Chapter 1 : The girl Who had nothing
At 6:40 a.m., Emma Carter’s alarm went off for the third time.
Her hand emerged from beneath the pale gray blanket and blindly searched for her phone.
She found it.
Slapped the screen.
Silence.
Five seconds later, her hazel eyes opened.
She stared at the ceiling.
Then at the time.
6:45.
“Oh, God.”
She shot upright.
A curtain of long, dark brown hair fell over her shoulders and across her face. She pushed it away impatiently, revealing a soft oval face, a small straight nose, naturally full lips, and large almond-shaped eyes framed by thick, dark lashes.
Emma had the kind of face people remembered.
Not because she was impossibly perfect.
Because there was something quietly striking about her.
Her eyes were the first thing people noticed—warm hazel, darker around the edges, with tiny golden flecks that became visible whenever sunlight touched them.
Her eyebrows were naturally thick and slightly arched, giving her an expression that often looked more confident than she actually felt.
Her skin was warm ivory, with a few faint freckles scattered across the bridge of her nose and upper cheeks.
She had a soft jawline and delicate features, the kind that made her look younger whenever she wasn’t wearing makeup.
And she was beautiful.
She simply didn’t know it.
Emma had spent years looking at herself through a list of imperfections.
Her hair was too difficult.
Her skin wasn’t clear enough.
Her waist wasn’t small enough.
Her clothes weren’t expensive enough.
Her face looked tired.
She never noticed the things other people noticed.
The way her eyes softened when she smiled.
The little crease that appeared beside her mouth when she laughed.
The way her long hair framed her face.
Or the fact that even wearing an old T-shirt and messy hair, she could still make someone look twice.
She was slim, with soft feminine curves, long legs, and a naturally graceful figure that her oversized clothes often hid.
But she carried herself as if she were trying to take up as little space as possible.
Shoulders slightly curved forward.
Chin lowered.
Eyes often avoiding other people’s.
As if somewhere along the way, Emma had learned that being unnoticed was safer than being seen.
She jumped out of bed.
“I’m going to be late.”
In the bathroom, she turned on the light and finally looked at herself properly.
For a moment, she simply stood there.
Her hair was a mess.
One side of her face was marked from sleeping against the pillow.
There were faint shadows beneath her eyes.
She sighed.
“Great.”
She washed her face with cold water.
When she looked up again, her reflection stared back at her.
A young woman who looked much more put together than she felt.
Emma picked up her mascara.
One coat.
Then another.
She brushed her eyebrows into place and applied a little tinted lip balm.
That was all.
She didn’t like heavy makeup.
Besides, she couldn’t afford to spend much money on cosmetics.
She leaned closer to the mirror.
For half a second, she almost smiled.
Then she noticed a tiny blemish near her cheek.
The smile disappeared.
“Never mind.”
She stepped away.
She didn’t know it yet, but one day, she would look back at this version of herself and wonder how she had ever failed to see her own beauty.
Because there was nothing wrong with Emma’s face.
The problem had never been her appearance.
It was the way she had been taught to see herself.
She hurried back into her bedroom.
Her wardrobe wasn’t impressive.
A few blouses.
Three pairs of jeans.
Two black trousers.
One decent coat.
A handful of dresses she rarely wore.
Emma pulled out a white blouse and black trousers.
She tucked the blouse in, slipped into simple black flats, and tied her hair into a loose low ponytail.
A few strands escaped around her face.
She tried to fix them.
Gave up.
Grabbed her handbag.
And ran out.
By the time she reached the office, her cheeks were slightly flushed from rushing.
She pushed a strand of hair behind her ear and took a deep breath before opening the door.
“Good morning.”
Nobody looked up.
Emma walked to her desk.
She placed her bag down carefully.
And just like that…
another day of her ordinary life began.
She had no idea that by tomorrow morning, the woman looking back at her from the mirror would no longer be the same woman.
Because somewhere between life and death…
a queen was coming back.
And she was about to wake up in Emma Carter’s body.
