Season 3 Young Royals (Version 1)

21. Interview

Wilhelm was glad to be heading back to Hillerska. He definitely felt more at home there than in the home he'd just been visiting, where he had to do ridiculous things like make televised statements about his sex life at just sixteen years old. He wasn't sure when the interview would air, or even if it would, although it should. It occurred to him that he'd rather be with Simon when it aired if possible, so he decided to message to see if he was home.

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The interview itself had gone...fine, he thought. Miss Rosenqvist had evidently been given the same script he had however, so when he didn't follow it, she seemed somewhat confused but she had enough experience that she was able to keep the interview on track and adapt her follow-up questions. Wilhelm would have felt guilty to make her look bad, but it had worked out.

He held his breath momentarily and let it out slowly once the cameras were off and an assistant to the camera crew came over and unclipped his microphone. He said goodbye to Miss Rosenqvist and thanked her, shaking her hand again. She leaned in, holding his hand with both of hers and quietly wished him good luck and told him to "keep your head up. You're doing a good job", which he really hadn't expected. It wasn't often that people chose to address him as a sixteen year old who might need to be encouraged, do when it happened, he appreciated it. It helped bolster him for what was coming next.

He smiled and thanked her again, then headed around the corner back into the antechamber adjoining the sitting room where the interview had taken place, and he immediately saw his mother and her assistants having an animated conversation off to the side.

Wilhelm noticed the hair stylist was still very slowly packing his supplies, or pretending to, and as he looked up at Wilhelm he smiled widely. Wilhelm smiled back and approached the hoard of assistants around his mother.

Jan Olof was the first to notice him enter. He looked practically enraged.

"With all due respect, Kronprinsen, if we can't depend on you to follow a simple, scripted statement, this isn't going to work." Jan Olof wasn't shouting but his mannerisms and the disgust in his expression betrayed that he absolutely wanted to scream in Wilhelm's face. Wilhelm simply nodded. He thought to himself: If I ever do become king, and Jan Olof is still alive at that point, my coronation will be the last moment he works for the Royal Court. He waited for some comment from his mother, holding his tongue.

"Wilhelm, I don't want to speak to you right now. I thought I could count on you, but you're obviously not interested in fulfilling your duties as Crown Prince. I'll speak to you later and let you know what's been decided."

"What? I said I was done lying. None of those answers were true, but ok..." Wilhelm unexpectedly felt genuinely concerned at that. Would they really consider using August as his backup? He hadn't fully considered the implications, but it couldn't be good.

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Rosenqvist: "Have you given much thought to a family in the future, Kronprinsen?"

Wilhelm: "Probably about as much as any other sixteen year old boy. I'd like to have my own family when I'm older. I don't know when yet."

R: "How do you imagine your family?"

W: "Ehh, happy, I hope. (He gave a modest smile) Apart from that, it's not really important to me."

R: "I think many Swedish people are wondering if you imagine marrying a man or a woman."

W: "Well, at the moment, I can only see myself with one person....and honestly, I hope it stays that way."

R: "If you stay with him, what is your plan for having an heir to the throne?"

W: "I think there are lots of different options, such as surrogates or adoption, but it still seems really strange to think about it already."

R: "Do you think that the Swedish people would support either of those options for your family?"

W: "I hope they would. It would be the first time for a Royal Family to do either of those things, but things change, and they should."

R: "What would you say to those that wouldn't support you using either a surrogate or adoption, or even being in a relationship with another man?"

W: "I would say...that it's my life and I should be allowed to live it in a way that makes me happy, as long as I'm not hurting anyone else, and I don't think I am."

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Simon: "I'm home now. How was it?"

Wilhelm: "I think it was fine but my mother and the Royal Court aren't happy with me. Do you mind if I come over and if they play it tonight, we can watch together?" It wasn't that he liked to watch himself on TV. He was however, sort of proud that he stood his ground for the second time. He also thought it would be a good idea to let Simon know that they might actually be serious about using August as a backup because of it.