Once upon a time…
The sun had set before I came back to reality. I was at my thinking spot, the bridge in the woods. I went there often, but never had I gone there so late. Danger occurred in the dark and I knew my father and mother, the king and queen, were going to be upset. I began to follow the path home that I often travelled. My mind had been fogged with thoughts of anything there was to think about, and I soon got lost. In the distance I heard a howl. There were stories told often of the wolves that lived in the forest. I had no doubt that what I heard belonged to a wolf. I began to run.
The trees in the distance rustled. I was frantic. I didn't know what to do. The wolf was going to catch me. "Princess!" a voice half shouted half whispered to me from above. I looked up and saw a man holding his hand down from a tree. "You need to hurry," he said. I didn't know this stranger, but I figured my chances of living were greater with him than with the big bad wolf. I grabbed his hand and he pulled me up. We sat there and not even minutes passed when I saw the wolf. I opened my mouth about to scream when the man’s hand covered my mouth and pulled me close to him.
I didn't pull away. I sat enclosed in his arms for what felt like hours before he told me the coast was clear. We climbed down the tree. I explained to him I was lost and he helped me find my way out of the forest. He offered to escort me to the castle, but I wasn't sure I trusted him so I told him I'd be fine. I thanked him for saving my life and headed on my way. When he was out of sight, I took off running wanting to be in the safety of the brick walls of my home.
That week at the place of worship I saw the stranger. He was sitting with a family that my little sister was well acquainted with. He was beautiful. He had tan skin, short light brown hair, and beautiful green eyes. He had white teeth that rivaled snow. His muscles were defined and when he smiled, it made you want to smile. He caught me looking at him, and quickly I turned my head away.
When I began to walk out with my family, he walked up to me. "I'm Kelton," he said bowing. "Princess Brailee," I responded and curtsied. "I'm glad you're here! I was worried because of the other night. How are you doing?" he asked me. I shook my head and looked at my family. "They don't know," I said in a hushed tone. He nodded in understanding. "Would you maybe want to go out some time with me?" he asked. I was surprised at his boldness and told him I would.
Kelton called on me that week to take me up on my word. It was winter time and he told me to dress warm. I put on the thickest cloak I owned and fur gloves. We climbed into my carriage and were on our way. We ended up at the lake which had frozen over. He helped me out of the carriage and gave me shoes with metal on the bottom. "We are going to skate on the ice," he said while putting on his pair. I followed his lead and then he helped me on to the ice. I could hardly move. "I'm not good at this," I said. "I'll help you," he said holding out his hand. I took it, and like a child he gently began to teach me.
"So I don’t know anything about you except that you're like Robin Hood," I said, teasing. He laughed. He told me how he had just returned from a mission; one just like August had left on. He told me he loved anything adventurous. He'd climb mountains, he'd race horses, he loved to swim, he played instruments, he sang, he loved to travel the world, he was four years older than I, and he loved his family. He asked about me. I explained a little about me, but stayed pretty vague. "Brailee, that doesn't tell me much," he said. He stopped skating and looked at me. "On your death bed, what is the one thing you hope to have accomplished?" he asked. I was stunned. No guy had ever asked me anything really thoughtful, let alone the first time we went out. "I'll have to get back to you on that," I said. "Ask me on about it on our next date." I winked at him and skated off.
We went on another date. And a third.
On our third date, we were walking around the gardens at my castle. It was a cold night, but the cold had almost no effect on me. Something about this man named Kelton made life feel perfect. The whole time we laughed and told stories about our lives. He was so down to earth and understanding. He related to me and I couldn't think of anyone who made me so happy. We came to the gazebo. He took my hand. He looked me in the eyes. "There's no one like you Brailee. You're my dream girl," he said. I smiled, not knowing what to say. I was too twitterpated to even think clearly. He leaned in close and kissed me. It was the best kiss I'd ever had. My heart skipped beats. My senses came alive. I had become afraid of caring for anyone, but my heart knew I could trust him.
After that, we became inseparable. Every day I had to see Kelton. We would stay up late together just talking. With him, there were never enough topics to talk about. He would surprise me with thoughtful gifts. He would spontaneously get tickets to shows, because he knew how I loved them. He would trick me into going to places like my carriage or chambers, where I would find roses waiting. During princess training, a servant would show up with a bouquet of flowers for me from him. He wrote me songs and would sing them on his guitar about me and him and how together "we'd defy gravity like it's nonexistent." Kelton knew me and knew how to make me feel better. I couldn't believe he was real. I'd look at him and get butterflies, not believing anyone in the world existed like him. Every failure of a relationship made sense now. They failed, because I was supposed to be with Kelton forever.
My family all loved him except for my older sister. She wasn't impressed, but that didn't bother me. After my aunt met him, she told me that I was so different with him. I glowed around him and was so happy. We fit so perfectly together. She said she'd never seen me like that before. I couldn't say I disagreed. He was different. Our relationship was different.
As Kelton had told me, he traveled often and one day had to leave me. I was sad, but I knew I'd see him soon. I said goodbye and began the countdown to when he'd return. One day, a letter was delivered to me. It read, "My dearest Brailee, I am hoping this will reach you before I return. I can't stop thinking about you. This land far far away is amazing! Only one thing could make it better, but unfortunately you're a long way away. I guess I'll have to be okay with it being second best until the day I can bring you with me. Before meeting you, I'd never want to leave this place. Now I just can't wait to return to see your beautiful face. I love you, love Kelton.” He made me feel like no one ever made me feel. I knew he was my prince charming. I'd finally found him. The one.
When he returned I was so happy. Our favorite activity was to lay on the grass with a blanket and watch for shooting stars. That night, we just held each other for hours. We saw two shooting stars and each I wished for forever with him. It became clear he felt the same way about me as I did him, because that night he told me he wanted to marry me. I grinned and told him I could see me being with him forever. It was a sweet moment. My heart was in good hands and I'd never felt so good about a decision in my life.
Tragedy struck soon after when Kelton's father fell ill. The doctors in our land far far away said they'd try everything they could to help him, but they didn't think he'd live. After Kelton told me, we went on a walk to get fresh air. We walked in silence. Kelton's father was an amazing man and I knew how important family was to him. My heart hurt for him and I didn't know what to do. It was the first time I saw Kelton cry. I held him in my arms as tightly as I could. That's when he started to open up to me. Kelton said his father had discussed the future and what he wanted to happen when he was gone, and that included Kelton running his father's business. Kelton didn't want to do it and said it was so hard to think of losing his father.
After that day, most of mine and Kelton's time was spent with his family. This didn't please my family, but I knew Kelton and I would be together forever and his father only had so much time left that we needed to spend time with him and we would have the rest of time to make it up to my family.
Kelton's family took me in practically as one of their own. I loved them so much. When Kelton's father's illness took a turn for the worst they decided to seek Merlin the Great to see if he could help them. I was invited to accompany them, which was an honor. It was an amazing experience and one that made me feel so close to the family. I knew I'd never feel like I belonged with someone so much ever again and I was reassured he was the one for me.
Kelton's father's health had its ups and downs, as mine and Kelton's relationship began to have. We began to argue a lot. He'd get mad at me and would leave me mid fight. I'd get frustrated back and neither of us would be willing to be the first to say sorry.
Our relationship became hot and cold. One day, Kelton was planning wedding colors. The next he was sending me away from his cottage for eating food that would risk me gaining weight. Then he was picking wedding dates. The next day he'd be telling me all these girls who were better than I. Then he'd be picking out reception areas. He'd flip sides again, and he would tell me I was a terrible singer and he'd want someone to tell him if he sounded that bad.
I'd receive letters from him saying things such as, "My dearest Brailee, besides the fact that you took my breath away when I first met you, you have continued to surprise me with your amazing qualities! You have helped me trust again and I am grateful that I can trust you. I act extreme sometimes because I am afraid of losing something so special. The thought of spending forever with you brings tears to my eyes and I can't wait to make it a reality." But then he'd turn around and be telling me how he was scared I'd look ugly without being dressed up. Then he would make promises about spending forever trying to get things right and make me happy.
I began to not know where we stood in our relationship. I kept assuming he was just a mess because of his father. He made it clear that that wasn't the case however, because he came over one morning and told me he wasn't sure anymore that I was right for him and he wanted to date other people. His list of reasons was quite long, including that I wasn't outgoing enough, we were too different, he wanted more friends, he needed time for him, he wasn’t sure what he wanted…etc. I stared at him completely stunned. I then cut him off in the middle of his speech and asked him to leave. He told me he wanted to keep seeing me, but not be official. I refused and had the guards take him out.
I then collapsed to the floor trying to remember how to breathe as the tears came flooding. He was the one for me, but I wasn't for him. How could I have misunderstood? What did I do wrong? What was I to do now? It felt like my heart literally shattered, and parts I didn't know even existed inside me, hurt.
Unfortunately, this was not our official ending. If it had been, my heart may have healed sooner. Lucky for me, Kelton couldn't seem to let go and was going to drag our break up on as long as he could. Almost as if he wanted me to suffer.
Not even days went by before he showed up at my door. He needed to talk to me. We went on a walk. The familiar walk we went on numerous times. It was awkward. I didn't want to talk to him, but I did at the same time. Finally he pulled me in a hug. "Brailee, I didn't think it'd be this hard," he said. I was silent and wouldn't hug him back. "Please Brailee, can we please talk?" I looked at him, trying not to cry. "There's nothing to say. You don't want me. So go find the one for you. If you wanted me, you wouldn't have led me on and then ended things," I said. "Brailee I love you. I will always love you. And maybe this isn't the official end. I just need time," he said. I began to cry. He pulled me in. Then kissed me. "Please, lets try to make it work," he said. "I don't know if I can Kelton," I said through my tears. "I didn’t think I'd talk to you. I wasn't planning on kissing you. There's something about you. Brailee, please. Don't let go. Let me figure things out," he pleaded. I nodded. I never would have agreed if I knew what the next months had in store for me.
I became determined to be his perfect girl. I was going to be optimistic, friendly, outgoing, adventurous. I was going to be as beautiful as they come. I wanted to be unforgettable. I wanted to make it so the few moments he spent with me would outdo any amount of time he spent with another female. I worked hard on changing. And I was successful, but not successful enough.
I began to hear about dates he was going on. Kelton practically began to flaunt girls in front of me; ex girlfriends, girls he barely met, girls he knew from school, it didn't matter. Any girl that was remotely pleasing to the eye, he set his sights on. He'd even ask them out in front of me. It destroyed me. Even my best self wasn't good enough. So I decided to move on.
Plenty of men had been waiting to ask me out. I wasn't ordinary whatsoever. I wasn't overweight or untalented or less than anyone, like Kelton had told me in the last few months of our relationship. I was special and I was a princess. And Kelton was not going to be the end of me. Word got around about my dating extravaganzas. Soon enough, it got back to Kelton. What he didn't know, was every date was a failure and every time I was home, I'd sob, wishing on a star that Kelton would return to me. I refused to let him know that part.
Kelton became very upset with me, because I was dating. We'd still go on walks, but each time the tension would increase. He would raise his voice at me and get mad that I was dating. He'd say I would say bad things about him to make him look bad. He insisted I was out to hurt him. Then when he couldn't control himself anymore, he'd storm off, leaving me to walk to the castle alone.
Where was the Kelton who saved me from the wolf? Where was the Kelton that sent me flowers? The one who talked about forever? The one who I was going to live happily ever after with?
At the place of worship one week, he decided to sit by me. I didn't object but I wasn't thrilled. Everything was fine and we talked about life. It felt like we were finally moving forward and could be friends. Until he brought up the girls he'd been kissing. The guillotine would have been less painful. If he had just mentioned it, I could have remained calm, but he went into full detail about each one. I was livid and stood up and walked out in the middle of the meeting. People were staring, but I didn't care. I walked out the doors and to my carriage. I grabbed the door before the coachman could open it for me and was about to shut it when Kelton's hand grabbed it.
"Brailee stop," he said. "Go away!!!" I squeeled, trying to shut the door. "Can we talk?" Kelton asked. "There is nothing to say Kelton! Go back in and find another girl to entertain you and stay as far away from me as possible! I want nothing further to do with you," I said. He was stronger than me and pulled the door open and climbed in to the carriage. "If it makes you feel better, you're prettier than all of them, and no one is even half as good at kissing as you," he said. I let my head fall backwards and sighed. "No Kelton that does not make me feel better. I do not want to hear about your love life. Get out," I said irritated. "I can't go back in now. We made a big scene. People were staring," he said. Now I understood. It wasn't about me at all. It was about his reputation. What people would think. I shook my head. "Fine," I said. We argued for the next little bit as I took him home to his cottage.
We didn't talk for weeks after that, when randomly he called upon me asking me if I'd be his date to another land with his friends. I agreed. I had my sister and her lady in waiting help me find the perfect outfit. I was no longer trying to get back together with him, I just wanted to show him what he was missing out on. I looked perfect and went on the date. It was fun and I made good friends with the peasants who were with us. I had a good time until randomly, Kelton kissed me. Emotions flooded back inside me. I didn't know what to do. I went on like it didn't happen. Until later when we cuddled. It felt so good to be back in his arms. Those arms that once held me daily. Those arms of my prince charming. I felt hope that he had realized what he was missing.
A few weeks passed, when my lady in waiting came running into my chambers. "Princess Brailee, I have an urgent message," she said. "What is it?" I responded standing from my chair. "Kelton's father has passed away princess." My hand went to my mouth and I fell back into my seat, tears falling. I had become quite close to Kelton's father and always thought of him as my future father in law. I was upset by the loss, when I thought of Kelton and wanted to help him.
I had my mother and the servants make a dinner and some cookies and I went to Kelton's cottage. The family was so upset, but they held themselves together quite well. I attended the viewing and funeral for Kelton's father. I saw Kelton's ex girlfriend there and fought every angry emotion I had. She had been his ex years ago so I didn't understand why she was there. I assumed it must mean he'd been seeing her again, and I wanted to leave, but this time wasn't about me. This time was about him and helping him. And so I took deep breaths and stayed strong.
Seeing him so hurt was even worse than the heartbreak he had caused me. I loved him. His happiness was far more important and right now I just wanted to take his pain away, but couldn't. I felt helpless. The night of the funeral, I went to his cottage and just held him. We joked and talked. Unfortunately though, like always the conversation turned bitter. He started verabally attacking me. Then he began saying that the only person who had showed they cared about him was one of the girls he told me about at the place of worship. Again, I fought the angry emotion. I didn't have to try at all to help him in the first place, but I was. In return, here I was being told I wasn't doing a good enough job. It killed me, but I said nothing. Just let him vent.
I tried to be there for him for weeks after and just be a friend. He kept pushing me further and further away. It became hard, because I wanted to move on. I had to let him go.
My good friend started dating one of Kelton's good friends, so I went on a friend double date. It didn't go anywhere, which it was meant to, but I'd soon regret it. One day I got a letter from Kelton saying, "You are one of the most awful people I've ever met. I can't believe you'd go on a date with my friend. You've reached an all time low. You are an evil piece of crap. I hope you go to hell. I hate you. Everyone I tell about you thinks you are a terrible person and are a witch. Do not ever talk to me again. I tried to be your friend and I'm done." I wanted to cry, but I had never been called an evil piece of crap, so I actually laughed at the letter. After that I became stronger. Each morning I took one day at a time and let us done.
Of course he wasn't realy done though. He would continue to say mean things to me and he would befriend guys I dated and tell them not to date me. He told people I was a witch and called me all sorts of other crude names. He'd come in and out of my life as he pleased just to make sure I remembered him and to make sure I knew how worthless I was.
Kelton was the one, but I knew what once was no longer was. I wasn't sure I'd ever love anyone the way I loved him. I knew it'd take a long time to repair the damage he'd cause. I decided it was time to really let us be done. Officially. I took advantage of being royalty and had the king and queen order him to leave me alone. By law, he had to.
And we lived happily never after.
Monday, December 26, 2011
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Chapter Thirteen: August Part Two
Once upon a time...
August found out about me going to the ball with Denton. He was not pleased. His friends told him about it and I was accused of cheating and never loving or caring for him. After his accusations, I should have just shrugged and moved on. I was the most eligible bachelorette in all the land far far away. Enough suitors would have loved to court me. Instead I decided I wanted to be with August again. The next little while I pleaded and did what it took to make him take me back, and soon enough he did.
Things seemed to be back to normal. He was still himself. Rough, shallow, and loved jousting. I had my best friend back and things were comfortable. I attended his matches again and began going on journeys to foreign lands with August's family. I wasn't sure August was my prince charming, but I didn't want to be alone again.
In part two of our relationship, August was a lot more jealous and not very trustworthy of me. One day I went out with a group of friends, most of them being years younger than me, and because one of them was a male, I was again accused of cheating and August refused to speak to me for a period of time. We worked things out after weeks of silence. During those weeks, I had kind of just assumed it was over. If only it had been that simple.
At one of August's matches, I was sitting with his father. "August is so talented at jousting," his father said. "He truly is!" I agreed. "Brailee, do you know if August has submitted his papers yet?" his father asked me. I was confused. "His papers?" I asked. He looked at me as if August had told me. "The one for his mission," his father said. I was stunned.
At August's age, people often signed up to go fight for what they believed in. It was a long battle of good against evil. I knew some brave men who had signed up to go before and I knew how devastated their significant others were when they left. I had no idea August had even considered going.
"Oh, right!" I said, trying to act like I knew. "I'm not really sure. He's kind of private." His father agreed. "You should help him get them finished. I almost think I am going to have to fill them out and send them for him," he said. I felt a lump form in my throat. I didn't have a response. I felt betrayed. How could he not tell me?
August didn't tell me until months later, once his forms had been sent in. When he finally informed me of his plan, I had nothing to say. I had decided I knew without a doubt that August was not my prince charming, but I was too attached to end things a second time. Him leaving was my way out and despite how hard it'd be to say goodbye, I knew that would be the only way to bring the relationship to an end. It was just a matter of waiting.
The approval came for him to be sent on a mission and he was to report for duty in a little over two months time. It was sooner than what I had expected, but I took deep breaths trying to prepare myself. What was going to occur in the next two months however I had no way to prepare for.
