Riches to Royalty

As the morning sun rises again, I knew the usual routine was going to start as soon as I changed my clothes. It was the same thing every morning. I would wake up, get dress, watch the morning performance of Eric and Clara with Heath, groom the horses, go to the market to find some food, watch the evening performance of Eric and Clara with Heath again, eat dinner, sleep. Running away was pretty much the most boring thing I'd ever done. 

As I forced my eyes to open, I wondered if my parents missed me. Would they try to guess the reason why I ran away with Heath? Did they think that I no longer love them? 

So many thoughts of my parents were running through my head, that I hadn't even realize the three faces that were looking down at me. "Oh my god." I choked on my saliva and coughed for awhile before I sat up and looked at the three of them. Heath was holding a birthday cake, looking bored as usual. Clara looked at me with a wide grin on her face, behind her was Eric smiling. My shock expression was soon replaced with a confused expression as I observed the trio's expression turned to confussion too. 

"I knew she would forget her birthday again." Heath spoke up, making the rest of us stared at home. All of a sudden, it clicked. 

It was my birthday. 

And I've forgotten about it. 

Just like every year. 

I gave them a sheepish look before thanking them. I gave each of them a hug and reserved a tight bear hug for Heath last. "Thank you, Heath!" 

"Get off, you're gonna ruined the cake." He pushed me off him and showed me the cake. It was an oreo cheese cake. 

"Where are the candles?" 

"That's for later tonight, Heath is going to bring you around Riverton, show you the nice spots." Clara grinned and skipped out of the room. Eric was probably going to get ready for his performance soon so he didn't stick around any longer. It was just Heath and I then. 

"Dress up, we're going somewhere." Heath ordered and that's when I realized he was wearing a blue checkered shirt and a pair of jeans. With a bored look, he pointed to the bathroom then at the dress that was lay out on my bed. A white dress. 

I shuffled myself into the bathroom with the dress in my hands, and swiftly shut the door behind me. Since it was my birthday, did it meant that I could skip all my chores for the day? The thought brought a smile to my face, plus according to Clara, Heath was going to show the nice places in Riverton. It was definitely going to be an eventful day! 

I slipped on the dress and surprised to find it fitting me. The length of the dress stopped right above my knee and the strap wasn't loose. I quickly brushed my teeth and combed my hair straight. Once I was happy, I got out of the bathroom and smiled at Heath. He didn't respond much besides grumbling and complaining on how his shirt was too colorful while we decended down the stairs. 

Secretly, I thought that the shirt really suited him, it matched his newly dyed hair. He grumbled at the bottom of the stairs and I realized I was stopped at the top of the stairs and was staring down at him. 

"If you don't want to go, we could just cancel it." I considered it. No, knowing Heath, he would've prepared lots of things for it. And if I just said no, it might hurt him even if he wouldn't show it. I bit my lip and shook my head violently. 

"No, let's go. I want to go." I quickly said and hurried down the stairs before he could change his mind. He rolled his eyes as we walked out of the building. The bright sunshine met my gaze and I squinted to see everything. It wasn't extremely burning hot, but just enough sunlight that Heath and I might enjoy...wherever we're going. 

"Remember when we're kids and we used to go to a meadow?" 

Oh how I could I ever forget?

It was another bright sunny day at the meadow right next to the palace. Heath and I lay down under a tree, Heath was reading a book while I sang. As usual, Heath wore his dark clothes while I wore a white color dress that floats up every time I twirl and sing. 

"Heath, there's a butterfly!" I reached up to touch the yellow and black bug in front of me but Heath swatted my hand away. 

"That's a bee, you idiot. Are you blind?!" He glared at me and rolled his eyes. I narrowed my eyes at him and looked away before tears could appear in my eyes. I only said that so Heath could maybe play with me. Why wouldn't he just drop the book so we could run around and chase each other or maybe even count the clouds that pass?