Love Fiction

Chapter 1

            Tranquility hung deep in the air. I sat against a tree, enjoying the sight of the sunlight being reflected against the river’s running stream. From high branches, birds sang sweet melodies while on the ground, occasional mice scurried by. Every time I felt an ant crawl up against my calf, I brushed it away with a bit of annoyance. Nonetheless, I relished the whole peaceful scene…

            I heard a sudden rustle of leaves from up above. Then I realized that the rustling came from a nearby tree. By the time I looked up, the birds’ singing had stopped, and flocks of birds could be seen flapping away from the area where I was residing. Immediately getting up from my resting spot and grabbing my gear, I questioned, “What’s happening-“

            But I was cut off by the harsh galloping of a horse when I was snatched up by my lord. He held a firm grip on my back and had his arm under my knees, as if he were carrying a maiden. I looked up into his face, which had an upset expression. “Damn, they found us,” he cursed. His golden hair dripped with sweat while his piercing blue eyes simultaneously inspected every bit of me and kept his eyes on the path; he had hurried over to me, and he was worried for me. How disgraceful on my part.

            I looked down, biting my lip. “My lord, it is I who should be taking care of you. Please, if this shall ever come to pass again, leave me to defend while you escape. I am only a servant whose honor has been stained by this event.”

            “Very well, servant. Lift your head and receive these two orders.” I did so, ready for his demands, but I was taken aback by his gentle smile. “Number one: forgive yourself for this mistake. The reason is because you are alive. If you are unable to forgive yourself for this reason, then forgive yourself because I, your lord, am alive. Ready for number two?”

            Stunned, I nodded.

            He lightly touched my head, smoothing down my hair. I flinched at his touch. “Number two: stay with me until I say so. Even if you would rather for me to escape in a dire situation, I will not. I will stay by your side, and if the situation calls for it, we will run away together, just like today. In your mind, I may just be your lord, but I will do whatever it takes to make you see that I see you much more than some servant.” And with that, Prince Arion smiled gently and steadied his horse.

            “…Clara. Hey, Clara.”

            I squeaked loudly, which drew everyone’s eyes to me. Once I realized that I had caught all of the people in the cafe’s attention, my face grew red as I hid behind my book. Hiro sighed, reaching over and flicking my forehead.

            “Ow!” I said, rubbing where he flicked me.

            “You were making weird faces again and blushing pink. Also, you kept on giggling to yourself like some weird pervert. Are you sure that romance novel isn’t erotic?” he teased, smirking.

            “Sh-shut up, Hiro! I-it isn’t!” I protested, looking around and trying to defend myself. Some people were starting to give me questionable looks again. “A-anyway, what do you want?”

            Hiro gave me a sour look, as if I just intentionally splashed my iced tea on his shirt. “What do you mean, ‘what do I want?’ I invite you to hang out and stuff. And when we sit down to eat lunch, my treat, you pull out a book and go into bookworm mode. I’ve been sitting here for the past fifteen minutes having a conversation with you, but I bet you didn’t even know that, huh?”

            I stayed engrossed in where I had left off in the novel. I can’t believe Talia is still so dense to the prince’s feelings! You would have to be a complete idiot not to have noticed them after those beautiful lines.