Rather than trying to spend time with me before leaving, August was more concerned with spending time with his friends (the toads, as I liked to call them). I knew we were going to be saying goodbye, but he didn't know that. Why didn't he care that he would be leaving me? I felt unimportant and it through me off a little bit. I just wanted his attention.
I brought it up one day when we were heading to his cottage. He was driving his small wagon and I was in the passenger side. "August you're leaving and it's like you don't even care that you may never see me again," I said. "Brailee, you're being ridiculous. Me leaving isn't about you. Don't you just want me to be happy?" He said rudely. I didn't respond. "Just be happy for me," he said. I still didn't respond and it made him angry, causing him to lose control of the wagon. The wagon and horses went opposite ways and my side of the wagon went over a rock and into a tree, causing me to fall out of my seat and on to the ground. I was shaken up, but more scared of what August was going to do to me. It was my fault for upsetting him. He got out and examined the damage. The wheel was broken, but other than that the wagon was okay. He didn't even bother asking if I was hurt. He told me he was going to go get help and left me there.
I sat in the cold waiting, terrified. Finally he returned with another man and a new wheel. They fixed up the wagon and we headed back on our way, in silence. "I'm sorry for upsetting you," I whispered. "You just need to stop overreacting and start being happy," he responded.
A few weeks later when I was at his cottage waiting for him so we could attend a banquet, I found a letter. It was signed by a girl named Kaia. I knew it was disrespectful to go through people's personal items, but I couldn't help it. The letter implied that August had been courting Kaia as well as courting me. When he entered the room I was waiting in, I held up the letter. "Would you liked to explain this to me?" I asked him. "What about it?" he asked. "You've been seeing someone else according to this letter. A 'Kaia,'" I said. "She's just a friend," he said. "Doesn't sound like just a friend in the letter," I said irritated. He snatched it from my hand and got defensive and really close to my face. I felt afraid of him. "Stop overreacting Brailee and lets go," he said rudely and stormed out.
I followed him angrily and we drove in my carriage to the banquet in silence. When we got there, there was a table saved with all of his friends. Except it was short one seat. They hadn't included me. I stood there as August took a seat. I felt extremely stupid and left out so I turned preparing to walk off and go sit somewhere else. I was a princess for crying out loud! And here I was being treated as less than them. "Brailee share a seat with me," August said. "August it's not polite and mannerly for me to share a seat, I need my own. I'm sure other citizens would be overjoyed to have me at their table. I will just go somewhere else," I said and started to walk off. He grabbed my arm tightly and pulled me down to his level. "Stop it, you're embarrassing me. I will get you a chair," he said whispering. He released me and I was stunned at how aggressive he'd been.
A servant brought me a chair and I sat awkwardly positioned at the table. There were a few new friends at this table that I did not know. One of August's friends began to introduce the new faces to me. My heart stopped when he introduced one of the girls as Kaia. The servants began bringing out food, but I couldn't eat. I just kept watching her. I couldn't help it. My superstitions were confirmed as the night continued. Kaia and August flirted and looked at each other and would laugh at each other's comments. He barely said anything to me the whole time. I tried to hold his hand, but he'd pull away. I wanted to run. To cry.
How could this be happening? Rather than kissing me to awake me from death, he was feeding me the apple that would send me to it. This story was being written all wrong.
His friends invited us over to their cottage after the banquet and we agreed to come. Me and August climbed into my carriage and began to head there, when I lost all control. "You liar!" I screamed. "Excuse me?" he said. "That was Kaia. From the letter. And I could tell. She was obvious about it!!" I said, my tone reaching an all time high. "I do not know what you are talking about. Stop acting crazy," August said, calm as ever. Tell me honestly nothing ever happened with you two," I said still at the top of my lungs. "Brailee you're overreacting," he said. I began to sob.
The coachman pulled the carriage over to make sure I was okay. When he was assured that I was not harmed, I told him we had a change of plans and were going to August's to take him home and then to the castle because I was not feeling well. On our way to August's cottage, I finally got August to open up. Kaia had pursued him, he said. He told me about how he always told her he was courting me, but she didn't care. He also told me she wasn't the only one who pursued him. There were other girls who would make breakfast in bed for him and invite him to the city baths.
I was so grateful when I finally got to my chambers. I crawled in bed and stared out the window, watching for a shooting star. Two and a half weeks. Two and a half weeks left until he was to depart on his mission. What was I to do? End things and let him be with Kaia until he left? Or follow through with my plan and just have it be our goodbye when he left? I decided to just follow my plan and I helped him prepare to leave.
The fateful day arrived and I went with his family to see him off. I had told him that that goodbye was our final goodbye, and I didn't think he believed me when I said it, however he would realize it soon enough. We arrived at the training building and I hugged him goodbye. He was then escorted by others who signed up to go on the mission and I watched as they took him away.
I thought I was prepared for this moment, but I wasn't. In that one moment, walked away two and a half years of wasted time, wasted opportunity, a relationship built on lies, and a piece of my heart that I'd never get back. I spent the next 48 hours sobbing hopelessly. The emotion I held in for the dreadful two and a half weeks and all the pain that had occured in the two and a half years finally came spilling out. August wasn't and could never be my prince charming.
And so we lived happily never after.
August found out about me going to the ball with Denton. He was not pleased. His friends told him about it and I was accused of cheating and never loving or caring for him. After his accusations, I should have just shrugged and moved on. I was the most eligible bachelorette in all the land far far away. Enough suitors would have loved to court me. Instead I decided I wanted to be with August again. The next little while I pleaded and did what it took to make him take me back, and soon enough he did.
Things seemed to be back to normal. He was still himself. Rough, shallow, and loved jousting. I had my best friend back and things were comfortable. I attended his matches again and began going on journeys to foreign lands with August's family. I wasn't sure August was my prince charming, but I didn't want to be alone again.
In part two of our relationship, August was a lot more jealous and not very trustworthy of me. One day I went out with a group of friends, most of them being years younger than me, and because one of them was a male, I was again accused of cheating and August refused to speak to me for a period of time. We worked things out after weeks of silence. During those weeks, I had kind of just assumed it was over. If only it had been that simple.
At one of August's matches, I was sitting with his father. "August is so talented at jousting," his father said. "He truly is!" I agreed. "Brailee, do you know if August has submitted his papers yet?" his father asked me. I was confused. "His papers?" I asked. He looked at me as if August had told me. "The one for his mission," his father said. I was stunned.
At August's age, people often signed up to go fight for what they believed in. It was a long battle of good against evil. I knew some brave men who had signed up to go before and I knew how devastated their significant others were when they left. I had no idea August had even considered going.
"Oh, right!" I said, trying to act like I knew. "I'm not really sure. He's kind of private." His father agreed. "You should help him get them finished. I almost think I am going to have to fill them out and send them for him," he said. I felt a lump form in my throat. I didn't have a response. I felt betrayed. How could he not tell me?
August didn't tell me until months later, once his forms had been sent in. When he finally informed me of his plan, I had nothing to say. I had decided I knew without a doubt that August was not my prince charming, but I was too attached to end things a second time. Him leaving was my way out and despite how hard it'd be to say goodbye, I knew that would be the only way to bring the relationship to an end. It was just a matter of waiting.
The approval came for him to be sent on a mission and he was to report for duty in a little over two months time. It was sooner than what I had expected, but I took deep breaths trying to prepare myself. What was going to occur in the next two months however I had no way to prepare for.
Rather than trying to spend time with me before leaving, August was more concerned with spending time with his friends (the toads, as I liked to call them). I knew we were going to be saying goodbye, but he didn't know that. Why didn't he care that he would be leaving me? I felt unimportant and it through me off a little bit. I just wanted his attention.
I brought it up one day when we were heading to his cottage. He was driving his small wagon and I was in the passenger side. "August you're leaving and it's like you don't even care that you may never see me again," I said. "Brailee, you're being ridiculous. Me leaving isn't about you. Don't you just want me to be happy?" He said rudely. I didn't respond. "Just be happy for me," he said. I still didn't respond and it made him angry, causing him to lose control of the wagon. The wagon and horses went opposite ways and my side of the wagon went over a rock and into a tree, causing me to fall out of my seat and on to the ground. I was shaken up, but more scared of what August was going to do to me. It was my fault for upsetting him. He got out and examined the damage. The wheel was broken, but other than that the wagon was okay. He didn't even bother asking if I was hurt. He told me he was going to go get help and left me there.
I sat in the cold waiting, terrified. Finally he returned with another man and a new wheel. They fixed up the wagon and we headed back on our way, in silence. "I'm sorry for upsetting you," I whispered. "You just need to stop overreacting and start being happy," he responded.
A few weeks later when I was at his cottage waiting for him so we could attend a banquet, I found a letter. It was signed by a girl named Kaia. I knew it was disrespectful to go through people's personal items, but I couldn't help it. The letter implied that August had been courting Kaia as well as courting me. When he entered the room I was waiting in, I held up the letter. "Would you liked to explain this to me?" I asked him. "What about it?" he asked. "You've been seeing someone else according to this letter. A 'Kaia,'" I said. "She's just a friend," he said. "Doesn't sound like just a friend in the letter," I said irritated. He snatched it from my hand and got defensive and really close to my face. I felt afraid of him. "Stop overreacting Brailee and lets go," he said rudely and stormed out.
I followed him angrily and we drove in my carriage to the banquet in silence. When we got there, there was a table saved with all of his friends. Except it was short one seat. They hadn't included me. I stood there as August took a seat. I felt extremely stupid and left out so I turned preparing to walk off and go sit somewhere else. I was a princess for crying out loud! And here I was being treated as less than them. "Brailee share a seat with me," August said. "August it's not polite and mannerly for me to share a seat, I need my own. I'm sure other citizens would be overjoyed to have me at their table. I will just go somewhere else," I said and started to walk off. He grabbed my arm tightly and pulled me down to his level. "Stop it, you're embarrassing me. I will get you a chair," he said whispering. He released me and I was stunned at how aggressive he'd been.
A servant brought me a chair and I sat awkwardly positioned at the table. There were a few new friends at this table that I did not know. One of August's friends began to introduce the new faces to me. My heart stopped when he introduced one of the girls as Kaia. The servants began bringing out food, but I couldn't eat. I just kept watching her. I couldn't help it. My superstitions were confirmed as the night continued. Kaia and August flirted and looked at each other and would laugh at each other's comments. He barely said anything to me the whole time. I tried to hold his hand, but he'd pull away. I wanted to run. To cry.
How could this be happening? Rather than kissing me to awake me from death, he was feeding me the apple that would send me to it. This story was being written all wrong.
His friends invited us over to their cottage after the banquet and we agreed to come. Me and August climbed into my carriage and began to head there, when I lost all control. "You liar!" I screamed. "Excuse me?" he said. "That was Kaia. From the letter. And I could tell. She was obvious about it!!" I said, my tone reaching an all time high. "I do not know what you are talking about. Stop acting crazy," August said, calm as ever. Tell me honestly nothing ever happened with you two," I said still at the top of my lungs. "Brailee you're overreacting," he said. I began to sob.
The coachman pulled the carriage over to make sure I was okay. When he was assured that I was not harmed, I told him we had a change of plans and were going to August's to take him home and then to the castle because I was not feeling well. On our way to August's cottage, I finally got August to open up. Kaia had pursued him, he said. He told me about how he always told her he was courting me, but she didn't care. He also told me she wasn't the only one who pursued him. There were other girls who would make breakfast in bed for him and invite him to the city baths.
I was so grateful when I finally got to my chambers. I crawled in bed and stared out the window, watching for a shooting star. Two and a half weeks. Two and a half weeks left until he was to depart on his mission. What was I to do? End things and let him be with Kaia until he left? Or follow through with my plan and just have it be our goodbye when he left? I decided to just follow my plan and I helped him prepare to leave.
The fateful day arrived and I went with his family to see him off. I had told him that that goodbye was our final goodbye, and I didn't think he believed me when I said it, however he would realize it soon enough. We arrived at the training building and I hugged him goodbye. He was then escorted by others who signed up to go on the mission and I watched as they took him away.
I thought I was prepared for this moment, but I wasn't. In that one moment, walked away two and a half years of wasted time, wasted opportunity, a relationship built on lies, and a piece of my heart that I'd never get back. I spent the next 48 hours sobbing hopelessly. The emotion I held in for the dreadful two and a half weeks and all the pain that had occured in the two and a half years finally came spilling out. August wasn't and could never be my prince charming.
And so we lived happily never after.
Monday, December 19, 2011
Chapter Twelve: The One That Got Away
Once upon a time...
In every life it seems there's that one person. The one person you feel an undeniable connection to. The one person that you feel drawn to. The one person where the attraction level is at it's peak. The one person that no matter what you do, you can't seem to forget. The one person that you don't think you'll ever find someone quite like. The one person that you think could be the one, but somehow they get away from you. And they become the one that got away.
He's mine.
I still remember the first day I laid eyes on him. His dark hair. His dark eyes. His amazingly sweet smile. His spirit that radiated and pierced you to the soul. And that voice. That singing voice that was so pure and soothing that I was certain he'd been blessed by the gods with it! I was at a festival and he was performing. It was like a force hit me and I felt an insane connection to him. We met eyes. I knew it was love at first sight. His song ended and just like that he was gone, never to be seen again.
Only I did see him a few weeks later. The community was having a cottage raising and were accepting donations of all sorts. Some donated stones. Others donated money. There were also objects that you could enter a drawing to win. You purchased a small stone and wrote your name on it, then they put it in a big basket and drew out the stone. If your name was on it, you won a prize.
I spent a generous amount of money on stones, partly for fun, and partly to help out my people. With the high amount of money I spent came a high amount of stones and so it was no surprise when they drew my name. I won a beautiful ring and the person it belonged to walked out and presented it to me. Much to my surprise, it was the boy who I had heard sing. My love at first sight. The one that got away. I accepted my prize and they moved on to the next drawing. There was no way I would ever see him again. I was disappointed, because I was so close, but I didn't even get his name.
Fate struck again months later when I was hosting a banquet. I was greeting people as they entered, when I saw him walk through the doors. My heart skipped a beat. He bowed to me, I curtsied. And that was that. The rest of the night my eyes kept wondering to him. His eyes were usually on me as well. By the end of the night, I was determined to have met him and have his name. I took a deep breath and made my way towards him. However, I was in high demand and my pathway to him ended up not being as straight as I thought thanks to all of the interruptions. I didn't see him the rest of the night. He got away. I missed my chance.
Thank goodness for second chances though right!? I was at the place of worship and guess who ended up being there as well? The one that got away. It was my first time ever seeing him there. He must either travel or be new to the land far far away. Irregardless, there he was as gorgeous as ever. And there we were, causing sparks to fly with our eye contact. Merlin's magic couldn't even come close to the magic of those sparks that occured between the two of us. This time was my time. This time I was going to meet him. My prince charming was here at last! And we were going to leave the place of worship and ride off into the sunset. A fairytale ending. Except he escaped from that building before I even arose from my seat.
I waited a few months, expecting to randomly see him again; waiting for destiny to take over. When it didn't I was devastated. What could I do? My heart couldn't take it any longer and I forced myself to move on. One day, a handsome boy asked me on a date. I knew I couldn't love him like I loved the one that got away, but I agreed to attend a festival with him. It was a holiday festival so it was a rather big deal. There were all sorts of shows and fireworks and tricks happening. And the one that got away was there, performing. Singing. I stopped walking when I spotted him. I was mesmorized; in a trance; unmovable. Destiny hadn't forsaken me after all! Unfortunately, my date wasn't going to let destiny take over his night out with the princess. My trance was broken and I was whisked away, out of my true love's sight.
I crossed my fingers and toes. Praying, hoping, pleading that I would run into him somewhere later at the festival when he was finished performing. How could we come so close so many times and not meet? It had to happen that night. I was going to make it happen. I, Princess Brailee, declared that I would meet the one that got away before the night ended.
I guess destiny only listens to queens, because destiny ignored my declaration and I did not meet him that night. I was beginning to think I was cursed. The evil villain Maleficent must have visited me when I was a baby and cursed me to forever be haunted by the one that got away. It was torture. I would have definitely picked spinning wheels over this curse. I could avoid those! I couldn't avoid him and I couldn't have him. As a human, what we always want most is what we can't have. And he wouldn't be the one that got away if I could have him.
It took months of meditation to put him in the back of my mind, but finally I did. So, naturally, that's when he decided to show up in my life again. I was with my little sister in one of the shops in the village. I was looking for a book when I spotted him. The angels started singing and everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. I turned to my sister, "That's him!" I whispered. "The one that got away!" I pointed him out to her. "Brailee, he's even cuter than I imagined! You know what you have to do! Go introduce yourself," she said. I nodded, took a deep breath, tried to ignore the heart that was trying to beat itself right out of my chest and walked towards him.
He saw me and for a second time stood still. He smiled. I smiled back. "Hi," I said. "Hello," he responded. "I'm Princess Brailee, it's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard you sing before. You have a gift," I said. He blushed. He was even sweeter than I thought before. My lifetime of searching was over. My true love was there and about to tell me his name. "Thank you so much! I'm..." he began, but then was interrupted.
"Princess Brailee, we need to go," said my coachman. "One moment!" I responded, trying not to sound irritated. I turned back to the one that got away. "You were saying?" I said. "Princess I have obligations to get you back to the castle by sunset. We need to leave," the coachman said interrupting yet again. Did he not understand destiny!? You CANNOT interrupt. "It's ok, I understand. It was a pleasure to meet you princess," said the one that got away. Then he turned and walked away. My sister wrapped her arm in mine and escorted me out.
Apparently true loves first kiss was not the key to breaking my curse. Apparently true loves first meeting was, because I never saw him after that. He was officially and forever imprinted in my mind as the one that got away.
And we lived happily never after.
In every life it seems there's that one person. The one person you feel an undeniable connection to. The one person that you feel drawn to. The one person where the attraction level is at it's peak. The one person that no matter what you do, you can't seem to forget. The one person that you don't think you'll ever find someone quite like. The one person that you think could be the one, but somehow they get away from you. And they become the one that got away.
He's mine.
I still remember the first day I laid eyes on him. His dark hair. His dark eyes. His amazingly sweet smile. His spirit that radiated and pierced you to the soul. And that voice. That singing voice that was so pure and soothing that I was certain he'd been blessed by the gods with it! I was at a festival and he was performing. It was like a force hit me and I felt an insane connection to him. We met eyes. I knew it was love at first sight. His song ended and just like that he was gone, never to be seen again.
