As I stuff my clothes back into my luggage I hear a familiar—quite loud—voice chime in from the doorway. It’s Garret, flanked by Bryant and Val. I can only sigh upon seeing them.
“Good morning, beautif—ugh,” he stops short, just like he always does when I look like crap. “Oh, honey it’s a good thing we’re coming to America with you.”
My eyeballs almost pop out of their sockets. “What?”
Val jumps up and down. “We’re coming to America with you! Well, we’re only staying for a few days to clean out your closet, stock up your hair supplies and give you some makeup kits but still!”
And I thought going home meant relaxation? I’m so stupid.
I finally zip the bag and ask, “What do you mean by ‘clean out my closet’?”
Garret beams. “Oh, you know… getting rid of those hideous t-shirts you have there,” he motions towards the luggage and I make a face.
“I only wear them when I’m lazy,” I offer as an excuse.
Like I predict, he doesn’t take that as an answer. “Well you’re going to have to learn to not be lazy,” he nods as if he’s satisfied with this conversation, and leaves with a huff. Bryant and Val are in hot pursuit.
I fold Ben’s sweater last and tuck it in the suitcase on the very top. Then, I take my alone time to check Twitter. I hit one million followers. In a matter of days. How? This is insanity.
@HRHPrincessAnna: I HAVE ONE MILLION FOLLOWERS?! #excitement
Then, there’s Facebook. I have about twenty new messages and posts on my wall. I answer back and then skip to Tumblr. My number of followers has grown exponentially. I have close to five-hundred thousand followers. I wonder how they found me, and then I remember the link to my blog on my Twitter page.
Also, my press advisor thinks I should add videos to my YouTube account (I only use it to comment on videos) so that I can vlog. I’m not that interested, but I promised I would try my best.
Instagram is the same. More followers by the minute. I sigh and flop back onto my bed.
The past two days were absolute hell. Appearances, meetings and even a session of parliament have left me (and Ben and Victor) exhausted and out of energy. The two interviews we did left our brains scrambled and our photo shoot for our engagement photos left our faces frozen in fake smiles... But, there’s one last thing I need to do before I can leave on my flight today.
Visit my parents… as in… their graves. Oh. Yeah. Forgot about that.
Even just hearing it made me cringe. I can’t even say the word out loud. I’m in no mood to talk. We'll be going to the estate they're buried on. Winterfall Castle is up in the hills of central Chirnova. It was their favorite castle, mom told me yesterday. That's why they're buried there, along with a few other ancestors of mine, like the ancient Empress of Lithuania.
Garret, feeling merciful today, lets me wear my own black Uggs, black leggings and a purple peacoat—no jewelry to fuss with.
Ben comes and gets me and we walk out silently to the caravan awaiting us. It’s going to be a long car ride yet again. It’s mostly filled with silence. But, I’m getting quite used to it. Our relationship is good enough to the point where most of the time we don't even have to make conversation during these rides.
Upon entering the gates, the crowds and paparazzi disappear. We go deeper and deeper into the place. The sight of the massive castle stuns me. Then, the sight of the two massive memorials in the back yard (if by yard you mean 5 acres of property) makes me nervous. If mom hadn’t encouraged this, I wouldn’t even be here right now.
YOU ARE READING
Suddenly Princess
Teen FictionAnnaMaria Romanoff grows up with an adoptive family, thinking that her biological parents were working class citizens of the country of Chirnova, who died tragically in a car crash when she was just a year old. It's her senior year in high school no...
