something against your will. If you really want to pay me back, I will wait for you to finish your studies and get your first job until you can actually pay me."

Now, everything is clear to me. I sighed in relief.

"I wish you were a man of your words."

I moved away from him and looked in another direction. I think there's something wrong with my feelings right now.

When I looked in his direction again, he was now walking outside of my room.

"I'm going to get out here now. If there's anything that you still want to ask or tell me, you could call me on the telephone beside your bed, and one of our maids will go to help you with your concern. All your things and clothes could be seen inside the closet." After saying those words, he finally left me alone.

When Kendy is finally gone, I only feel that I am alone right now. I feel like I suddenly imprisoned myself by coming here.

Now, I could finally breathe normally. When Kendy was around here earlier, I felt like I could not breathe normally. Why did he come closer? Tss.

Anyway, instead of feeling sorrow and thinking about a lot of things that happened now, I chose to get up and look at the cabinet to which Kendy's referring earlier.

When I was talking to Kendy before, I didn't know what words to use while talking to him. Do I need to respect him because he is much older than me or should I not because he might feel sad and only realize the age gap we had for each other?

I shrugged my head at my own thoughts. Why am I considering his feelings now?

I opened the cabinet, and I stepped backwards when I saw what's inside the cabinet.

There's a lot of clothing. There's also a school uniform for me. There's different kinds of clothes, regardless of the occasion. However, this is all different from what I usually wear every day. They look more expensive.

I deeply sighed. There's no doubt that I am really going to marry a rich old man, but until now, I still didn't know his identity.

I pouted my own lips. In my entire life, I still haven't put myself in a relationship. I didn't even fall in love with a person before. That's why I didn't know how to act in front of me earlier.

"Mom, Dad, what kind of life did you put on me?"

My eyebrows met with confusion when I couldn't open one of the small drawers below the cabinet. It looks like I need a key to open it, but I don't know where the key is.