Only I did see him a few weeks later. The community was having a cottage raising and were accepting donations of all sorts. Some donated stones. Others donated money. There were also objects that you could enter a drawing to win. You purchased a small stone and wrote your name on it, then they put it in a big basket and drew out the stone. If your name was on it, you won a prize.
I spent a generous amount of money on stones, partly for fun, and partly to help out my people. With the high amount of money I spent came a high amount of stones and so it was no surprise when they drew my name. I won a beautiful ring and the person it belonged to walked out and presented it to me. Much to my surprise, it was the boy who I had heard sing. My love at first sight. The one that got away. I accepted my prize and they moved on to the next drawing. There was no way I would ever see him again. I was disappointed, because I was so close, but I didn't even get his name.
Fate struck again months later when I was hosting a banquet. I was greeting people as they entered, when I saw him walk through the doors. My heart skipped a beat. He bowed to me, I curtsied. And that was that. The rest of the night my eyes kept wondering to him. His eyes were usually on me as well. By the end of the night, I was determined to have met him and have his name. I took a deep breath and made my way towards him. However, I was in high demand and my pathway to him ended up not being as straight as I thought thanks to all of the interruptions. I didn't see him the rest of the night. He got away. I missed my chance.
Thank goodness for second chances though right!? I was at the place of worship and guess who ended up being there as well? The one that got away. It was my first time ever seeing him there. He must either travel or be new to the land far far away. Irregardless, there he was as gorgeous as ever. And there we were, causing sparks to fly with our eye contact. Merlin's magic couldn't even come close to the magic of those sparks that occured between the two of us. This time was my time. This time I was going to meet him. My prince charming was here at last! And we were going to leave the place of worship and ride off into the sunset. A fairytale ending. Except he escaped from that building before I even arose from my seat.
I waited a few months, expecting to randomly see him again; waiting for destiny to take over. When it didn't I was devastated. What could I do? My heart couldn't take it any longer and I forced myself to move on. One day, a handsome boy asked me on a date. I knew I couldn't love him like I loved the one that got away, but I agreed to attend a festival with him. It was a holiday festival so it was a rather big deal. There were all sorts of shows and fireworks and tricks happening. And the one that got away was there, performing. Singing. I stopped walking when I spotted him. I was mesmorized; in a trance; unmovable. Destiny hadn't forsaken me after all! Unfortunately, my date wasn't going to let destiny take over his night out with the princess. My trance was broken and I was whisked away, out of my true love's sight.
I crossed my fingers and toes. Praying, hoping, pleading that I would run into him somewhere later at the festival when he was finished performing. How could we come so close so many times and not meet? It had to happen that night. I was going to make it happen. I, Princess Brailee, declared that I would meet the one that got away before the night ended.
I guess destiny only listens to queens, because destiny ignored my declaration and I did not meet him that night. I was beginning to think I was cursed. The evil villain Maleficent must have visited me when I was a baby and cursed me to forever be haunted by the one that got away. It was torture. I would have definitely picked spinning wheels over this curse. I could avoid those! I couldn't avoid him and I couldn't have him. As a human, what we always want most is what we can't have. And he wouldn't be the one that got away if I could have him.
It took months of meditation to put him in the back of my mind, but finally I did. So, naturally, that's when he decided to show up in my life again. I was with my little sister in one of the shops in the village. I was looking for a book when I spotted him. The angels started singing and everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. I turned to my sister, "That's him!" I whispered. "The one that got away!" I pointed him out to her. "Brailee, he's even cuter than I imagined! You know what you have to do! Go introduce yourself," she said. I nodded, took a deep breath, tried to ignore the heart that was trying to beat itself right out of my chest and walked towards him.
He saw me and for a second time stood still. He smiled. I smiled back. "Hi," I said. "Hello," he responded. "I'm Princess Brailee, it's a pleasure to meet you. I've heard you sing before. You have a gift," I said. He blushed. He was even sweeter than I thought before. My lifetime of searching was over. My true love was there and about to tell me his name. "Thank you so much! I'm..." he began, but then was interrupted.
"Princess Brailee, we need to go," said my coachman. "One moment!" I responded, trying not to sound irritated. I turned back to the one that got away. "You were saying?" I said. "Princess I have obligations to get you back to the castle by sunset. We need to leave," the coachman said interrupting yet again. Did he not understand destiny!? You CANNOT interrupt. "It's ok, I understand. It was a pleasure to meet you princess," said the one that got away. Then he turned and walked away. My sister wrapped her arm in mine and escorted me out.
Apparently true loves first kiss was not the key to breaking my curse. Apparently true loves first meeting was, because I never saw him after that. He was officially and forever imprinted in my mind as the one that got away.
And we lived happily never after.
Chapter Eleven: Denton
Once upon a time...
I was having trouble recovering from the heartbreak that happened when I ended things with August. The big ball I had wanted him to take me to was in two days and I had no plans to attend. Big dresses, magical moments, and love was definitely not on my agenda. I just wanted to lay in bed with the fireplace going and not be bothered.
The queen had other plans however and came into my chambers the next day, when the sun was at it's peak, and opened the curtains. The light blinded me and I pulled my covers over my head. "Go away mother!" I groaned. "Brailee it's time to get out of bed. Stop being depressed," she lectured. "I'm not depressed," I said unconvincingly. She yanked my covers back and I covered my face with my pillow. "It's time to act like a princess Brailee and get out of bed. Besides, you've got a dress to find for the ball tomorrow." "I'm not going to the ball," I replied. "Oh yes you are! I have a date for you. Time to get up," she said and waltzed out of the room.
I stared at the canopy covering my bed. My mother found me a date to the ball. This can't be good.
My ladies in waiting helped me get somewhat presentable. My hair was barely combable and the bags under my eyes were not coverable, but they did what they could. When my mother saw me she sighed due to my haggard appearance, but was at least pleased that I had gotten out of bed. We climbed into our carriage and headed to another land far far away to find me a ball gown.
When we reached the seamstress' shop, I tried on beautiful dress after dress after dress. I hated them all. The seamstress was very sympathetic about my heartbreak and was very helpful in trying to make me feel better. The whole time I was just wishing my fairy godmother would show up and "bippity boppity boo" me a perfect dress. Much to my dismay, she didn't show.
I finally picked a dress. It was more simple than what I usually wore. It was light blue. At my waist, diamonds began to drip like raindrops unevenly down the dress. The fabric criss crossed across the front and then poofed out at the bottom, however it was not as poofy as my usual dresses were. My mother wanted to put a crinoline under it to make it more elaborate, but I liked it how it was.
The next day, as I was getting my hair and make up done, I finally asked my mother who the mystery man was. "Well, remember my old friend Beatrice?" she asked. I nodded, not really remembering. "Her son, Denton agreed to take you." I looked puzzled. "He agreed to take me? Agreed?" I asked with attitude. "Don't be mad Brailee. It was such short notice. I offered him a sum of money if he would take you," my mother said. I understood. My mother had paid my date to take me to a ball.
She had the best of intentions, however I felt extremely pathetic. I couldn't get a date on my own. I had to have the queen pay one to escort me. "Mother?" I asked. "Yes Brailee?" she responded. "Can we make a contract that we will not tell anyone that he was paid to take me?" I said. She smiled. "Absolutely!"
Denton arrived right on time and we headed out. I had met Denton before, but he had always been extremely shy so we rarely had spoken previously. He had dark brown hair, light skin, and sky blue eyes. He was still shy on our way to the ball, but was so sweet and managed to carry a conversation quite well.
When we arrived, we greeted everyone. I received countless compliments on my hair and dress. The compliments, kindness, decorations, and magic that filled the air were not enough. After about thirty minutes, I was begging Denton to go. Apparently he didn't understand that just because he was paid to take me didn't mean we had to stay the whole time. He told me he wished to dance first. I refused. There was no way I was going to dance with him. Absolutely not.
He strolled out to the dance floor and gestured for me to join him. I shook my head no. He began dancing. His skills were none of a prince charming, and a few times I actually started to laugh. He shimmied his way over to me, grabbed my hands, and forced me to join him in this embarrassing charade of dance moves. I knew people were staring and I wanted to stop. Denton wouldn't let me. After a few minutes, the embarrassment faded away and I had no care in the world. You could almost say I was having the time of my life.
We did end up leaving the ball earlier than most of the people, but it was because of our sore feet, not from me being bored. We drove home laughing and chatting. I was very grateful to my mother for pushing me to go and for paying him to escort me. When we reached my castle, I bid him goodnight and went inside. My mother had stayed up to find out how the ball went. I simply gave her a hug and said, "Thank you."
After that night, I secretly hoped that me and Denton would continue being friends and potentially start to date. Fate had made other plans for me however, and soon I gave up efforts and hope entirely of dating Denton. I was not going to pay him to go out on another date with me, despite how great the first one was.
And so we lived happily never after.
I was having trouble recovering from the heartbreak that happened when I ended things with August. The big ball I had wanted him to take me to was in two days and I had no plans to attend. Big dresses, magical moments, and love was definitely not on my agenda. I just wanted to lay in bed with the fireplace going and not be bothered.
The queen had other plans however and came into my chambers the next day, when the sun was at it's peak, and opened the curtains. The light blinded me and I pulled my covers over my head. "Go away mother!" I groaned. "Brailee it's time to get out of bed. Stop being depressed," she lectured. "I'm not depressed," I said unconvincingly. She yanked my covers back and I covered my face with my pillow. "It's time to act like a princess Brailee and get out of bed. Besides, you've got a dress to find for the ball tomorrow." "I'm not going to the ball," I replied. "Oh yes you are! I have a date for you. Time to get up," she said and waltzed out of the room.
I stared at the canopy covering my bed. My mother found me a date to the ball. This can't be good.
My ladies in waiting helped me get somewhat presentable. My hair was barely combable and the bags under my eyes were not coverable, but they did what they could. When my mother saw me she sighed due to my haggard appearance, but was at least pleased that I had gotten out of bed. We climbed into our carriage and headed to another land far far away to find me a ball gown.
When we reached the seamstress' shop, I tried on beautiful dress after dress after dress. I hated them all. The seamstress was very sympathetic about my heartbreak and was very helpful in trying to make me feel better. The whole time I was just wishing my fairy godmother would show up and "bippity boppity boo" me a perfect dress. Much to my dismay, she didn't show.
I finally picked a dress. It was more simple than what I usually wore. It was light blue. At my waist, diamonds began to drip like raindrops unevenly down the dress. The fabric criss crossed across the front and then poofed out at the bottom, however it was not as poofy as my usual dresses were. My mother wanted to put a crinoline under it to make it more elaborate, but I liked it how it was.
The next day, as I was getting my hair and make up done, I finally asked my mother who the mystery man was. "Well, remember my old friend Beatrice?" she asked. I nodded, not really remembering. "Her son, Denton agreed to take you." I looked puzzled. "He agreed to take me? Agreed?" I asked with attitude. "Don't be mad Brailee. It was such short notice. I offered him a sum of money if he would take you," my mother said. I understood. My mother had paid my date to take me to a ball.
She had the best of intentions, however I felt extremely pathetic. I couldn't get a date on my own. I had to have the queen pay one to escort me. "Mother?" I asked. "Yes Brailee?" she responded. "Can we make a contract that we will not tell anyone that he was paid to take me?" I said. She smiled. "Absolutely!"
Denton arrived right on time and we headed out. I had met Denton before, but he had always been extremely shy so we rarely had spoken previously. He had dark brown hair, light skin, and sky blue eyes. He was still shy on our way to the ball, but was so sweet and managed to carry a conversation quite well.
When we arrived, we greeted everyone. I received countless compliments on my hair and dress. The compliments, kindness, decorations, and magic that filled the air were not enough. After about thirty minutes, I was begging Denton to go. Apparently he didn't understand that just because he was paid to take me didn't mean we had to stay the whole time. He told me he wished to dance first. I refused. There was no way I was going to dance with him. Absolutely not.
He strolled out to the dance floor and gestured for me to join him. I shook my head no. He began dancing. His skills were none of a prince charming, and a few times I actually started to laugh. He shimmied his way over to me, grabbed my hands, and forced me to join him in this embarrassing charade of dance moves. I knew people were staring and I wanted to stop. Denton wouldn't let me. After a few minutes, the embarrassment faded away and I had no care in the world. You could almost say I was having the time of my life.
We did end up leaving the ball earlier than most of the people, but it was because of our sore feet, not from me being bored. We drove home laughing and chatting. I was very grateful to my mother for pushing me to go and for paying him to escort me. When we reached my castle, I bid him goodnight and went inside. My mother had stayed up to find out how the ball went. I simply gave her a hug and said, "Thank you."
After that night, I secretly hoped that me and Denton would continue being friends and potentially start to date. Fate had made other plans for me however, and soon I gave up efforts and hope entirely of dating Denton. I was not going to pay him to go out on another date with me, despite how great the first one was.
And so we lived happily never after.
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Chapter Ten: August
Once upon a time...
I had a best friend who was a guy, who knew a guy, who thought I was cute. I was used to this. Being a princess, a lot of guys will be interested in dating me just because of the title. So I didn't think anything of it. Finally after my friend's persistance reached an all time high, I had him show me who this mystery man was. My friend showed me the man, August, and after seeing him, I agreed to give him a chance.
He had short dark brown hair. I didn't usually like facial hair, but he sported a goatee which looked so good on him. He was tall and stalky and had these piercing green eyes. I'd never seen such beautiful eyes in my life.
My friend introduced me to August and we planned a day to go out. He wanted to take me to a show and I agreed. The date was almost unbearable. Thank goodness for not having to talk during shows. August was so shy and it was so hard to get him to speak conversationally. He was extremely nice and very much like a gentleman, but it was awkward. When he took me home to the castle, I bid him goodnight (pretty much goodbye) and went inside not planning on seeing the gentleman again.
August had other plans so he pursued me. I finally ran out of excuses why we couldn't go out, and gave him a second chance for a date. This time I wanted to be on my territory so I had plenty of means to escape if it was awkward. I invited him over to the castle to just play games. He was still shy as ever and I quickly learned he was really rough. So rough, that on accident while playing badmitton inside, he put a hole in the castle wall. Rather than being upset, I thought it was really funny. I decided anyone who awkwardly and accidently puts holes in walls belonging to royalty was someone I wanted to get to know.
I learned that he was a jousting champion, hated reading, slacked off in his years of schooling, was a sports junkie, and loved his friends. He had no real ambition except to make money some day through jousting.
After the third date, August helped me climb out of the carriage and we began to walk towards the castle. He stopped me, turned me around and pulled me close. The moon was bright, the stars were out, the moment was super cute, and the butterflies in my stomach started. He leaned in to kiss me. We were so close that our noses were touching, and that's when I decided I was not ready to kiss him. I pulled back, wished him goodnight, and practically sprinted to the castle doors.
When I made it inside, I leaned against the wall and could not believe I literally just ran away from a first kiss. I'm a princess. I'm supposed to hold myself together, not sprint away from fairytale moments. I sighed and thought that was the last I'd see of August the jousting champion.
Except it wasn't. And I saw him often after that. We finally did kiss, unfortunately the moment wasn't as cute as it would have been if I had kissed him the first time he tried, but it was a good kiss nonetheless. He began to open up to me a bit more. Our conversations were still pretty shallow, but at least he wasn't silent practically the entire time. Occasionally he'd even sing me songs.
My family wasn't sure what to think of him, but August's friends knew what they thought of me. I was on my way to watch one of August's matches, when I overheard some of his friends talking. They clearly had not seen me there, or they wouldn't have been having the conversation. They were plotting ways to "get rid of" me. Ways to get me out of August's life. I hadn't realized how tight August was with his friends. I knew now based on how upset they were that the time he usually spent with them, was now being spent with me. Attending the match no longer seemed like a good idea so I returned to the carriage and had the coachman drive me back to the castle.
I never had a problem with the friends of the guys I dated. I didn't understand. I was a princess, how could they not approve? After my multiple heartbreaks I was discouraged as far as finding my prince goes. I was the first princess in any fairytale story I'd ever heard who hadn't found her prince charming on the first try. My mom tried to make me feel better and told me, "Brailee, sometimes you have to kiss a few frogs in order to find your prince." I decided August was just one of those frogs, who had toads as friends.
Just move on, I told myself and after some days, August became the last thing on my mind. And that's when he showed up at my castle. "August, what are you doing here?" I asked when I saw him at the door. "Brailee, I thought you were going to be at my match, but you never showed and then I haven't heard from you. Did I do something wrong?" he asked. "I did go to your match, and I heard your friends plotting horrible ways to get rid of me so I think it's better if we don't date," I said. He looked hurt and shocked. "They wouldn't say that. They have never told me they had a problem with me dating you," he reponded. "You don't have to believe me, but I overheard them August. Ask them yourself," I said annoyed. "Maybe you should try to talk to them more. You are really shy, they probably just feel that you hate them. Or maybe you should wear less poofy dresses. They're a little intimidating and make you unapproachable," he said, turning me into the problem. "Excuse me?" I said taken aback. "My dresses make people plot to get rid of me?! And quite frankly, I would try to talk to them, but it's always awkward, and now I know why!"
I began to shut the door. I was furious. It was not my fault and August was blaming me. He put his hand out and stopped the door. "Brailee I'm sorry. I will talk to them if it'll make you happy," he said. I was not satisfied, but I felt the conversation needed no further discussion. August did talk to his friends, however I stayed as far away from his friends as possible, despite their apologies. Mine and August's dating life began to changed. It seemed like he began to have two separate lives and it started to upset me. He'd go out with his friends and they'd hang out with other girls. If I went out though, he'd be upset and suspect me of cheating. He refused to go to balls or banquets with me, but would attend parties with his friends. He never thought he did anything wrong and was never willing to work through the issues I had with our relationship.
If I could choose my favorite day of the year, it would be my birthday. I didn't like to have big celebrations, but enjoyed the attention of it being my day of birth. I also loved that it was the only day I felt entitled to be selfish. I woke up to breakfast in bed on my big day that year. The birds were chirping and the gifts were piled on my dresser. I knew it would be a great day.
