Devoted Nobility

Chapter 61

Sophia

We were led through many winding hallways, most of which I was unfamiliar with. There were paintings painted directly on the walls and doors that blended in with the paneling, only recognizable by its outline.

After a few minutes, I began to recognize the area we were in again. I had no idea what the point of our detour was, but I was glad to see the large stone doors of the grand ballroom. My flowing train was tucked under my skirt quickly and Alexander and I were positioned by eager servants. We stood tall, my hand in his.

I was slightly annoyed at the amount of distance between us, but I hid it. The large stone doors soon crept open. They were being pulled by guards on the inside, but the effect made me excited. When the crack between the doors became large enough, I began making out the scene awaiting us. Tables were on either side of an enormous wooden floor, most likely for dancing.

More flowers hung from the surfaces of every object. Guests weren’t at their seats. Instead, they were standing on the edge of the floor in the center, shoving others to get to the front. As soon as the doors were completely opened, cheers erupted once more. Flower petals cascaded from the hands of our guests to us. Our pace wasn’t at all slow, but I was still impatient.

I pulled Alexander forward to bring us to the center of the excitement. When we reached the center, silence suddenly filled the room. It was shortly followed by music from an orchestra in the corner of the room that I hadn’t even noticed. Alexander turned to me.

“May I have this dance?”

“Of course.” I smiled.

He put his hand out and I took it. We then began an elegant dance around the large dance floor. It reminded me of Elizabeth’s birthday party. We danced similarly and all eyes were on us just as they are now. I twinge of pain hits me as I think of Elizabeth, but I push it to the very back of me.

For once in my life, I want to hide from who I am. I have always worried and thought of the negatives of every situation. Today, I want to be the person I envy. I want to not care and not become upset over little things like I always do. For once, I want to be careless and reckless and happy.

That became my goal as the reception went on. I had fun and spoke with all of the guests with the proper level of respect while managing to make them all laugh. I spent a large amount of the party dancing with Alexander. Being so close to him made everything so much better.

As the sun went down, a surprise was awaiting Alexander, our guests, and I. We were all brought outside to the back lawn. Before we had time to ask what it was about, fireworks lit up above us. The dark sky was full of light and color.

I snuggled into Alexander’s body to hide from the chill in the air and set my eyes above me. Focusing on the fireworks was hard when the stars were out. They show brightly through the foggy sky, piercing my concentration. How could I focus on fireworks when there is a whole world of wonder above them?