Miss Josefina: Nobody's Princess

Hattie was just about to jump to Josefina's defense against Lauren when Josefina said that she had proof. With swift confidence, Josefina took out her evidence. She handed a USB drive to Layla, "Would you mind, Miss Layla, casting this onto the big screen, please?"

Layla nodded, and within moments, the large screen flickered to life, capturing everyone's attention.

Josefina walked up to the computer screen of the control panel, holding Layla's microphone in her hand, and addressed the crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen, please observe. This is a design by Ruby, and the sketch you see before you is my creation."

Ruby scoffed, "Josefina, are you seriously trying to twist facts here? My designs have been public for ages. You've just copied them and now you're accusing me of theft?"

Lauren chimed in, "Just because you've got a drawing, Josefina, doesn't mean you can claim Ruby copied you. This is pure jealousy."

Unruffled, Josefina responded, "I haven't finished yet. Could we maybe not jump the gun and let me explain? Shouldn't we straighten out the timeline to see who actually created the design?"

Alex added his two cents, "Yeah, let's hear Ms. Josefina out, shall we? Interrupting like that is just rude."

Hattie also spoke up, "Josie hasn't finished her piece. Cutting her off like that is indeed rude."

Garrett's voice cut through the chatter, "Zip it and let Josie finish. We'll let you know when it's your turn to yap all you want."

The entrance of Hattie and Garrett, both dressed to the nines, took Lauren and Billy by surprise.

Hattie's designer handbag alone was worth a cool million-a dream Lauren harbored but could never afford. The cufflinks adorning Garrett's shirt were worth a small fortune themselves, easily worth a hundred grand. Their attire reeked of money and it sent pangs of envy through Lauren.

"Who are you people and why are you backing Josefina up?" Lauren demanded.

Standing protectively by Josefina's side, Hattie declared with an air of authority, "She's my daughter. Why wouldn't I support her? My girl is talented. It's obvious your daughter copied her brilliant work." Despite Josefina's earlier cautions, Hattie was ready for battle at the slightest sign of her daughter being wronged.

Garrett, clearly agitated, stated with clarity, "This baseless slander you're spewing has gone far enough. I've already contacted a lawyer. You bully my daughter and plagiarize her work? Have you no shame?" Lena was exasperated. What were they doing? More importantly, hadn't they agreed to keep a low profile after Josefina's request? She fumed silently, aware that Josefina had likely engineered this confrontation.

Lauren ang Billy were stunned. Those wealthy people were Josefina's parents?

Josefina, eager to redirect the focus away from her family's status, continued, "Let's move on to the next slide-my collaboration contract with Anya, along with the design sketches. Take a look at the dates and the style of the drawings."

The date was in January, long before Ruby had entered the picture and before Josefina even knew her. The evidence was laid bare, and the room was once again plunged into stunned silence.

Josefina added, "When the Antonio family kicked me out, I was allowed to take very little with me. I grabbed only the clothes I'd bought with my own earnings, and I left my sketches behind. I never imagined that Ruby would claim my work as her own."