I met up with August after I attended a few meetings. He told me he had a jousting match in another land and invited me to go. I thought about it, and decided I didn't mind as long as we did something after. He agreed and kissed me on the forehead and walked away to prepare for his match. I was purplexed, he didn't even bother to wish me a happy birthday.
I did attend his match. He won of course, and had a line of fans to greet him after the game. I watched as he hugged girl after girl and greeted person after person. He had long conversations with some older men and then finally remembered I was there. I was a little bit irritated to have been pushed aside, especially on my big day. He reached me, gave me a big hug, and began bragging about his performance. I just smiled and agreed that he did great. When he finally finished, I asked him what our plans were. He seemed confused.
"It's my birthday, remember?" I said. "Of course princess! I knew that, I just assumed you already knew what our plans were," he lied. "I need to bathe before and pick up your gift at my cottage and then we can do whatever you want." I just said ok and we headed back to our land far far away. I dropped him off at his cottage and headed to my castle.
The king and queen gave me a big hug when I got home and asked how the match went. I told them and they were very disappointed in how I was treated. Then they asked what the plans were. I told them I didn't have any and began to cry. My father went to the kitchen and had the cooks start preparing a feast.
It only took a couple hours...only...before August finally arrived. He gave me a hug and told me I looked beautiful. We ate dinner and cuddled the rest of the evening, while he continued to brag about his jousting performance. He may be coming off like a complete jerk, but he's not. He did get me a present! It was a silver necklace with a heart on it. I sure loved it. But it didn't make up for the fact that my boyfriend, my possible prince charming, made me feel that the most important day of the year was irrelevant.
The next year of dating became very revolved around August's success in jousting. Our conversations were never deep. Our moments were never romantic. He rarely took me out without me providing the carriage, or the tickets, or the meal. We had our good moments, but it soon seemed there was more bad than good in our relationship.
The land far far away announced the date for the biggest ball of the year. It was the night that commoners felt like princesses and everyone danced the night away as if there wasn't a care in the world. The ball was unforgettable and magical. I had to attend and begged August to take me. He refused to, because he needed to practice for his jousting match. PRACTICE. I pleaded and pleaded with him saying he only took me to one ball and I didn't want to go to the biggest one alone. He didn't budge. I knew what I had to do.
Later that week, I called upon August. "Hey Princess!" he said when he saw me and gave me a big hug, the kind I hated because they were too rough and made me feel like I couldn't breathe. "You look so gorgeous!" he continued, scooping me up and spinning me around. "August we need to talk," I said seriously. He put me down, puzzled. "You are an amazing guy and we have a lot of good times, however jousting is the most important thing to you. I never come first. I don't need to always come first, but I sometimes do. Being second in line is not how my fairytale is supposed to end," I said. He looked at the floor. My heart sunk into my stomach. "August I'm sorry. I just can't do this anymore. This isn't what I want. Good luck in your future jousting matches, I'm sure you'll do great," I finished. I turned and ran to my carriage before I could change my mind.
I looked out the window as I drove away, watching August slowly fade from sight.
And we lived happily never after.
I had a best friend who was a guy, who knew a guy, who thought I was cute. I was used to this. Being a princess, a lot of guys will be interested in dating me just because of the title. So I didn't think anything of it. Finally after my friend's persistance reached an all time high, I had him show me who this mystery man was. My friend showed me the man, August, and after seeing him, I agreed to give him a chance.
He had short dark brown hair. I didn't usually like facial hair, but he sported a goatee which looked so good on him. He was tall and stalky and had these piercing green eyes. I'd never seen such beautiful eyes in my life.
My friend introduced me to August and we planned a day to go out. He wanted to take me to a show and I agreed. The date was almost unbearable. Thank goodness for not having to talk during shows. August was so shy and it was so hard to get him to speak conversationally. He was extremely nice and very much like a gentleman, but it was awkward. When he took me home to the castle, I bid him goodnight (pretty much goodbye) and went inside not planning on seeing the gentleman again.
August had other plans so he pursued me. I finally ran out of excuses why we couldn't go out, and gave him a second chance for a date. This time I wanted to be on my territory so I had plenty of means to escape if it was awkward. I invited him over to the castle to just play games. He was still shy as ever and I quickly learned he was really rough. So rough, that on accident while playing badmitton inside, he put a hole in the castle wall. Rather than being upset, I thought it was really funny. I decided anyone who awkwardly and accidently puts holes in walls belonging to royalty was someone I wanted to get to know.
I learned that he was a jousting champion, hated reading, slacked off in his years of schooling, was a sports junkie, and loved his friends. He had no real ambition except to make money some day through jousting.
After the third date, August helped me climb out of the carriage and we began to walk towards the castle. He stopped me, turned me around and pulled me close. The moon was bright, the stars were out, the moment was super cute, and the butterflies in my stomach started. He leaned in to kiss me. We were so close that our noses were touching, and that's when I decided I was not ready to kiss him. I pulled back, wished him goodnight, and practically sprinted to the castle doors.
When I made it inside, I leaned against the wall and could not believe I literally just ran away from a first kiss. I'm a princess. I'm supposed to hold myself together, not sprint away from fairytale moments. I sighed and thought that was the last I'd see of August the jousting champion.
Except it wasn't. And I saw him often after that. We finally did kiss, unfortunately the moment wasn't as cute as it would have been if I had kissed him the first time he tried, but it was a good kiss nonetheless. He began to open up to me a bit more. Our conversations were still pretty shallow, but at least he wasn't silent practically the entire time. Occasionally he'd even sing me songs.
My family wasn't sure what to think of him, but August's friends knew what they thought of me. I was on my way to watch one of August's matches, when I overheard some of his friends talking. They clearly had not seen me there, or they wouldn't have been having the conversation. They were plotting ways to "get rid of" me. Ways to get me out of August's life. I hadn't realized how tight August was with his friends. I knew now based on how upset they were that the time he usually spent with them, was now being spent with me. Attending the match no longer seemed like a good idea so I returned to the carriage and had the coachman drive me back to the castle.
I never had a problem with the friends of the guys I dated. I didn't understand. I was a princess, how could they not approve? After my multiple heartbreaks I was discouraged as far as finding my prince goes. I was the first princess in any fairytale story I'd ever heard who hadn't found her prince charming on the first try. My mom tried to make me feel better and told me, "Brailee, sometimes you have to kiss a few frogs in order to find your prince." I decided August was just one of those frogs, who had toads as friends.
Just move on, I told myself and after some days, August became the last thing on my mind. And that's when he showed up at my castle. "August, what are you doing here?" I asked when I saw him at the door. "Brailee, I thought you were going to be at my match, but you never showed and then I haven't heard from you. Did I do something wrong?" he asked. "I did go to your match, and I heard your friends plotting horrible ways to get rid of me so I think it's better if we don't date," I said. He looked hurt and shocked. "They wouldn't say that. They have never told me they had a problem with me dating you," he reponded. "You don't have to believe me, but I overheard them August. Ask them yourself," I said annoyed. "Maybe you should try to talk to them more. You are really shy, they probably just feel that you hate them. Or maybe you should wear less poofy dresses. They're a little intimidating and make you unapproachable," he said, turning me into the problem. "Excuse me?" I said taken aback. "My dresses make people plot to get rid of me?! And quite frankly, I would try to talk to them, but it's always awkward, and now I know why!"
I began to shut the door. I was furious. It was not my fault and August was blaming me. He put his hand out and stopped the door. "Brailee I'm sorry. I will talk to them if it'll make you happy," he said. I was not satisfied, but I felt the conversation needed no further discussion. August did talk to his friends, however I stayed as far away from his friends as possible, despite their apologies. Mine and August's dating life began to changed. It seemed like he began to have two separate lives and it started to upset me. He'd go out with his friends and they'd hang out with other girls. If I went out though, he'd be upset and suspect me of cheating. He refused to go to balls or banquets with me, but would attend parties with his friends. He never thought he did anything wrong and was never willing to work through the issues I had with our relationship.
If I could choose my favorite day of the year, it would be my birthday. I didn't like to have big celebrations, but enjoyed the attention of it being my day of birth. I also loved that it was the only day I felt entitled to be selfish. I woke up to breakfast in bed on my big day that year. The birds were chirping and the gifts were piled on my dresser. I knew it would be a great day.
I met up with August after I attended a few meetings. He told me he had a jousting match in another land and invited me to go. I thought about it, and decided I didn't mind as long as we did something after. He agreed and kissed me on the forehead and walked away to prepare for his match. I was purplexed, he didn't even bother to wish me a happy birthday.
I did attend his match. He won of course, and had a line of fans to greet him after the game. I watched as he hugged girl after girl and greeted person after person. He had long conversations with some older men and then finally remembered I was there. I was a little bit irritated to have been pushed aside, especially on my big day. He reached me, gave me a big hug, and began bragging about his performance. I just smiled and agreed that he did great. When he finally finished, I asked him what our plans were. He seemed confused.
"It's my birthday, remember?" I said. "Of course princess! I knew that, I just assumed you already knew what our plans were," he lied. "I need to bathe before and pick up your gift at my cottage and then we can do whatever you want." I just said ok and we headed back to our land far far away. I dropped him off at his cottage and headed to my castle.
The king and queen gave me a big hug when I got home and asked how the match went. I told them and they were very disappointed in how I was treated. Then they asked what the plans were. I told them I didn't have any and began to cry. My father went to the kitchen and had the cooks start preparing a feast.
It only took a couple hours...only...before August finally arrived. He gave me a hug and told me I looked beautiful. We ate dinner and cuddled the rest of the evening, while he continued to brag about his jousting performance. He may be coming off like a complete jerk, but he's not. He did get me a present! It was a silver necklace with a heart on it. I sure loved it. But it didn't make up for the fact that my boyfriend, my possible prince charming, made me feel that the most important day of the year was irrelevant.
The next year of dating became very revolved around August's success in jousting. Our conversations were never deep. Our moments were never romantic. He rarely took me out without me providing the carriage, or the tickets, or the meal. We had our good moments, but it soon seemed there was more bad than good in our relationship.
The land far far away announced the date for the biggest ball of the year. It was the night that commoners felt like princesses and everyone danced the night away as if there wasn't a care in the world. The ball was unforgettable and magical. I had to attend and begged August to take me. He refused to, because he needed to practice for his jousting match. PRACTICE. I pleaded and pleaded with him saying he only took me to one ball and I didn't want to go to the biggest one alone. He didn't budge. I knew what I had to do.
Later that week, I called upon August. "Hey Princess!" he said when he saw me and gave me a big hug, the kind I hated because they were too rough and made me feel like I couldn't breathe. "You look so gorgeous!" he continued, scooping me up and spinning me around. "August we need to talk," I said seriously. He put me down, puzzled. "You are an amazing guy and we have a lot of good times, however jousting is the most important thing to you. I never come first. I don't need to always come first, but I sometimes do. Being second in line is not how my fairytale is supposed to end," I said. He looked at the floor. My heart sunk into my stomach. "August I'm sorry. I just can't do this anymore. This isn't what I want. Good luck in your future jousting matches, I'm sure you'll do great," I finished. I turned and ran to my carriage before I could change my mind.
I looked out the window as I drove away, watching August slowly fade from sight.
And we lived happily never after.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Chapter Nine: Demetrius
Once upon a time...
One word: Jousting. The biggest, most popular sporting event. Even greater than the sword fights. Everyone attended. Something about the brutal beating and dismounting of knights on horses just got people excited! The jousting matches were always packed with people. There was no room for comfort, not even for a princess. Luckily though at this particular match featuring the best jousters in the land, I was placed uncomfortably next to a really really handsome guy. His name was Demetrius and the more uncomfortably close we got, the less uncomfortable I really was. I rather enjoyed it to be honest.
Demetrius had that confidence of a man who couldn't be knocked down. He could look danger in the face and laugh. He was fearless and strong. And tall, dark haired, and handsome. He was kind of reckless and had a bad boy feel to him. But hey he was handsome!
We didn't say much at the match and I actually forgot about him completely until I was on a walk a few weeks later and walked by him. "Princess Brailee!" He called in a voice as sexy as his looks. I smiled to myself and pretended not to hear him. I heard footsteps. "Princess Brailee," he repeated. I turned, putting on an innocent face, "Why hello!" I said. He bowed. "Do you remember me?" he asked. I didn't respond, but tried to look as innocently puzzled as possible. "We met at the jousting match a few weeks ago," he said. "Oh yes I do remember you! I rarely get that close to strangers," I responded, half teasingly. "I wish I felt bad about that Princess, but I'm glad I got to be that close to you" he said, then paused looking at me. I felt uncomfortable. "What?" I finally asked. "You are just so beautiful," he said. "Definitely the fairest in all the land." I blushed and tried to hide my smile. "Princess Brailee I would like to see you again," he said. "I'll think about it," I teased flirtatiously and turned and walked away.
Later that week, he called on me to take me out. I agreed. We joined some of his friends at a cottage. We all sat outside, just chatting and having a good time. Inside, some of Demetrius' older friends were having a jolley good time drinking rum with a group of people I didn't recognize. As long as they kept their distance, it was fine. But slowly the group began to trickle outside. I began to recognize their faces from wanted posters I'd seen around the land far far away. Demetrius hung out with a group of bandits? I started to feel afraid. "Demetrius, I'm not feeling well. I think I should go home," I told him. "Of course, I will take you home right away," he said.
Then one of the older friends came running outside whispering in an urgent tone, "They found us! The soldiers are here! RUN! HIDE! JUST GO!!!!"
Demetrius grabbed my hand and we took off running. My jewels were clanking together. "Princess take those off," Demetrius pleaded. I couldn't risk losing them by taking them off, so I held them hoping to muffle the noise. Some of Demetrius' friends jumped the fence surrounding the cottage. With my huge dress, there was no way I was going to make it. The last one of his friends jumped the fence. Now, standing there hopelessly, was just Demetrius and I. The two of us alone, who hadn't done anything wrong, were going to get caught.
I heard voices coming from the cottage. The soldiers were on their way out with a lantern. Demetrius grabbed me and pulled me to the ground behind a tree. All I could think was how I was going to be beheaded once they found me. My parents were going to be ashamed. My reputation would be ruined. I felt my eyes start watering. Demetrius pulled me close.
After what felt like hours, the voices and light faded. Demetrius helped me up and we quietly walked to the carriage and headed back to my castle.
We went in silence. And I kept my silence with him for days after. Finally, after being obnoxiously persistant, he got me to talk to him. Demetrius apologized repeatedly and promised nothing like that would happen again. I needed convincing, but eventually I forgave him and we began to go out again.
On our way home from a festival in our land, Demetrius asked if we could stop and say hello to his friends since it was on our way to the castle. I agreed of course. I quickly regretted my decision when I found myself sitting in the carriage, at an abandoned broken down barn in the middle of no where. Demetrius was already greeting his friends, who I soon recognized to be the same group of bandits. My stomach turned in knots. Not again. I was anxious to go.
What felt like ages passed, and finally Demetrius headed towards the carriage, when out of no where soldiers came running and grabbed him. They pushed him to the ground. Barely moments went by before the rest of the bandits met the same fate.
"No no no!" I cried. It was almost midnight. I HAD to be home before the clock struck twelve. I hopped out of the carriage. "I demand that you release him!" I cried at the soldier holding down Demetrius. "Princess, these are thieves, robbers..." the soldier began. "Not him. He was with me. We stopped to greet a friend, not realizing they were part of the group of bandits. We'd only been here a minute and were about to leave when you got here. He's guilty by association, but not by any other charge." The soldier didn't budge. Time was ticking. I took a deep breath. "By order of the princess, I demand you release him," I said as bravely as I could. The soldier hesitated and reluctantly let Demetrius go. "What about the others?" the soldier asked. "Oh, I don't care. They weren't with me!" I said carelessly already heading to the carriage.
Demetrius followed and climbed in the carriage and we headed to my castle. "Thank you Brailee. I'm sorry that you were in that situation," he said. "I'm a princess, Demetrius. And if you wish to court me, you better start treating me like it and stop putting me in situations that could harm the royal name," I snapped. "I know. I'm so sorry. It won't happen again," he said quietly.
By now, I knew his reputation. I knew what he was about. He was no prince charming, but he was one of these bandit types. A bad boy. A no good street rat. A rather handsome and amazingly good kissing street rat. I am a princess, but I am also human. And female. And secretly we all hope to be the one that makes the bad guy see the light and change his ways. So I gave him one more chance. I knew I couldn't risk another bad situation, but I just couldn't let him go.
After we had been dating for quite some time, my parents became anxious to meet this mysterious prince charming, so one day I decided it was time to invite him over. He came to the castle and was very confident and didn't seem the least bit intimidated to be meeting the king and queen. He handled himself just like prince charming would and I was quite pleased with how it was going. We began to play a board game with my parents, and not even an hour later he said it was getting late and he needed to be heading out. Thinking nothing of his quick exit, I walked him out, kissed him goodnight, and said I'd see him soon.
Except I never saw or spoke to him again. I guess bad boys don't like board games.
And we lived happily never after.
One word: Jousting. The biggest, most popular sporting event. Even greater than the sword fights. Everyone attended. Something about the brutal beating and dismounting of knights on horses just got people excited! The jousting matches were always packed with people. There was no room for comfort, not even for a princess. Luckily though at this particular match featuring the best jousters in the land, I was placed uncomfortably next to a really really handsome guy. His name was Demetrius and the more uncomfortably close we got, the less uncomfortable I really was. I rather enjoyed it to be honest.
Demetrius had that confidence of a man who couldn't be knocked down. He could look danger in the face and laugh. He was fearless and strong. And tall, dark haired, and handsome. He was kind of reckless and had a bad boy feel to him. But hey he was handsome!
We didn't say much at the match and I actually forgot about him completely until I was on a walk a few weeks later and walked by him. "Princess Brailee!" He called in a voice as sexy as his looks. I smiled to myself and pretended not to hear him. I heard footsteps. "Princess Brailee," he repeated. I turned, putting on an innocent face, "Why hello!" I said. He bowed. "Do you remember me?" he asked. I didn't respond, but tried to look as innocently puzzled as possible. "We met at the jousting match a few weeks ago," he said. "Oh yes I do remember you! I rarely get that close to strangers," I responded, half teasingly. "I wish I felt bad about that Princess, but I'm glad I got to be that close to you" he said, then paused looking at me. I felt uncomfortable. "What?" I finally asked. "You are just so beautiful," he said. "Definitely the fairest in all the land." I blushed and tried to hide my smile. "Princess Brailee I would like to see you again," he said. "I'll think about it," I teased flirtatiously and turned and walked away.
