Breaking the Ice

Chapter 3: His love.

Now.

"Elias, I'm telling you! This is for the better of our kingdom, and the princess is perfect. A Royal, true blood!" The Kings voice, William, spoke as he walked with his son.

"But what if I want to marry someone who doesn't have to be Royal? I want to marry someone I love, not for an arrangement." Elias spoke. In the 4 years that went by, Elias grew taller and stronger, still looking as handsome as ever. He became more mature, but was definitely a ladies man. Quite charming and flirty, but also being serious and stern. Although he would flirt sometimes and attract the attention from all the girls, it seemed like he was cold hearted a lot of the time. But he did have a soft spot for one particular girl that has been on his mind for years. His heart belonged to his one and only.

As if on que, Renee was walking down the hall to the corner, looking down at her hands as she fiddled with the gloves she tried to put on. She huffed in frustration, before she collided with Elias himself. She gasped softly, stumbling back as she closed her eyes for impact. That was until she felt his hand grab hers, leaning back before her eyes opened. Her breath hitched, nervously standing up. "Y-Your highnesses..!" She would say while she bowed to them. Although she considered Elias a friend, and he considered her one too, she still showed much respect to them and his family. She never called him 'Elias' without the 'Prince" in front of it, no matter how many times he told her otherwise.

"Oh, Renee." He would say, a warm smile coming onto his face. They hadn't seen each other in a few months, since he was away with his father for future king duties. The two secretly craved to be with each other when they were apart, and months gone was agonizing, even if they only saw each other passing by. The king looked at the two, not saying a word.

"Sorry-" The two said at the same time, not meaning too. "Sorry, you go first-" They would say again, Elias not being able to help but laugh. She smiled, looking down and trying to hold back her laugh. Little things like this made her day 100% better, just to get a slight feeling of bliss and butterflies.

"When you're done meet me in the lounge." His father said to him, before he walked off and left the two there. Renee cleared her throat, a little embarrassed by what happened. "Y-You go first." She would say, not wanting another mix up. "Well I was going to say it was nice to see you." He would say to her, becoming happier by the second. "I'm very happy to see you too-!"

She was cut off by a women's voice, Ms Hiddle, who still worked there, waiting at the end of the hall. "Renee! You're supposed to be in the ballroom right now!" She demanded at her.

"I-I'm sorry, I have to go.." She would say to him sadly, turning before he grabbed her hand. "Wait-" He gently pulled her towards him, looking down at her. "Meet me in the garden at 7." He whispered softly, causing her cheeks to turn a soft pink. She gave a small shy nod, before heading off.

He would sigh softly to himself as she walked away, in love with her beauty. But then again he was in love with everything else about her. After a moment he walked down the hall, taking a moment and looking around to see if anything had changed while he was gone. He looked over at the newly placed roses on one of the tables, until he noticed something.

His eyebrows furrowed in confusion, looking shocked as he picked out a rose, covered in ice. He was dumbfounded, it was only early February and hadn't snowed in a few weeks. It didn't seem like it was melting anytime soon either, taking it out of the vase and putting it in his room. After that he went to his father, knowing he would have to continue to conversation he was dreading.

Elias walked to the lounge, sighing softly before walking in and seeing him near the fireplace. The king, William, sat down on a large seat that was made perfectly for him, Elias sitting down on the sofa after shutting the large doors. He knew it would be serious, and they needed privacy.

"Explain to me again why I must marry into royalty?" Elias spoke first, looking at his father whose gaze was towards the fire.

"The king and queen of Tapitor have proposed a deal, an alliance between us. If we agree, they offer their daughter to marry you. It's for our kingdom. They will be arriving later tonight" His father responded.

"You're kidding me right?!" Elias spoke, his brows furrowing as he stood up. "Son, you are set to become king in 2 months! You need a queen to rule by you. Their daughter is a Royal."

"Just because you had an arranged marriage with mother and it turned out fine doesn't mean that mine will!" Elias' voice boomed, anger filling him. "I don't understand the issue with this Elias, she is the one you are going to marry and start a family with, the one to rule with. Is there someone in the picture that I'm not aware of?" William questioned, standing up with a bit of anger on his face.

Elias tensed slightly, his gaze away from his father. He was silent. He was afraid what his father might do if he admitted that there was someone, he didn't want his father going out of his way to find out Renee was the one he loved. "Exactly. It's settled. You need to be ready by 7." And with that the king walked out of the room, the doors open.

Elias knew he needed to do something about this, following his father out a few minutes later.

As 7 pm was coming by Elias was nervous, in his room as he got ready to see his supposed 'future queen', but he hated this. He fixed the cuffs of his shirt while in his room, looking into the mirror before going to the window. He sighed softly, movement in the garden catching his eyes.

It was 2 minutes to 7, and Renee was quietly walking through the garden. She waited for him, wondering if he remembered to come see her like he had asked. The garden was there little spot, the two going there to just talk and laugh as they pleased.

His heart soared at the sight of her, remembering what he asked of her. He dashed out the room, stumbling a bit as he turned a corner and ran down the stairs. He slowed down once he reached the garden doors, clearing his throat before he opened the doors and walked out.

Renee was admiring some roses, catching his eyes as he walked over. She heard footsteps, turning so she faced him. Her icy blue eyes looked up at his beautiful brown eyes, her head bowing as she spoke. "Your highness," She would say, Elias shaking his head before tilting her chin up gently. "How long will you call me that, hmm?" He would ask while smiling, a small smile creeping on her face. "For as long as I'm here, Your highness." She would say, saying the last part just to tease him a bit as she giggled softly.

God he loved that sound, it was truly music to his ears, loving her voice so much. "Sit, I guess you could say I need someone to talk to." He would say, gesturing to the bench. Renee never minded him coming to her, just letting him talk and talk. "Is everything ok?" She would ask, sitting next to him. "I'm set to marry the princess of Tapitor." He sighed, looking down at his lap.

The speaking of the kingdom she was once from, where all her happy and the worst memories she ever had was made her tense, but it also broke her heart. She was in love with him, she knew that they would probably never in her eyes be together, but she held on a little hope.

She put on a small smile, wanting to be happy for him. "That's wonderful, why are you saddened by it?" She would ask, a little concern in her voice.

"I don't want to get married to some princess, who is most likely a prick." He responded, standing up and kicking a rock.

"I'm sure she won't be that bad, the kingdom of Tapitor is..lovely.."

"How would you know?" He questioned, her standing up. She hesitated, wondering if she should tell him.

"I was born there."

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