The Blind Prince

Chapter 11

Amir's Pov

~~One Month Later, Sindria~~

"Amir you can't just keep avoiding me!" Aladdin shouts at me as I leave him. I clench my fists in anger, in anger at myself. I know I shouldn't be avoiding him, but I can't help it. He wants answers that I'm afraid to give.

"Oh Amir, will you lend me a hand again today?" Ja'far says as he notices me. I groan softly before nodding.

"Alright," I say softly, following him to my father's office. Right now, my father is in the Kou Empire, so Ja'far has his hands full with all his work. I usually help him in any way I can when Father isn't around. For the rest of the day and late into the night I help Ja'far.

"Okay, I think that's enough for today," Ja'far sighs, slumping in his chair. I also sigh in relief, leaning back with my eyes closed. Well at least when I'm working I'm not thinking about Aladdin. "Amir, is something going on between you and Aladdin?" Ja'far asks after a few minutes of silence. I frown deeply. Of course, he brings Aladdin up.

"No, why?" I mumble.

"You haven't been hanging out like you were in Balbadd. Did you get into a fight?"

"No," I shake my head, standing up. "I'm going to bed. I'm exhausted from training and all this work."

"Alright," Ja'far says softly. I quickly leave before he can question me again. I sigh deeply to myself on my way back to my room. What am I going to do? I want him to know, but I've never talked about it to anyone. I didn't even tell Yam about that day. I go to open my door when someone grabs my shoulders, turning me around and pushing me into the door. I gasp in shock, staring wide eyed at Aladdin. I was thinking so hard I didn't even notice him.

"Amir," He glares at me, before sighing. "Stop avoiding me, please," He whispers brokenly. I immediately feel guilty. This whole time I've been hurting him, and all I could think about was myself. I look down in shame.

"I-I'm sorry," I whisper, my voice breaking. "I-I just don't know how to talk about it," I finally admit.

"You can take all the time you need to tell me," Aladdin slowly lets me go. "But I hate how you've been ignoring me." He turns to leave after that. I quickly grab his wrist in panic.

"Wait!" I blush faintly, staring at his bright rukh. "I-I'll tell you... but you'll have to bear with me." I faintly notice him nodding as I gently pull him into my room. I walk to my bed before collapsing onto it. After a few moments I feel the bed dip as he sits. "I've never talked about this before," I whisper softly.

"Are you sure you want to?"

"Y-Yeah. If anyone is going to find out, then I want it to be you," I start to blush again. I sit up quickly, coughing awkwardly. "Ask me anything... I'll answer the best I can."

"Well... how did you end up blind? When you were hurt in Balbadd, you were saying how everything was so dark and you couldn't see." I stiffen at his question. Of course, he's going to start off with that one.

"I-I..." I choke on my words as I remember that day. "I failed someone," I finally manage to say. I jerk in surprise when he gently takes my hand in his.

"It's okay," He smiles softly at me. "Just let it out." I nod shakily, holding his hand tightly. "Now what do you mean? How did you fail someone?" I take a deep breath to calm myself before speaking again.

"I couldn't save him. I watched him die." Tears quickly fill my eyes and cover my cheeks. "W-We were playing on the beach during Mahrajan and another sea monster attacked. A southern creature." I start to cry harder as I remember his broken body and all the blood. Aladdin acts quickly. He pulls me into his arms, holding me close to him. "H-He was my best friend! He was like a little brother to me and I couldn't save him!" I cry into his chest. "I-I tried to stop the monster, to get him out of there, but I couldn't!" I cry out. I try to calm myself before continuing. "I honestly don't remember much after I saw he was d-dead. I remember that I attacked it but that's it. When I woke up I couldn't see anything but small specks of light," I hug Aladdin tighter as I finish, feeling like a weight was lifted from me. Aladdin doesn't speak for a long minute. He just continues to hold me and to comfort me.