Later that week, he called on me to take me out. I agreed. We joined some of his friends at a cottage. We all sat outside, just chatting and having a good time. Inside, some of Demetrius' older friends were having a jolley good time drinking rum with a group of people I didn't recognize. As long as they kept their distance, it was fine. But slowly the group began to trickle outside. I began to recognize their faces from wanted posters I'd seen around the land far far away. Demetrius hung out with a group of bandits? I started to feel afraid. "Demetrius, I'm not feeling well. I think I should go home," I told him. "Of course, I will take you home right away," he said.
Then one of the older friends came running outside whispering in an urgent tone, "They found us! The soldiers are here! RUN! HIDE! JUST GO!!!!"
Demetrius grabbed my hand and we took off running. My jewels were clanking together. "Princess take those off," Demetrius pleaded. I couldn't risk losing them by taking them off, so I held them hoping to muffle the noise. Some of Demetrius' friends jumped the fence surrounding the cottage. With my huge dress, there was no way I was going to make it. The last one of his friends jumped the fence. Now, standing there hopelessly, was just Demetrius and I. The two of us alone, who hadn't done anything wrong, were going to get caught.
I heard voices coming from the cottage. The soldiers were on their way out with a lantern. Demetrius grabbed me and pulled me to the ground behind a tree. All I could think was how I was going to be beheaded once they found me. My parents were going to be ashamed. My reputation would be ruined. I felt my eyes start watering. Demetrius pulled me close.
After what felt like hours, the voices and light faded. Demetrius helped me up and we quietly walked to the carriage and headed back to my castle.
We went in silence. And I kept my silence with him for days after. Finally, after being obnoxiously persistant, he got me to talk to him. Demetrius apologized repeatedly and promised nothing like that would happen again. I needed convincing, but eventually I forgave him and we began to go out again.
On our way home from a festival in our land, Demetrius asked if we could stop and say hello to his friends since it was on our way to the castle. I agreed of course. I quickly regretted my decision when I found myself sitting in the carriage, at an abandoned broken down barn in the middle of no where. Demetrius was already greeting his friends, who I soon recognized to be the same group of bandits. My stomach turned in knots. Not again. I was anxious to go.
What felt like ages passed, and finally Demetrius headed towards the carriage, when out of no where soldiers came running and grabbed him. They pushed him to the ground. Barely moments went by before the rest of the bandits met the same fate.
"No no no!" I cried. It was almost midnight. I HAD to be home before the clock struck twelve. I hopped out of the carriage. "I demand that you release him!" I cried at the soldier holding down Demetrius. "Princess, these are thieves, robbers..." the soldier began. "Not him. He was with me. We stopped to greet a friend, not realizing they were part of the group of bandits. We'd only been here a minute and were about to leave when you got here. He's guilty by association, but not by any other charge." The soldier didn't budge. Time was ticking. I took a deep breath. "By order of the princess, I demand you release him," I said as bravely as I could. The soldier hesitated and reluctantly let Demetrius go. "What about the others?" the soldier asked. "Oh, I don't care. They weren't with me!" I said carelessly already heading to the carriage.
Demetrius followed and climbed in the carriage and we headed to my castle. "Thank you Brailee. I'm sorry that you were in that situation," he said. "I'm a princess, Demetrius. And if you wish to court me, you better start treating me like it and stop putting me in situations that could harm the royal name," I snapped. "I know. I'm so sorry. It won't happen again," he said quietly.
By now, I knew his reputation. I knew what he was about. He was no prince charming, but he was one of these bandit types. A bad boy. A no good street rat. A rather handsome and amazingly good kissing street rat. I am a princess, but I am also human. And female. And secretly we all hope to be the one that makes the bad guy see the light and change his ways. So I gave him one more chance. I knew I couldn't risk another bad situation, but I just couldn't let him go.
After we had been dating for quite some time, my parents became anxious to meet this mysterious prince charming, so one day I decided it was time to invite him over. He came to the castle and was very confident and didn't seem the least bit intimidated to be meeting the king and queen. He handled himself just like prince charming would and I was quite pleased with how it was going. We began to play a board game with my parents, and not even an hour later he said it was getting late and he needed to be heading out. Thinking nothing of his quick exit, I walked him out, kissed him goodnight, and said I'd see him soon.
Except I never saw or spoke to him again. I guess bad boys don't like board games.
And we lived happily never after.
Sunday, December 11, 2011
Chapter Eight: Cedric Part Two
Once upon a time...
It was summer, the hottest season of the year. One day was particularly hot, so I went to the lake with a group of friends. The lake was a popular place among the citizens in the land far far away. We didn't have a beach, so it was the best place to cool down when it got hot. It was common to see people you knew at the lake, but he was the last person I thought I'd see, since it had been years since our last encounter. Standing not even thirty feet away from me, was Cedric. (review chapter one)
Before I had transferred schools, I made sure to make Cedric pay for breaking my heart. I would tell all the teachers when he'd be messing around in class. Once, I even got him kicked out of the class. Proudest moment of my life, I'd have to say. I spread rumors and was as cruel to him as you can possibly be to a human.
Due to the way I had treated him, it caught me extremely off guard when he came up and hugged me. He was still the same Cedric I knew, but a much manlier version. I could feel his muscle in his hug, he had grown a little bit taller, wore his hair a little shorter, and his teeth had straightened out a little bit. But his eyes and laugh were still the same. His charisma and charm still radiated off him.
I ended up spending the whole time at the lake with Cedric. It was like we had never stopped being friends. He teased me and splashed me and would dunk me under the water. We chatted and caught up on everything exciting in our lives from the last couple years. When it was time to leave, Cedric asked me to go to his cottage with him. My friends didn't mind, so I did.
When we arrived at the familiar home, he wanted to go on a ride with him. He helped me mount his horse and then hopped on and we rode off. Where we were going, I was not really sure. I didn't mind, however. It just felt good to hold Cedric again and be with him. The horse followed a pathway through the woods. We reached a clearing at the end, towards the edge of a cliff, and that's where Cedric brought the horse to a stop.
He hopped off the horse and then helped me slide off. We found a rock big enough for the both of us and sat down, watching the sun setting. A fairy fluttered by. A songbird sang in the tree nearby. Everything was so perfect. Cedric turned to me. I looked at him and smiled. He brushed the hair away from my face and then pulled my head towards him. His forehead rested on mine and the butterflies began to go crazy in my stomach. Then he kissed me. This first kiss was WAAAAAAY better from our first, first kiss. He had much improved. Thank goodness.
"Why'd you do that?" I whispered. "It felt right," Cedric responded. I looked at him, knowing what he meant, but surprised that he felt the same. "But you hated me. After everything I did..." I said, but he cut me off and kissed me again. "Brailee, there's just something about you. Maybe it's the first love thing," he said. "What do you mean?" I asked. "Brails, you never forget your first love. You're first love, it never dies."
Apparently it doesn't, because we began dating again after that. My family was overjoyed to see their "adopted son" again. He spent time at my castle every day. Everything was the same as it was two years ago. My almost prince charming had returned. Maybe, just maybe this time our story would end happily ever after.
We began to make new memories, just as good as they were before. We'd be silly and goofy. We'd go to banquets and shows. We'd stare at the stars and talk like we used to. He knew every thought I had and everything I had gone through in our time apart. Once he even took me exploring to a cave! The climb up the mountain was intense and I complained the entire way up. Every ten minutes, I'd make him take a break. We'd snack on treats the cooks made us. He'd tease me for being such a wimp and I told him I'd have him punished for torturing me. Then we'd laugh and kiss and he'd scoop me up and make me start walking again. I was exhausted by the time we got to the cave, but like Cedric had promised, it was worth it. It was always worth it when I was with him. Every moment was perfect.
One day, after school, I walked up to my chamber. On the chamber door was a letter. I opened it. The letter read, "Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight, I wish I may, I wish you might, be my princess at the ball tonight." I pushed the door open. Stars were cut and strung and were hanging from the ceiling and plastered all over my walls. And standing in the middle of my chambers was Cedric, holding a bouqet of flowers. "Once upon a time, Princess Brailee, we talked about all the balls we would attend in the future. I'd like to attend the first of many, together, tonight," he said. I smiled and wrapped my arms around him and kissed him. "You're awfully lucky I don't have a date already tonight. I'm in pretty high demand you know," I teased. "Being the fairest in all the land, I do not doubt that," he said and kissed me.
That night we attended the ball. The weather was terrible. It was raining and windy and my hair was ruined, but I had the best date in all the land and not a care in the world. We danced until our feet hurt and we laughed until we had chiseled stomach muscles.
Unfortunately, the ball brought back the memory of the fall ball years ago, where Cedric had chosen another maiden over me. And my insecurities set in.
Cedric could tell, the way he always could tell. A few days after the ball, I told my ladies in waiting that I was going on a walk, but told no one where to. Cedric found me though, standing on the bridge over the river in the woods. My favorite place to think. I was tossing pebbles into the water. No one else was around so his voice startled me.
"Brailee, are you ok?" he asked. I jumped and turned to see him standing there with the wind ruffling his hair a little. "I'm fine," I responded and turned my attention back to throwing pebbles. "Don't lie to me," he said. I sighed, not wanting to say what I was thinking, but proceeded to anyways. "You hurt me. Unimaginably hurt me two years ago," I said, still not looking at him. "How could you do that to me?" He walked over to me and wrapped his arms around me. "Brailee, I had no idea. I'm so sorry," he said. I started to cry and muttered, "I don't trust you this time. Our relationship feels the same as before, but it's not." He still held me tight. "Brails, I'll never hurt you again. I'll do whatever it takes to prove that to you," he said wiping my tears. "Can we go back to the castle now? Everyone's worried about you." I agreed, he took my hand, and we walked back to the castle.
Cedric tried to prove his love for me, but slowly began to fade out of my life. He was still as sweet as ever, but I saw him less and less. Every time I asked him about it, he said he was just spending a lot of time with his buddy Godric and not to worry. He promised not to hurt me again so I chose to believe him and not worry.
We made plans to attend the sword fighting match together one evening. Cedric said he'd meet me there, so I attended with my best friend Shar. When we got there, Cedric was no where to be seen. We found Godric pretty quickly though. He's one of the tallest men in the land, so it wasn't hard. Shar and I walked over to him. He stood, bowed to me, and greeted Shar. He then took his seat, and we took a seat beside him. "Where's Cedric at? I thought he was going to be here," I said. Godric's attention was on the sword fight, but he responded, "Probably with Amita. He's always with Amita. I never see him anymore."
Amita. The girl he had chosen over me before. The girl I had been so insecure about. This whole time he'd been seeing her, not Godric. So much for my prince charming. No way would my prince charming hurt me like this. Especially not after a second chance. Anger fueled inside of me, and I could hardly sit still throughout the rest of the match. I had to control my emotions. It would be unprincess-like to make a scene about it. I knew Shar could see through the fake smile and calmness I was presenting to everyone else, but she also knew it was better not to say anything. And she knew, that for his safety, Cedric better not show up.
After the match, we socialized with friends and citizens. When most of the people had gone home, we decided it would be best to go as well. We said goodbye to Godric and started to head out, when I saw Cedric. He was in an embrace with a girl I knew to be Amita's cousin. Shar saw him too and grabbed my arm. "Brailee do not say anything to him. Ignore him and lets go."
I couldn't. He had played me for a fool twice. And I was far too angry to just leave now. I started to walk towards him. "Brailee, what are you doing?" Shar said, following close behind. I was on fire at this point. There was no turning back. Cedric was still in a conversation with Amita's cousin when I reached him. He saw me approach though and turned. Cedric could always read me like a book, and it took only a split second for him to realize I knew about Amita. He opened his mouth to say something, but didn't get a chance.
I raised my hand and slapped him. People stared, but I didn't care. I knew it was unprincess-like and I would be lectured later, but he deserved it. No words were exchanged. Everything that needed to be said, was said loud and clear with that one slap. I turned, straightened my posture and my dress, and marched out of the arena with what was left of my dignity.
And we lived happily never after.
It was summer, the hottest season of the year. One day was particularly hot, so I went to the lake with a group of friends. The lake was a popular place among the citizens in the land far far away. We didn't have a beach, so it was the best place to cool down when it got hot. It was common to see people you knew at the lake, but he was the last person I thought I'd see, since it had been years since our last encounter. Standing not even thirty feet away from me, was Cedric. (review chapter one)
Before I had transferred schools, I made sure to make Cedric pay for breaking my heart. I would tell all the teachers when he'd be messing around in class. Once, I even got him kicked out of the class. Proudest moment of my life, I'd have to say. I spread rumors and was as cruel to him as you can possibly be to a human.
Due to the way I had treated him, it caught me extremely off guard when he came up and hugged me. He was still the same Cedric I knew, but a much manlier version. I could feel his muscle in his hug, he had grown a little bit taller, wore his hair a little shorter, and his teeth had straightened out a little bit. But his eyes and laugh were still the same. His charisma and charm still radiated off him.
I ended up spending the whole time at the lake with Cedric. It was like we had never stopped being friends. He teased me and splashed me and would dunk me under the water. We chatted and caught up on everything exciting in our lives from the last couple years. When it was time to leave, Cedric asked me to go to his cottage with him. My friends didn't mind, so I did.
When we arrived at the familiar home, he wanted to go on a ride with him. He helped me mount his horse and then hopped on and we rode off. Where we were going, I was not really sure. I didn't mind, however. It just felt good to hold Cedric again and be with him. The horse followed a pathway through the woods. We reached a clearing at the end, towards the edge of a cliff, and that's where Cedric brought the horse to a stop.
He hopped off the horse and then helped me slide off. We found a rock big enough for the both of us and sat down, watching the sun setting. A fairy fluttered by. A songbird sang in the tree nearby. Everything was so perfect. Cedric turned to me. I looked at him and smiled. He brushed the hair away from my face and then pulled my head towards him. His forehead rested on mine and the butterflies began to go crazy in my stomach. Then he kissed me. This first kiss was WAAAAAAY better from our first, first kiss. He had much improved. Thank goodness.
"Why'd you do that?" I whispered. "It felt right," Cedric responded. I looked at him, knowing what he meant, but surprised that he felt the same. "But you hated me. After everything I did..." I said, but he cut me off and kissed me again. "Brailee, there's just something about you. Maybe it's the first love thing," he said. "What do you mean?" I asked. "Brails, you never forget your first love. You're first love, it never dies."
Apparently it doesn't, because we began dating again after that. My family was overjoyed to see their "adopted son" again. He spent time at my castle every day. Everything was the same as it was two years ago. My almost prince charming had returned. Maybe, just maybe this time our story would end happily ever after.
We began to make new memories, just as good as they were before. We'd be silly and goofy. We'd go to banquets and shows. We'd stare at the stars and talk like we used to. He knew every thought I had and everything I had gone through in our time apart. Once he even took me exploring to a cave! The climb up the mountain was intense and I complained the entire way up. Every ten minutes, I'd make him take a break. We'd snack on treats the cooks made us. He'd tease me for being such a wimp and I told him I'd have him punished for torturing me. Then we'd laugh and kiss and he'd scoop me up and make me start walking again. I was exhausted by the time we got to the cave, but like Cedric had promised, it was worth it. It was always worth it when I was with him. Every moment was perfect.
One day, after school, I walked up to my chamber. On the chamber door was a letter. I opened it. The letter read, "Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight, I wish I may, I wish you might, be my princess at the ball tonight." I pushed the door open. Stars were cut and strung and were hanging from the ceiling and plastered all over my walls. And standing in the middle of my chambers was Cedric, holding a bouqet of flowers. "Once upon a time, Princess Brailee, we talked about all the balls we would attend in the future. I'd like to attend the first of many, together, tonight," he said. I smiled and wrapped my arms around him and kissed him. "You're awfully lucky I don't have a date already tonight. I'm in pretty high demand you know," I teased. "Being the fairest in all the land, I do not doubt that," he said and kissed me.
That night we attended the ball. The weather was terrible. It was raining and windy and my hair was ruined, but I had the best date in all the land and not a care in the world. We danced until our feet hurt and we laughed until we had chiseled stomach muscles.
Unfortunately, the ball brought back the memory of the fall ball years ago, where Cedric had chosen another maiden over me. And my insecurities set in.
Cedric could tell, the way he always could tell. A few days after the ball, I told my ladies in waiting that I was going on a walk, but told no one where to. Cedric found me though, standing on the bridge over the river in the woods. My favorite place to think. I was tossing pebbles into the water. No one else was around so his voice startled me.
"Brailee, are you ok?" he asked. I jumped and turned to see him standing there with the wind ruffling his hair a little. "I'm fine," I responded and turned my attention back to throwing pebbles. "Don't lie to me," he said. I sighed, not wanting to say what I was thinking, but proceeded to anyways. "You hurt me. Unimaginably hurt me two years ago," I said, still not looking at him. "How could you do that to me?" He walked over to me and wrapped his arms around me. "Brailee, I had no idea. I'm so sorry," he said. I started to cry and muttered, "I don't trust you this time. Our relationship feels the same as before, but it's not." He still held me tight. "Brails, I'll never hurt you again. I'll do whatever it takes to prove that to you," he said wiping my tears. "Can we go back to the castle now? Everyone's worried about you." I agreed, he took my hand, and we walked back to the castle.
Cedric tried to prove his love for me, but slowly began to fade out of my life. He was still as sweet as ever, but I saw him less and less. Every time I asked him about it, he said he was just spending a lot of time with his buddy Godric and not to worry. He promised not to hurt me again so I chose to believe him and not worry.
We made plans to attend the sword fighting match together one evening. Cedric said he'd meet me there, so I attended with my best friend Shar. When we got there, Cedric was no where to be seen. We found Godric pretty quickly though. He's one of the tallest men in the land, so it wasn't hard. Shar and I walked over to him. He stood, bowed to me, and greeted Shar. He then took his seat, and we took a seat beside him. "Where's Cedric at? I thought he was going to be here," I said. Godric's attention was on the sword fight, but he responded, "Probably with Amita. He's always with Amita. I never see him anymore."
