Young Royals: What...now?

Rules.

She continued, "Did you know that Erik had a girlfriend?"

Simon's mouth gaped with shock, "What?"

"Yeah, they'd been dating for 5 years before he passed. She's a good girl from a good family. All the pedigree they could have asked for. And even that hadn't been made public knowledge. Five years, Simon. Five years."

He took a sip of his drink to hide his befuddlement. Erik had had a long-term girlfriend? "Was she at the funeral?"

"Yeah, she was on the first row with her parents. You know Filip, the 2nd year? It was his sister. She went to school here, too. They chose to go to the same university and everything."

Simon was struggling to process this new-found information. He had just assumed that Erik had never dated, and that the media hype of their relationship was the norm. Apparently, it was not.

"But that girl, she knew the ropes, right? I mean, she was born into this messed-up world. I have no interest in knowing the ropes. I have no need to shake up the status quo. I just want my boyfriend back."

His heart did a somersault upon uttering the word boyfriend. Wilhelm and he had never called each other boyfriends before, but it just felt right.

He could see from the smile on Felice's face that his word choice had caught her nicely off-guard as well.

"Aw, I love you guys, Simme. But, I hate to break it to you. Unless you guys leave the country, move to the U.S. or Canada or something, this is how it's always going to be. There is a system in place, and it doesn't bend to individual whims and fancies. If you want to date him and see what comes, fine, but you will need to do so in the shadows, if you will. There's no place for public displays of affection within the realm of the Crown until you get engaged, really. And even then, it's limited to holding hands or a peck on the cheek. If you want to be with him, like for long-term, you guys can go through the official channels of the Royal Family. Wilhelm will know how to do that. I'm not saying you have to marry the guy, but it would allow you some additional protections. That's what Ana had, Erik's girlfriend. The media knew not to mess with her or her family, but they still had to not expose themselves too much, like, as a couple. They wouldn't be snuggling on the couch over there drinking their cappuccinos, for example. School was fine, but that was it. There's only so many media outlets the Royal Family can exercise control over."

Simon took another sip, hoping that the caffeine would help these revelations sink in. What a nightmare. He felt like the living embodiment of Romeo and Juliet, star-crossed lovers and all that craziness. He was in so over his head, he could barely see the shoreline.

Simon put his forehead on the table. "Argh, what am I going to do?" he groaned as he covered the back of his head with his hands in frustration.

Felice didn't answer right away.

"Talk to him," she replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

"What?" he questioned, startled. What could he possibly say to Wilhelm? Wilhelm had done nothing to make amends. He had denied Simon and his identity all in two sentences to the press. And in the past two months he hadn't taken one step to improve the situation.

"You guys are obviously head over heels for one another. I've known Wille since we were two. Let's get real, he's not the most socially adept guy. He's shy, he doesn't make friends easily, he has kind of a quirky personality when you do get to know him. But with you, he comes out of his shell, you know? He just feels like the best version of himself when he's with you."

Simon gave her a half-hearted, embarrassed smile. "But still, I just don't think I can let this whole thing go. It's common knowledge in the gay world that dating a closeted guy is the easiest recipe to heartache."

Felice gave him a pointed look. "Well then, I guess in some ways you're in luck. Remember? He was outed, so he's not closeted anymore, at least in the private sphere. But, if you're looking for a public proclamation, you're not going to get that for years. It's no one's business who he dates or what his sexual identity is, especially the press, until he's at least 18. That's a line in the sand the Royal Family etched decades ago. That's why they took the denial route last semester. They always deny, no matter if it's a straight relationship, gay relationship, factual or not. They deny. It wasn't special, what they did with Wilhelm. The only thing that was really surprising was that Wille didn't predict it. He should know how these things roll."

Simon inhaled deeply, shaking his head. "Ok, Felice, Expert on All Things Royal. Let's say I do want to date him, see how things go, what would you say the rules are? I just don't want to talk to him and get his hopes up, you know? And I'm absolutely not up for a security clearance."

Felice gave him a cheeky smile. "Ok, for starters, I would talk to the director about putting a gag order on students about taking or publishing photos of you two together. That woman is the essence of decorum. From what I've heard, she did it with Erik and Ana, without ever using the words Erik or Ana. With her on that, plus some not-so-friendly reminders from yours truly, you guys could date pretty openly on campus. But, that comes with a cost. I can basically guarantee that Annette will ban you from the boy's residence area after that. He could still come to your house, but you'd have to sneak to get into his dorm room. I mean, realistically, it's not that hard, but still. If you don't like sneaking..."

Simon chewed on his bottom lip. "I mean, I guess I'm fine with that. What else?"

Felice continued on, "Otherwise, you couldn't go out together, unless it was pre-approved by the Castle's media department so that they could put the word on the journalists. But seriously, how often do we leave campus anyways? Once every two or three months? Erik and Ana never used it once that I ever heard. In university, they went to Cancún during winter break one time, but they had a small security detail that kept a distance, and no one ever recognized them. That's the thing, outside of Sweden, Wilhelm's not really that recognized, so anything international is basically up for grabs. Just not Bjarstad Doner."

The tension faded as laughter escaped from Simon's lips. "Realistically, it's not that good anyway..."

Felice gave a wry smile. "Better than when the Forest Ridge chef tries to make kebabs. I'm telling you, he uses mayonnaise in the sauce."

Simon let out a full guffaw, "I know! How do you even mess that up that bad?"

"Right?!"

As Simon walk home, a sense of relief flooded through his body. This wasn't just a hopeless venture that was doomed to end in heartache. Maybe they actually had a chance after all, and he wouldn't have to stay completely in the shadows like Wilhelm had made it sound.

As he strode home, he texted Wilhelm.

Simon: We need to talk.