Amita. The girl he had chosen over me before. The girl I had been so insecure about. This whole time he'd been seeing her, not Godric. So much for my prince charming. No way would my prince charming hurt me like this. Especially not after a second chance. Anger fueled inside of me, and I could hardly sit still throughout the rest of the match. I had to control my emotions. It would be unprincess-like to make a scene about it. I knew Shar could see through the fake smile and calmness I was presenting to everyone else, but she also knew it was better not to say anything. And she knew, that for his safety, Cedric better not show up.
After the match, we socialized with friends and citizens. When most of the people had gone home, we decided it would be best to go as well. We said goodbye to Godric and started to head out, when I saw Cedric. He was in an embrace with a girl I knew to be Amita's cousin. Shar saw him too and grabbed my arm. "Brailee do not say anything to him. Ignore him and lets go."
I couldn't. He had played me for a fool twice. And I was far too angry to just leave now. I started to walk towards him. "Brailee, what are you doing?" Shar said, following close behind. I was on fire at this point. There was no turning back. Cedric was still in a conversation with Amita's cousin when I reached him. He saw me approach though and turned. Cedric could always read me like a book, and it took only a split second for him to realize I knew about Amita. He opened his mouth to say something, but didn't get a chance.
I raised my hand and slapped him. People stared, but I didn't care. I knew it was unprincess-like and I would be lectured later, but he deserved it. No words were exchanged. Everything that needed to be said, was said loud and clear with that one slap. I turned, straightened my posture and my dress, and marched out of the arena with what was left of my dignity.
And we lived happily never after.
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Chapter Seven: Avery
Once upon a time...
A storm was brewing and everyone in the school was sent to the corridors for our protection. We had to sit against the walls, with our hands over our heads. I was quite frightened and the boy next to me could tell. "It'll be ok, you're a princess. If the storm hits, you'll be the one they'll protect. Don't worry." I smiled at him. "I'm Brailee," I said and held out my hand. "Avery," he responded and shook it.
The storm raged outside, and for the next hour, we all sat huddled against the wall. Finally, the soldiers that patrolled the corridors gave us the ok to return to class. We all stood up, and that's when I got my first look at Avery. He was very tall. He had blonde hair and big blue eyes. He was pretty average looking. Had he not said anything to me during the storm, I'm not sure I ever would have noticed him. I told him it was a pleasure to meet him and I'd see him around. He smiled, a sweet, shy, innocent smile.
A few days later, I saw Avery at lunch. I walked over to him and asked if I could join him. He made room for me at his table and we began to chat. He told me about his family and his pet dog. He told me how he competed in chess. We had nearly nothing in common, but he was so sweet I wanted to spend more time with him.
Avery invited me to go out with him, his friend, and his friend's girlfriend to see a show. I agreed and went with them. The show was awful, but they were great company. When we were on our way home, the two boys decided they needed to use the loo. There was no loo anywhere near. I could not believe their dreadful manners when they had the coachman stop the carriage to let them out to use the loo in the wildnerness. The girl and I decided we'd teach them a lesson and asked the coachman to start driving off. We planned on returning to get the boys, after we made them wait it out a bit. What we didn't plan on, was the boys seeing us leaving them and Avery running in front of the horses. And nearly getting trampled.
The carriage came to a bumpy stop, and I immediately jumped out and ran to where Avery lay on the floor. "Oh no! Are you ok!?" I squeeked. Avery began to laugh. "I'm fine." I breathed a sigh of relief and helped him up. "You scared me to death! Why would you run in front of a moving carriage!? Have you lost your mind!?" I lectured. "Princess, I thought the coachman was kidnapping you. It was my duty to protect you," he responded. I looked at him, trying to read him. I wasn't sure if he was joking or if he was being serious. Avery, a knight in shining armor? He started laughing. "I'm just kidding, but you know it's kind of bad manners to ditch your date in the middle of nowhere, especially after they escorted you to a show," Avery said, still giggling. I nudged his arm teasingly and said, "What can I say!? It's part of my charm." I then gave him my trademark smile and climbed in the carriage.
I spent a lot of time with Avery after that date. We would eat lunch together. He would escort me to classes. He would stroll in the gardens with me. He became my best friend and we would laugh and tease each other all the time.
One particular day, Avery had a chess match at the school and I went to support him. After the match ended, we headed outside. The air had an eery feel to it. There was no one in sight. I was confused since my carriage should have been there. I felt a breath on the back of my neck. Avery was by my side and felt it too. He turned to see who, or what was behind us. He grabbed my hand and started running. It caught me off guard. "Avery, why are we running?" I asked. "Princess, do not turn around. Ignore it," he said. I'm not very good at being told what to do, and I turned my head. A dragon. They were rare and few. People hardly saw them in real life, and when they told stories about them, it was commonly believed to be a lie.
I, Brailee, now fully believe everyone's dragon story. It was frightening and traumatizing. I began to run faster. We ran around the corner of the school. We dodged the flames the dragon blew at us. We ran going no where in particular hoping to escape the dragon, but it followed.
Hope came when I saw a stampede of horses in the distance, and knew the knights were on their way. We just had to make it to them. My adrenaline kicked in and I ran faster, but not fast enough. I felt intense heat and could smell something burning. The dragon had spit fire and it caught my hair. "Avery, my hair!" I cried. He pulled his sleeves over his hands and covered my ignited hair, putting out the flame. Then he grabbed my hand and we continued running. I could feel the ground rumbling, and I knew we were going to make it.
Horses started racing by, and I soon felt an arm reach down and scoop me up onto a horse. It was my father, the king. He turned his horse in the opposite direction of the dragon and we headed back to my castle. Another knight followed close behind us, with Avery riding on the back of their horse.
From that moment on, me and Avery shared something special. He was no longer just my best friend. He rescued me from the dragon. He protected me. A knight in shining armor.
Our great relationship was not enough for me to endure another year at that school, however. There were too many terrifying memories, and I transferred to yet another school to study. I made new friends at my new school and Avery became extremely jealous and needy.
He began threatening to take his life, saying he was not good enough for me and didn't want to live. Numerous times, I took on the role of knight in shining armor and saved him from jumping out of windows and jumping off bridges and cliffs. It began to be too much of an effort to even be his friend. And slowly our relationship began to die.
Avery knew it, and he was convinced that the dying of our relationship was due to me being in love with someone else. He threatened the life of the boy he was so convinced I was in love with and then threatened to take his own life. I came to Avery's rescue one last time, to find him kneeling on the floor of his chambers, his arm bloody, creating a pool of blood on the floor under him.
I couldn't take it any longer. This was no Romeo and Juliet love story. Let the dragons eat me. Let me brave or die in a storm alone. Avery had gone too far. And I was not going down with him. I stepped backwards, disgusted at the scene in front of me. I ran out of the room, and as soon as I got to my castle, I told my father and mother. They sent a letter to Avery forbidding him from ever coming near me again and that if he did, he would face severe consequences.
And we lived happily never after.
A storm was brewing and everyone in the school was sent to the corridors for our protection. We had to sit against the walls, with our hands over our heads. I was quite frightened and the boy next to me could tell. "It'll be ok, you're a princess. If the storm hits, you'll be the one they'll protect. Don't worry." I smiled at him. "I'm Brailee," I said and held out my hand. "Avery," he responded and shook it.
The storm raged outside, and for the next hour, we all sat huddled against the wall. Finally, the soldiers that patrolled the corridors gave us the ok to return to class. We all stood up, and that's when I got my first look at Avery. He was very tall. He had blonde hair and big blue eyes. He was pretty average looking. Had he not said anything to me during the storm, I'm not sure I ever would have noticed him. I told him it was a pleasure to meet him and I'd see him around. He smiled, a sweet, shy, innocent smile.
A few days later, I saw Avery at lunch. I walked over to him and asked if I could join him. He made room for me at his table and we began to chat. He told me about his family and his pet dog. He told me how he competed in chess. We had nearly nothing in common, but he was so sweet I wanted to spend more time with him.
Avery invited me to go out with him, his friend, and his friend's girlfriend to see a show. I agreed and went with them. The show was awful, but they were great company. When we were on our way home, the two boys decided they needed to use the loo. There was no loo anywhere near. I could not believe their dreadful manners when they had the coachman stop the carriage to let them out to use the loo in the wildnerness. The girl and I decided we'd teach them a lesson and asked the coachman to start driving off. We planned on returning to get the boys, after we made them wait it out a bit. What we didn't plan on, was the boys seeing us leaving them and Avery running in front of the horses. And nearly getting trampled.
The carriage came to a bumpy stop, and I immediately jumped out and ran to where Avery lay on the floor. "Oh no! Are you ok!?" I squeeked. Avery began to laugh. "I'm fine." I breathed a sigh of relief and helped him up. "You scared me to death! Why would you run in front of a moving carriage!? Have you lost your mind!?" I lectured. "Princess, I thought the coachman was kidnapping you. It was my duty to protect you," he responded. I looked at him, trying to read him. I wasn't sure if he was joking or if he was being serious. Avery, a knight in shining armor? He started laughing. "I'm just kidding, but you know it's kind of bad manners to ditch your date in the middle of nowhere, especially after they escorted you to a show," Avery said, still giggling. I nudged his arm teasingly and said, "What can I say!? It's part of my charm." I then gave him my trademark smile and climbed in the carriage.
I spent a lot of time with Avery after that date. We would eat lunch together. He would escort me to classes. He would stroll in the gardens with me. He became my best friend and we would laugh and tease each other all the time.
One particular day, Avery had a chess match at the school and I went to support him. After the match ended, we headed outside. The air had an eery feel to it. There was no one in sight. I was confused since my carriage should have been there. I felt a breath on the back of my neck. Avery was by my side and felt it too. He turned to see who, or what was behind us. He grabbed my hand and started running. It caught me off guard. "Avery, why are we running?" I asked. "Princess, do not turn around. Ignore it," he said. I'm not very good at being told what to do, and I turned my head. A dragon. They were rare and few. People hardly saw them in real life, and when they told stories about them, it was commonly believed to be a lie.
I, Brailee, now fully believe everyone's dragon story. It was frightening and traumatizing. I began to run faster. We ran around the corner of the school. We dodged the flames the dragon blew at us. We ran going no where in particular hoping to escape the dragon, but it followed.
Hope came when I saw a stampede of horses in the distance, and knew the knights were on their way. We just had to make it to them. My adrenaline kicked in and I ran faster, but not fast enough. I felt intense heat and could smell something burning. The dragon had spit fire and it caught my hair. "Avery, my hair!" I cried. He pulled his sleeves over his hands and covered my ignited hair, putting out the flame. Then he grabbed my hand and we continued running. I could feel the ground rumbling, and I knew we were going to make it.
Horses started racing by, and I soon felt an arm reach down and scoop me up onto a horse. It was my father, the king. He turned his horse in the opposite direction of the dragon and we headed back to my castle. Another knight followed close behind us, with Avery riding on the back of their horse.
From that moment on, me and Avery shared something special. He was no longer just my best friend. He rescued me from the dragon. He protected me. A knight in shining armor.
Our great relationship was not enough for me to endure another year at that school, however. There were too many terrifying memories, and I transferred to yet another school to study. I made new friends at my new school and Avery became extremely jealous and needy.
He began threatening to take his life, saying he was not good enough for me and didn't want to live. Numerous times, I took on the role of knight in shining armor and saved him from jumping out of windows and jumping off bridges and cliffs. It began to be too much of an effort to even be his friend. And slowly our relationship began to die.
Avery knew it, and he was convinced that the dying of our relationship was due to me being in love with someone else. He threatened the life of the boy he was so convinced I was in love with and then threatened to take his own life. I came to Avery's rescue one last time, to find him kneeling on the floor of his chambers, his arm bloody, creating a pool of blood on the floor under him.
I couldn't take it any longer. This was no Romeo and Juliet love story. Let the dragons eat me. Let me brave or die in a storm alone. Avery had gone too far. And I was not going down with him. I stepped backwards, disgusted at the scene in front of me. I ran out of the room, and as soon as I got to my castle, I told my father and mother. They sent a letter to Avery forbidding him from ever coming near me again and that if he did, he would face severe consequences.
And we lived happily never after.
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Chapter Six: Clyde
Once upon a time...
People say "age is just a number." Pffft....I think that's just an excuse. Age definitely matters. I've always been a firm believer in that. Therefore, I won't date a younger man. Isn't my prince charming supposed to be mature, romantic, and manly? When I picture a younger man, he's always immature, skinny, still learning how to count, and always has to have parental guidance.
I never would date a younger man. Well, that was until I met Clyde. Straw was turned into gold in my world after I met Clyde! Clyde was not a boy. Clyde was a man. A younger man. He was dark haired, bright blue eyed, and had tan skin. He had amazing bone structure and muscles. Oh boy did he have muscles. Because I was older and a princess, Clyde worshipped me. More than any boy ever had. At any point I could have told him to bring me the fountain of youth and he would have done it.
Clyde and I began to go out together. We became practically inseperable. He'd come watch me when I would be rehearsing the waltz. I supported him in whatever sport he played that involved him being shirtless. He'd kiss me gently and hold me perfectly. He never got mad at me and always let me do exactly what I wanted. I had to make an appearance at an event for our land and as the speaker was introducing me, a voice from the crowd shouted "Brailee!! CLYDE LOVES YOU!" My face turned as red as a rose. It's unroyal to show emotion at public events, but no amount of effort could hold back the grin that creeped up on my face.
It was no surprise when Clyde asked me to go to the ball held in february. He showed up at my castle accompanied by 12 of his friends, each with a boquet of roses that had a note with a reason why he would be honored if I'd attend the ball with him. Reason number one: "Brailee is the most beautiful girl in all of the lands." Reason number two: "Brailee has showed me a whole new world I didn't see before." Reason number three: "No one else dances as well as Brailee." Reason number four: "No one makes me as happy as Brailee." Reason number five: "Brailee is my wish upon a star." And so on, and so forth. How could I say no!?
I said yes and the search began for the PERFECT ballgown. I had to be the belle of the ball. I traveled far and wide in order to find the perfect dress. And I did! It was bright red, to match the roses he had given me. There was only one strap and it was made of fabric red roses. The bodice came down to about my waist and then it poofed out with a long train. There was an asymettrical cut starting at the waist where perfectly placed at the right hip, was a red fabric rose that matched the ones on the strap. There were so many sparkles on my dress that every time the light hit it, I swear a servant went blind. It was stunning.
The day of the ball came. I curled my long locks and pulled them to one side, so they were flowing down the shoulder the dress' strap was on. My make up was done flawlessly. I donned the dress, slipped on my glass slippers, and as the final touch, put my tiara on the top of my head. Then I waited for Clyde to arrive.
And waited.
And waited.
And waited until hours had passed since the time he told me he would arrive.
Where was he? Had he ran into a witch on his way to pick me up? Had he fallen ill? Something terrible must have happened! Clyde would never have stood me up. A tear fell, but I pulled myself together. I would have to go alone since it was uncommon for the princess not to attend a ball.
I rode in my carriage to the ball and climbed the steep steps, alone, and went inside. It didn't take long before I knew that something bad did in fact happen to Clyde....or at least was going to by the time I was done with him. He was there. At the ball. With another girl. He bent down and kissed her cheek and she giggled and caressed his face. My amazing dress had caught everyone's attention by that point and Clyde and his date turned and looked at me. I didn't even finish making my grand entrance. I turned around and ran out, down the steps, into my carriage, fighting every urge I had to cry.
Rather than setting a dragon loose on Clyde like I had planned, I simply didn't talk to him. He avoided me too.
And we lived happily never after.
People say "age is just a number." Pffft....I think that's just an excuse. Age definitely matters. I've always been a firm believer in that. Therefore, I won't date a younger man. Isn't my prince charming supposed to be mature, romantic, and manly? When I picture a younger man, he's always immature, skinny, still learning how to count, and always has to have parental guidance.
I never would date a younger man. Well, that was until I met Clyde. Straw was turned into gold in my world after I met Clyde! Clyde was not a boy. Clyde was a man. A younger man. He was dark haired, bright blue eyed, and had tan skin. He had amazing bone structure and muscles. Oh boy did he have muscles. Because I was older and a princess, Clyde worshipped me. More than any boy ever had. At any point I could have told him to bring me the fountain of youth and he would have done it.
Clyde and I began to go out together. We became practically inseperable. He'd come watch me when I would be rehearsing the waltz. I supported him in whatever sport he played that involved him being shirtless. He'd kiss me gently and hold me perfectly. He never got mad at me and always let me do exactly what I wanted. I had to make an appearance at an event for our land and as the speaker was introducing me, a voice from the crowd shouted "Brailee!! CLYDE LOVES YOU!" My face turned as red as a rose. It's unroyal to show emotion at public events, but no amount of effort could hold back the grin that creeped up on my face.
It was no surprise when Clyde asked me to go to the ball held in february. He showed up at my castle accompanied by 12 of his friends, each with a boquet of roses that had a note with a reason why he would be honored if I'd attend the ball with him. Reason number one: "Brailee is the most beautiful girl in all of the lands." Reason number two: "Brailee has showed me a whole new world I didn't see before." Reason number three: "No one else dances as well as Brailee." Reason number four: "No one makes me as happy as Brailee." Reason number five: "Brailee is my wish upon a star." And so on, and so forth. How could I say no!?
I said yes and the search began for the PERFECT ballgown. I had to be the belle of the ball. I traveled far and wide in order to find the perfect dress. And I did! It was bright red, to match the roses he had given me. There was only one strap and it was made of fabric red roses. The bodice came down to about my waist and then it poofed out with a long train. There was an asymettrical cut starting at the waist where perfectly placed at the right hip, was a red fabric rose that matched the ones on the strap. There were so many sparkles on my dress that every time the light hit it, I swear a servant went blind. It was stunning.
The day of the ball came. I curled my long locks and pulled them to one side, so they were flowing down the shoulder the dress' strap was on. My make up was done flawlessly. I donned the dress, slipped on my glass slippers, and as the final touch, put my tiara on the top of my head. Then I waited for Clyde to arrive.
And waited.
And waited.
And waited until hours had passed since the time he told me he would arrive.
Where was he? Had he ran into a witch on his way to pick me up? Had he fallen ill? Something terrible must have happened! Clyde would never have stood me up. A tear fell, but I pulled myself together. I would have to go alone since it was uncommon for the princess not to attend a ball.
I rode in my carriage to the ball and climbed the steep steps, alone, and went inside. It didn't take long before I knew that something bad did in fact happen to Clyde....or at least was going to by the time I was done with him. He was there. At the ball. With another girl. He bent down and kissed her cheek and she giggled and caressed his face. My amazing dress had caught everyone's attention by that point and Clyde and his date turned and looked at me. I didn't even finish making my grand entrance. I turned around and ran out, down the steps, into my carriage, fighting every urge I had to cry.
Rather than setting a dragon loose on Clyde like I had planned, I simply didn't talk to him. He avoided me too.
And we lived happily never after.
Monday, December 5, 2011
Chapter Five: Dedrick, Griffin, & Redford
Once upon a time...
I decided I wasn't happy at the school I was studying at, so I began to attend a different one. This school was as different from my previous school as night is to day. It was a very unsafe school, so unsafe that they had soldiers patrolling the corridors. While class was in session, no one was allowed to leave. Not even to use the loo. Fights constantly broke out in the hall. Not trained sword fights or matches that I was used to seeing. These fights were full on bone breaking, body tackling, fist punching, hair ripping brawls. Rather than people being knights in shining armor to save whoever got attacked, everyone would form a circle and cheer for who they thought would win until the soldier would tear the fighters apart. It was practically barbaric.
For school, it was required that everyone take a physical training class. I hated that class more than anything. I'm a princess! I do not sweat, I do not run, and I do not do anything that involves quarrel for sport. I do peaceful activities such as paint, sing, or play croquet. Many times I would fake an injury, but this school was so cruel that I was forced to participate despite being "wounded". One particular class, we were studying the sport of horseshoes. Being my incredible athletic self, I threw the horseshoe...five feet in the wrong direction. And standing exactly five feet in the wrong direction was a girl. And my horseshoe hit that girl. Right in the head.
Everyone in the class stopped their game and stared at me at the sound of her scream. This was the closest to a near death experience that I'd ever had. She was going to kill me. I, princess Brailee was never going to have an heir to the throne, because I threw a horseshoe at a girl's head. I was half dazed at what I had done and half ready to take off in a sprint down the corridor. "I'm so sorry....I really didn't mean to!" I pleaded. She walked up to me, got really close to my face, and said evily, "You'll pay for this." Then turned and walked off.
Note to self: Do not touch any spindles on spinning wheels and do not eat any apples.
I instantly turned into a celebrity overnight at my school. The girl I hit in the head began to follow me in the corridors threatening to beat me up. I would apologize endlessly, but that only fueled her fire. How is this girl relevant to my love story? Because that is how I met Dedrick, Griffin, and Redford.
None of these boys were good friends, but they all took it upon themselves to protect me from this crazy girl who threatened my valuable life. The twist to this story, is none of them knew the others had devoted themselves to my protection, and I didn't realize how devoted each of them were to me, so I went ahead and let them guard me at meals and escort me to classes when they wanted to. Not at the same time, of course, but I almost always had one of them by my side. I became good friends to each of them and cared about each of them for different reasons.
Dedrick was stalky and had brown eyes and light brown curly hair. He was very sweet and liked to have a good time. He liked music and stories like I did, so we had lots to talk about.
Griffin was tall and stalky. He had black hair and ebony skin. He had huge lips, the kind that girls dream of kissing. He was very serious and had a rough upbringing. He was always happy though and always had my best interest in mind.
Redford was tall as well and athletic. He had dark brown hair and a dark skin, but not as dark as Griffin's. He was immature, shallow, and goofy. It was impossible to have a serious conversation with him, but I always had a good time.
Weddings were such a big and exciting event in my land far far away, so when a family member of mine was getting married, it was essential that I attend. This particular wedding I was attending was rather far. It was going to be a journey to get to there, so I was not going to be in the land or at school for quite a period of time in order to attend. The three boys were saddened that I wouldn't be at school. I told them there would be plenty of protecting me when I returned.
The night before I left on my journey, a lady in waiting came in to my chambers and told me a man was there to see me. I was thrilled when I got to the door to see Griffin. I asked him if he'd like to take a stroll in the gardens. He agreed, and we talked about my family a little bit and what the wedding would be like. He apologized for showing up unannounced, he was just going to miss me when I was gone and was hoping to see me one more time. I laughed and told him I wasn't dying and said I needed to finish packing so we headed back to my castle. When we got to the door, I gave him a hug and said I'd see him in a while. He didn't let me out of the hug however and when I started to pull away, he kissed me. With those big luscious lips. I could not wait to tell my sister that big lips does not mean someone is a good kisser. Griffin was a great guy, but despite those dreamy lips, he was definitely not a good kisser. My face felt engulfed and slobbery after, but I forced a smile and bid him goodnight.
I returned to my chamber to continued preparing for my journey when my lady in waiting came in again to tell me I had another visitor. Much to my surprise, the visitor was Dedrick. I greeted him and he asked if I wanted to go on a ride in his carriage. I agreed and we went on a short ride around my castle grounds. He couldn't bear the thought of not seeing me one more time before I left and was so glad I could make time for him. When we returned to my castle, he hopped out of the carriage and held out his hand to assist me. The minute my foot touched the ground, he turned me and kissed me. It was a short, gentle kiss. We smiled at each other after. He raised my hand and kissed it and said, "Farewell, sweet princess."
I walked back in to my castle. I had barely sat down on my bed, when I was interrupted by, yet again, a visitor. I walked to the door and Redford was there. I invited him in and asked what I could do for him. He said he was going to miss seeing the prettiest girl at school and had to take the chance to see her one more time. Unlike the other two guys, he wasted no time with strolls or carriage rides, and leaned in and kissed me. I kissed him back and then pulled away. Then he got up to go, saying he knew I was busy, he just wanted to stop by. I thanked him, told him good night, shut the door and turned to see my father standing in the room.
"Three boys in one night?" He asked, teasingly. "I had no idea they were going to stop by," I said blushing and ran to my chambers as quickly as I could.
I felt a tinge of guilt for somehow leading them all on, but I had far greater things to worry about and got back to preparing for my trip. I'd worry about it when I returned.
Upon my arrival back to school from my journey, it became clear that I didn't have to worry about it. Somehow all three of them found out about each other while I was away, and none of them were pleased about it. Sadly, since the girl at school was no longer trying to take my life in the corridors, it didn't bother me all that much that the three boys didn't talk to me anymore. I went about my business, and they went about theirs.
And we lived happily never after.
I decided I wasn't happy at the school I was studying at, so I began to attend a different one. This school was as different from my previous school as night is to day. It was a very unsafe school, so unsafe that they had soldiers patrolling the corridors. While class was in session, no one was allowed to leave. Not even to use the loo. Fights constantly broke out in the hall. Not trained sword fights or matches that I was used to seeing. These fights were full on bone breaking, body tackling, fist punching, hair ripping brawls. Rather than people being knights in shining armor to save whoever got attacked, everyone would form a circle and cheer for who they thought would win until the soldier would tear the fighters apart. It was practically barbaric.
For school, it was required that everyone take a physical training class. I hated that class more than anything. I'm a princess! I do not sweat, I do not run, and I do not do anything that involves quarrel for sport. I do peaceful activities such as paint, sing, or play croquet. Many times I would fake an injury, but this school was so cruel that I was forced to participate despite being "wounded". One particular class, we were studying the sport of horseshoes. Being my incredible athletic self, I threw the horseshoe...five feet in the wrong direction. And standing exactly five feet in the wrong direction was a girl. And my horseshoe hit that girl. Right in the head.
Everyone in the class stopped their game and stared at me at the sound of her scream. This was the closest to a near death experience that I'd ever had. She was going to kill me. I, princess Brailee was never going to have an heir to the throne, because I threw a horseshoe at a girl's head. I was half dazed at what I had done and half ready to take off in a sprint down the corridor. "I'm so sorry....I really didn't mean to!" I pleaded. She walked up to me, got really close to my face, and said evily, "You'll pay for this." Then turned and walked off.
Note to self: Do not touch any spindles on spinning wheels and do not eat any apples.
I instantly turned into a celebrity overnight at my school. The girl I hit in the head began to follow me in the corridors threatening to beat me up. I would apologize endlessly, but that only fueled her fire. How is this girl relevant to my love story? Because that is how I met Dedrick, Griffin, and Redford.
None of these boys were good friends, but they all took it upon themselves to protect me from this crazy girl who threatened my valuable life. The twist to this story, is none of them knew the others had devoted themselves to my protection, and I didn't realize how devoted each of them were to me, so I went ahead and let them guard me at meals and escort me to classes when they wanted to. Not at the same time, of course, but I almost always had one of them by my side. I became good friends to each of them and cared about each of them for different reasons.
Dedrick was stalky and had brown eyes and light brown curly hair. He was very sweet and liked to have a good time. He liked music and stories like I did, so we had lots to talk about.
Griffin was tall and stalky. He had black hair and ebony skin. He had huge lips, the kind that girls dream of kissing. He was very serious and had a rough upbringing. He was always happy though and always had my best interest in mind.
Redford was tall as well and athletic. He had dark brown hair and a dark skin, but not as dark as Griffin's. He was immature, shallow, and goofy. It was impossible to have a serious conversation with him, but I always had a good time.
Weddings were such a big and exciting event in my land far far away, so when a family member of mine was getting married, it was essential that I attend. This particular wedding I was attending was rather far. It was going to be a journey to get to there, so I was not going to be in the land or at school for quite a period of time in order to attend. The three boys were saddened that I wouldn't be at school. I told them there would be plenty of protecting me when I returned.
The night before I left on my journey, a lady in waiting came in to my chambers and told me a man was there to see me. I was thrilled when I got to the door to see Griffin. I asked him if he'd like to take a stroll in the gardens. He agreed, and we talked about my family a little bit and what the wedding would be like. He apologized for showing up unannounced, he was just going to miss me when I was gone and was hoping to see me one more time. I laughed and told him I wasn't dying and said I needed to finish packing so we headed back to my castle. When we got to the door, I gave him a hug and said I'd see him in a while. He didn't let me out of the hug however and when I started to pull away, he kissed me. With those big luscious lips. I could not wait to tell my sister that big lips does not mean someone is a good kisser. Griffin was a great guy, but despite those dreamy lips, he was definitely not a good kisser. My face felt engulfed and slobbery after, but I forced a smile and bid him goodnight.
I returned to my chamber to continued preparing for my journey when my lady in waiting came in again to tell me I had another visitor. Much to my surprise, the visitor was Dedrick. I greeted him and he asked if I wanted to go on a ride in his carriage. I agreed and we went on a short ride around my castle grounds. He couldn't bear the thought of not seeing me one more time before I left and was so glad I could make time for him. When we returned to my castle, he hopped out of the carriage and held out his hand to assist me. The minute my foot touched the ground, he turned me and kissed me. It was a short, gentle kiss. We smiled at each other after. He raised my hand and kissed it and said, "Farewell, sweet princess."
I walked back in to my castle. I had barely sat down on my bed, when I was interrupted by, yet again, a visitor. I walked to the door and Redford was there. I invited him in and asked what I could do for him. He said he was going to miss seeing the prettiest girl at school and had to take the chance to see her one more time. Unlike the other two guys, he wasted no time with strolls or carriage rides, and leaned in and kissed me. I kissed him back and then pulled away. Then he got up to go, saying he knew I was busy, he just wanted to stop by. I thanked him, told him good night, shut the door and turned to see my father standing in the room.
"Three boys in one night?" He asked, teasingly. "I had no idea they were going to stop by," I said blushing and ran to my chambers as quickly as I could.
I felt a tinge of guilt for somehow leading them all on, but I had far greater things to worry about and got back to preparing for my trip. I'd worry about it when I returned.
Upon my arrival back to school from my journey, it became clear that I didn't have to worry about it. Somehow all three of them found out about each other while I was away, and none of them were pleased about it. Sadly, since the girl at school was no longer trying to take my life in the corridors, it didn't bother me all that much that the three boys didn't talk to me anymore. I went about my business, and they went about theirs.
And we lived happily never after.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Chapter Four: Jude
Once upon a time...
There was this amazingly good looking boy named Jude that I went to school with. He was tall, dark haired, and HANDSOME. Times five. And I loved him.....well I loved looking at him. As did every other girl. He was athletic and won every race, sword fight, and jousting match that he competed in. He was so confident and made girls swoon. When he'd walk the corridors, girls would pretty much pass out if he acknowledged them. He was that great.
Me and my friends would always make plans to get to our classes by taking a route that would pass by Jude. Once we walked by him, we'd say "Oh no I left my ink and pen in my last class, we have to go back and get it!" That way we could turn around and walk by him again and then walk by him a third time on our actual way to class (unless of course we needed to use the loo...that provided us a fourth or fifth time to pass him depending what class we were heading to.) When we walked by, we'd make sure to start laughing and flipping our hair, hoping he'd take notice in how happy and pretty we were.
And one day Jude did notice me. I was the princess of the land so I knew he knew who I was but, this time he noticed me. To the point that he wanted to date me. I'd be crazy to turn him down, so we started dating! It was officially "dating," but I'd hardly call it that. We didn't even talk. Not in a romantic-hidden-love kind of not talking; in an awkward, what-is-there-to-say-to-my-boyfriend-who-I've-never-spoken-to-before-and-who-all-I-know-about-him-is-he's-hot-and-athletic kind of not talking. As far as dates go, we went out a grand total of...drum roll please....once.
A ton of people from school decided to go to a jousting match. This was Jude and I's official first and only date. We did not go together, but once I got to the arena, he sweetly had a spot saved for me. I ditched my friends, who were very understanding, and sat with the most dreamy boy in the land. Jude's friends who were sitting with us were a little bit immature. They came up with the genius idea (no sarcasm...it was GENIUS!) and decided that any time someone fell off a horse in the jousting matches, that Jude and I had to exchange a kiss.
THANK YOU JUDE'S FRIENDS!!!! :) I had no objections to this plan. And I definitely got a kiss. Or two....or five...or whatever! Who's counting!?
After the match, we went to a girl from school's manor with all those who attended the jousting match. Jude's friends thought they'd help us out again when everyone was socializing with each other in a room. They cleared out the room, except for me and Jude, and shut the door saying we might need some alone time. And alone time we got. However, not in the way they were implying.
Jude and I sat on opposite ends of the couch. And awkwardly fiddled our thumbs. "So...uh...the weather's been nice," I'd say. "Yeah," he'd respond. Silence. Awkward moment of staring at the ceiling. Then he'd say something like, "That match was pretty intense." I agreed. More silence. Awkward moment staring at the wall. Finally, crushing all my hopes and dreams of having him as my arm candy and making all the girls jealous, I said what I knew we were both thinking. "Um this isn't really working out is it?" I asked. He laughed, "No, not really." For the first time we made eye contact. "Friends?" I held out my hand for a handshake. "Friends," he smiled and shook it. We decided not to say anything about what happened in the room and let his friends' immature imaginations run wild.
We opened the door to the room, stepped out and....
We lived happily never after.
There was this amazingly good looking boy named Jude that I went to school with. He was tall, dark haired, and HANDSOME. Times five. And I loved him.....well I loved looking at him. As did every other girl. He was athletic and won every race, sword fight, and jousting match that he competed in. He was so confident and made girls swoon. When he'd walk the corridors, girls would pretty much pass out if he acknowledged them. He was that great.
Me and my friends would always make plans to get to our classes by taking a route that would pass by Jude. Once we walked by him, we'd say "Oh no I left my ink and pen in my last class, we have to go back and get it!" That way we could turn around and walk by him again and then walk by him a third time on our actual way to class (unless of course we needed to use the loo...that provided us a fourth or fifth time to pass him depending what class we were heading to.) When we walked by, we'd make sure to start laughing and flipping our hair, hoping he'd take notice in how happy and pretty we were.
And one day Jude did notice me. I was the princess of the land so I knew he knew who I was but, this time he noticed me. To the point that he wanted to date me. I'd be crazy to turn him down, so we started dating! It was officially "dating," but I'd hardly call it that. We didn't even talk. Not in a romantic-hidden-love kind of not talking; in an awkward, what-is-there-to-say-to-my-boyfriend-who-I've-never-spoken-to-before-and-who-all-I-know-about-him-is-he's-hot-and-athletic kind of not talking. As far as dates go, we went out a grand total of...drum roll please....once.
A ton of people from school decided to go to a jousting match. This was Jude and I's official first and only date. We did not go together, but once I got to the arena, he sweetly had a spot saved for me. I ditched my friends, who were very understanding, and sat with the most dreamy boy in the land. Jude's friends who were sitting with us were a little bit immature. They came up with the genius idea (no sarcasm...it was GENIUS!) and decided that any time someone fell off a horse in the jousting matches, that Jude and I had to exchange a kiss.
THANK YOU JUDE'S FRIENDS!!!! :) I had no objections to this plan. And I definitely got a kiss. Or two....or five...or whatever! Who's counting!?
After the match, we went to a girl from school's manor with all those who attended the jousting match. Jude's friends thought they'd help us out again when everyone was socializing with each other in a room. They cleared out the room, except for me and Jude, and shut the door saying we might need some alone time. And alone time we got. However, not in the way they were implying.
Jude and I sat on opposite ends of the couch. And awkwardly fiddled our thumbs. "So...uh...the weather's been nice," I'd say. "Yeah," he'd respond. Silence. Awkward moment of staring at the ceiling. Then he'd say something like, "That match was pretty intense." I agreed. More silence. Awkward moment staring at the wall. Finally, crushing all my hopes and dreams of having him as my arm candy and making all the girls jealous, I said what I knew we were both thinking. "Um this isn't really working out is it?" I asked. He laughed, "No, not really." For the first time we made eye contact. "Friends?" I held out my hand for a handshake. "Friends," he smiled and shook it. We decided not to say anything about what happened in the room and let his friends' immature imaginations run wild.
We opened the door to the room, stepped out and....
We lived happily never after.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Chapter Three: Angus
Once upon a time...
I was traveling to a far away land for a festival. My royal family and I were accompanied by hundreds of carriages belonging to the people in my land. It was a long, yet joyous journey. We traveled by day and would camp at night and eat food and sing music and dance.
During one of the dances I was paired up with a green eyed, brown haired, tan, muscular boy. He had a goofy smile. When he held out his hand for me to dance, I noticed that his hands were rough and calloused. "You don't have two left feet do you?" He teased after noticing my hesitation. "I'm a princess, of course not!" I responded. Much to my surprise, this boy was a fantastic dancer. He was delightful and we laughed and danced until the music ended. He bowed, I courtsied, and we changed partners. I realized I hadn't even asked the green eyed boy's name.
The following morning, everyone heading to the festival arose bright and early and we went on our way. We rode a couple of miles when we reached a river. The only bridge that we could use to cross it, was being guarded by a troll. He wanted far more money to cross the bridge than the people in our company could afford. The only other option was to cross through the river. As in walking. In our clothes. Through the river. Absolutely not. I sat on a rock and refused to move until someone paid the troll so we could cross on the dry bridge.
By the time most of the carriages and people had crossed the river, my parents were getting impatient with me. "Brailee, we need to be on our way. You're holding up the entire company," my father said. "Then pay the troll! I am NOT GETTING WET!" I snapped. "Sweetie, you'll dry quickly. And the water barely reaches your knees. You won't be completely wet," my mother reassured. Being my stubborn self, I still refused. My parents lost their patience and told me they were leaving me behind. I crossed my arm and turned my head, nose pointed in the air. They sighed and began to cross the river. I heard a voice say, "I'll carry you across." I looked up to see the green eyed boy. I raised an eyebrow and said, "No." He laughed and bent down to face me. "I'm assuming no one's paid the troll in a long time to cross the bridge, he's probably been too poor to buy food. You may not make it through the night if he decides he's hungry." He grinned to show he was teasing me, however I instantly knew my safety would be in danger if I stayed on the rock. "Fine. But only if you swear I won't get wet," I said. He smiled, "Not even a drop of water will touch you."
I wrapped my arms around his neck, he scooped me in his arms as if I were as light as a feather, and carried me across the river. When he set me down on the other side, I thanked him and asked his name. "Angus," he replied.
The rest of the day I talked with this boy named Angus. He was much more mature than any boy I'd been friends with before, but he had a funny side too. I invited him to ride with me in my carriage, and the rest of the day we sang silly songs and played chess. By the time nightfall came, I decided I kind of liked him; goofy smile and all.
On the following day of our journey, I wasn't feeling well. The last thing I remember was the sun beating down through the carriage window. Everything began to blur and go black. I felt myself lose all strength and soon completely lost consciousness. Every few hours I'd see blurry images of people around me, then blackness. When I started to come to, I could feel a wet rag around my neck. Someone was forcing ice into my mouth. And another person was holding me in a sitting position. When I regained full consciousness, I recognized my ladies in waiting, my sister, and Angus. Together they nursed me back to health and explained that I had been dehydrated.
Angus' kindness really touched me. I know I'm a princess, and that I had outgrown my relatively awkward stage, but it was more common for a boy to take notice of me than to spend hours helping me. After that, during dinner we would sit together, he rode in my carriage with me every day, and when we reached the festival, we spent most of the time together. He made me laugh and we would sing silly songs and he let me win every argument and game we played.
Our relationship changed however when we got back to our home far far away. We didn't go to the same school. We rarely got to see each other. The time we did spend together was wonderful though! We never had a fight and always left each other so happy. We weren't on the same page about the seriousness of our relationship however, and I was totally shocked when Angus presented me with a promise ring. I took the ring knowing that it meant I'd be devoted to him, but I knew that that wasn't how I felt. Sure, he was a knight in shining armor on our way to the festival, and he was charming, but was he my prince? In my heart, I knew he wasn't.
After much thought, and sleepless nights, I knew what I had to do. I had a carriage take me to him. He was surprised to see me and looked very grim when I told him we needed to talk. I took the promise ring out of my pocket and handed it to him. "So that's that?" he asked. "I'm sorry," I responded.
And we lived happily never after.
I was traveling to a far away land for a festival. My royal family and I were accompanied by hundreds of carriages belonging to the people in my land. It was a long, yet joyous journey. We traveled by day and would camp at night and eat food and sing music and dance.
During one of the dances I was paired up with a green eyed, brown haired, tan, muscular boy. He had a goofy smile. When he held out his hand for me to dance, I noticed that his hands were rough and calloused. "You don't have two left feet do you?" He teased after noticing my hesitation. "I'm a princess, of course not!" I responded. Much to my surprise, this boy was a fantastic dancer. He was delightful and we laughed and danced until the music ended. He bowed, I courtsied, and we changed partners. I realized I hadn't even asked the green eyed boy's name.
The following morning, everyone heading to the festival arose bright and early and we went on our way. We rode a couple of miles when we reached a river. The only bridge that we could use to cross it, was being guarded by a troll. He wanted far more money to cross the bridge than the people in our company could afford. The only other option was to cross through the river. As in walking. In our clothes. Through the river. Absolutely not. I sat on a rock and refused to move until someone paid the troll so we could cross on the dry bridge.
By the time most of the carriages and people had crossed the river, my parents were getting impatient with me. "Brailee, we need to be on our way. You're holding up the entire company," my father said. "Then pay the troll! I am NOT GETTING WET!" I snapped. "Sweetie, you'll dry quickly. And the water barely reaches your knees. You won't be completely wet," my mother reassured. Being my stubborn self, I still refused. My parents lost their patience and told me they were leaving me behind. I crossed my arm and turned my head, nose pointed in the air. They sighed and began to cross the river. I heard a voice say, "I'll carry you across." I looked up to see the green eyed boy. I raised an eyebrow and said, "No." He laughed and bent down to face me. "I'm assuming no one's paid the troll in a long time to cross the bridge, he's probably been too poor to buy food. You may not make it through the night if he decides he's hungry." He grinned to show he was teasing me, however I instantly knew my safety would be in danger if I stayed on the rock. "Fine. But only if you swear I won't get wet," I said. He smiled, "Not even a drop of water will touch you."
I wrapped my arms around his neck, he scooped me in his arms as if I were as light as a feather, and carried me across the river. When he set me down on the other side, I thanked him and asked his name. "Angus," he replied.
The rest of the day I talked with this boy named Angus. He was much more mature than any boy I'd been friends with before, but he had a funny side too. I invited him to ride with me in my carriage, and the rest of the day we sang silly songs and played chess. By the time nightfall came, I decided I kind of liked him; goofy smile and all.
On the following day of our journey, I wasn't feeling well. The last thing I remember was the sun beating down through the carriage window. Everything began to blur and go black. I felt myself lose all strength and soon completely lost consciousness. Every few hours I'd see blurry images of people around me, then blackness. When I started to come to, I could feel a wet rag around my neck. Someone was forcing ice into my mouth. And another person was holding me in a sitting position. When I regained full consciousness, I recognized my ladies in waiting, my sister, and Angus. Together they nursed me back to health and explained that I had been dehydrated.
Angus' kindness really touched me. I know I'm a princess, and that I had outgrown my relatively awkward stage, but it was more common for a boy to take notice of me than to spend hours helping me. After that, during dinner we would sit together, he rode in my carriage with me every day, and when we reached the festival, we spent most of the time together. He made me laugh and we would sing silly songs and he let me win every argument and game we played.
Our relationship changed however when we got back to our home far far away. We didn't go to the same school. We rarely got to see each other. The time we did spend together was wonderful though! We never had a fight and always left each other so happy. We weren't on the same page about the seriousness of our relationship however, and I was totally shocked when Angus presented me with a promise ring. I took the ring knowing that it meant I'd be devoted to him, but I knew that that wasn't how I felt. Sure, he was a knight in shining armor on our way to the festival, and he was charming, but was he my prince? In my heart, I knew he wasn't.
After much thought, and sleepless nights, I knew what I had to do. I had a carriage take me to him. He was surprised to see me and looked very grim when I told him we needed to talk. I took the promise ring out of my pocket and handed it to him. "So that's that?" he asked. "I'm sorry," I responded.
And we lived happily never after.
Chapter Two: Cortez
Once upon a time...
My far away land was hosting a sword fighting match consisting of a competition between our land and other far away lands. I attended, accompanied by my best girl friends. We were far more interested in how good looking the boys from the other lands were, than the actual sword fights taking place. One of my friends spotted a very handsome boy and wanted to talk to him, but didn't have the courage to approach him. She asked me to go for her.
I agreed of course and waltzed up to him like the princess I was. He was indeed handsome. His stature was tall and built, he had light brown shaggy hair that grazed his eyebrows, and big hazel eyes. The connection was instant. He seemed as swept away by me as I was by him, and we soon became lost in conversation. His name was Cortez and he was a prince from another land that bordered my land. "So what are you doing here?" I asked. When I realized how rude that came off, I quickly tried to correct myself. "I mean, what brings you here?" He hadn't taken it offensive. "In my land, I'm training to be a sword fighter. My trainers suggest to watch others fight to pick up tips on how to be better," he explained. "Your trainers are wise," I responded. We chatted a little while longer, and finally I told him I needed to get back to my friends. When I stood to head back to my seat, he took my hand. "May I see you again, Princess Brailee?" He asked. I smiled and nodded.
As I headed back to sit, I remembered why I had approached Cortez and instantly felt guilty. When I sat in my seat, my friend looked at me anxiously. "Well, what did he say!?" She questioned. I told her everything, but left out the detail of him wanting to see me again. I think she knew however. "Hm, well I'm not sure he's my type. There's another boy here who is super dreamy though that I want to meet! We should talk to him after the match!" An emense amount of relief rushed over me and I quickly agreed to accompany her after the match.
Prince Cortez did see me again. And again. And again. And again for the next few months. He became a common face to all the people in my land. He was as prince-like as they come; spoiled with all sorts of riches, entitled, and bossy. He was sweet, charming, and thoughtful when he wanted to be. And he was very popular with the ladies. Including the ones I went to school with. History decided to repeat itself, and like with Cedric, I soon found myself losing my prince to a girl I went to school with.
Cortez and this girl, named Katerina, had no problem flaunting their relationship in front of me. Any chance he got to speak to me, he would and he would make sure I knew exactly how amazing she was. "You'll never believe what an amazing girl Katerina is!" "Katerina is so perfect in every way." "I went out with Katerina, and she tells the most amazing stories." Each time he'd mention her, I kept poised.
Inside it crushed me. It was a battle of maturity not to break a bone on his perfectly shaped face. No matter what, I refused to let Cortez know what I was feeling. Not a tear fell and my voice never raised in anger. I'd smile and congratulate him. "I'm so glad you're happy!" I'd say, and then I'd change the subject or make an excuse to leave.
It didn't even take weeks before he realized how un-amazing this girl was and how absolutely perfect I was. He wanted me to forgive him and let him court me again. I shrugged it off and told him I didn't want a prince who chose to date peasants. I soon found myself flooded with all sorts of gifts from prince Cortez. Exotic flowers, candies, and pretty soon, Cortez himself. It wasn't until he was on his knees (literally) begging for me that I took him back.
He did what he could to prove his devotion to me, doing anything it took to make me happy. He would accompany me to dinners and balls. He became a best friend in addition to a prince charming. He wiped away my tears, held me when I needed to be, and nurtured me when I was ill. He tightly held my hand when I was scared and never left my side. He bravely killed the spiders that found their way into my chambers. When people insulted me, he came to my defense. My happiness and safety was his top priority.
After one banquet, it had been snowing heavily and on the way back to my castle, my carriage became stuck in the snow. The coachman was going to go get help, but I stopped him. "The castle can't be even a mile from here. You, Cortez, and I will just all walk there together," I insisted. The castle ended up being further than I thought and in the freezing cold snow, I lost my glass slipper. As soon as I noticed it was gone, Cortez didn't pause for a minute. He picked me up and carried me the rest of the way. When we got to the castle he rubbed my hands and feet to warm them up and sat with me while my ladies in waiting heated water and began to soak my frozen feet. He held me in his arms and didn't leave until he was sure I was going to be okay.
After that I was completely head over heels. He rescued me. This had to be my prince charming!
And my prince charming he remained for the next few months. Until the day I received a letter. A letter with Cortez's family crest stamped on the envelope. I was bewildered as to why he sent a letter rather than coming to my castle like he usually did when he had something to tell me. Slowly and carefully I opened the envelope and pulled out the letter. The further I read, the more blurred the words became. Then the tears began to fall and the ink on the paper began to smudge. It was indeed a letter from Cortez.
He wrote:
"My Darling Princess Brailee,
I want you to know that these months I've spent with you have been some of the best of my life. I've traveled the world and know that there are no girls that come close to being as radiant and wonderful as you are. I adore you, my princess. It's been brought to my attention recently that my youth is fleeting. There is a whole world out there that I long to explore and enjoy. One that I need to take every advantage of. I want to live my life as much as I can before I have to take on the responsibility of king. It seems impossible to continue our relationship and have the life I want right now. I hope you know that my feelings for you have not changed, but I no longer can continue to see you....." I tore up the letter without finishing it.
I didn't need to finish it. What I had read already stated: And they lived happily never after.
My far away land was hosting a sword fighting match consisting of a competition between our land and other far away lands. I attended, accompanied by my best girl friends. We were far more interested in how good looking the boys from the other lands were, than the actual sword fights taking place. One of my friends spotted a very handsome boy and wanted to talk to him, but didn't have the courage to approach him. She asked me to go for her.
I agreed of course and waltzed up to him like the princess I was. He was indeed handsome. His stature was tall and built, he had light brown shaggy hair that grazed his eyebrows, and big hazel eyes. The connection was instant. He seemed as swept away by me as I was by him, and we soon became lost in conversation. His name was Cortez and he was a prince from another land that bordered my land. "So what are you doing here?" I asked. When I realized how rude that came off, I quickly tried to correct myself. "I mean, what brings you here?" He hadn't taken it offensive. "In my land, I'm training to be a sword fighter. My trainers suggest to watch others fight to pick up tips on how to be better," he explained. "Your trainers are wise," I responded. We chatted a little while longer, and finally I told him I needed to get back to my friends. When I stood to head back to my seat, he took my hand. "May I see you again, Princess Brailee?" He asked. I smiled and nodded.
As I headed back to sit, I remembered why I had approached Cortez and instantly felt guilty. When I sat in my seat, my friend looked at me anxiously. "Well, what did he say!?" She questioned. I told her everything, but left out the detail of him wanting to see me again. I think she knew however. "Hm, well I'm not sure he's my type. There's another boy here who is super dreamy though that I want to meet! We should talk to him after the match!" An emense amount of relief rushed over me and I quickly agreed to accompany her after the match.
Prince Cortez did see me again. And again. And again. And again for the next few months. He became a common face to all the people in my land. He was as prince-like as they come; spoiled with all sorts of riches, entitled, and bossy. He was sweet, charming, and thoughtful when he wanted to be. And he was very popular with the ladies. Including the ones I went to school with. History decided to repeat itself, and like with Cedric, I soon found myself losing my prince to a girl I went to school with.
Cortez and this girl, named Katerina, had no problem flaunting their relationship in front of me. Any chance he got to speak to me, he would and he would make sure I knew exactly how amazing she was. "You'll never believe what an amazing girl Katerina is!" "Katerina is so perfect in every way." "I went out with Katerina, and she tells the most amazing stories." Each time he'd mention her, I kept poised.
Inside it crushed me. It was a battle of maturity not to break a bone on his perfectly shaped face. No matter what, I refused to let Cortez know what I was feeling. Not a tear fell and my voice never raised in anger. I'd smile and congratulate him. "I'm so glad you're happy!" I'd say, and then I'd change the subject or make an excuse to leave.
It didn't even take weeks before he realized how un-amazing this girl was and how absolutely perfect I was. He wanted me to forgive him and let him court me again. I shrugged it off and told him I didn't want a prince who chose to date peasants. I soon found myself flooded with all sorts of gifts from prince Cortez. Exotic flowers, candies, and pretty soon, Cortez himself. It wasn't until he was on his knees (literally) begging for me that I took him back.
He did what he could to prove his devotion to me, doing anything it took to make me happy. He would accompany me to dinners and balls. He became a best friend in addition to a prince charming. He wiped away my tears, held me when I needed to be, and nurtured me when I was ill. He tightly held my hand when I was scared and never left my side. He bravely killed the spiders that found their way into my chambers. When people insulted me, he came to my defense. My happiness and safety was his top priority.
After one banquet, it had been snowing heavily and on the way back to my castle, my carriage became stuck in the snow. The coachman was going to go get help, but I stopped him. "The castle can't be even a mile from here. You, Cortez, and I will just all walk there together," I insisted. The castle ended up being further than I thought and in the freezing cold snow, I lost my glass slipper. As soon as I noticed it was gone, Cortez didn't pause for a minute. He picked me up and carried me the rest of the way. When we got to the castle he rubbed my hands and feet to warm them up and sat with me while my ladies in waiting heated water and began to soak my frozen feet. He held me in his arms and didn't leave until he was sure I was going to be okay.
After that I was completely head over heels. He rescued me. This had to be my prince charming!
And my prince charming he remained for the next few months. Until the day I received a letter. A letter with Cortez's family crest stamped on the envelope. I was bewildered as to why he sent a letter rather than coming to my castle like he usually did when he had something to tell me. Slowly and carefully I opened the envelope and pulled out the letter. The further I read, the more blurred the words became. Then the tears began to fall and the ink on the paper began to smudge. It was indeed a letter from Cortez.
He wrote:
"My Darling Princess Brailee,
I want you to know that these months I've spent with you have been some of the best of my life. I've traveled the world and know that there are no girls that come close to being as radiant and wonderful as you are. I adore you, my princess. It's been brought to my attention recently that my youth is fleeting. There is a whole world out there that I long to explore and enjoy. One that I need to take every advantage of. I want to live my life as much as I can before I have to take on the responsibility of king. It seems impossible to continue our relationship and have the life I want right now. I hope you know that my feelings for you have not changed, but I no longer can continue to see you....." I tore up the letter without finishing it.
I didn't need to finish it. What I had read already stated: And they lived happily never after.
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