Royalty

Chapter 2: Reunion

Julie awoke with a start, wondering where she was. Her vision slowly cleared but her head still throbbed.

"Where am I?" Julie asked. The silence was deafening and left her pondering. A dark figure came out of the shadows, smirking at Julie.

"You are not what I expected." A voice murmured - It was Luca.

"What do you want with me? Taking me hostage was a dumb idea." Julie spat at him.

"You're cute when you're mad", he replied softly, chuckling. "But don't worry, I only need you for research and educational purposes." He replied and winked as he walked back into the shadows, "We'll keep in touch."

She couldn't feel any form of Earth. Nothing. They were smart to not even have a single piece of dirt nearby. If she was Charlie, she would have been able to control the guards and eventually, gain freedom. If she was Aria she could electrocute the guards and somehow escape with her martial arts skills.

If she was Atticus, she could easily freeze her chains and escape. But she was just herself, she wasn't as skilled as the others, and because of her stupidity, she got captured. She started to think of the team again. Of Atticus. His skills were off the charts, more so his good looks and his personality was one that could not easily be forgotten. Save me Atticus, She thought once more before trying to focus on objects that could potentially be made of Earth.

Saroon

'Was Charlie fine?' These were the words that had been repeating in Aria's head for the past few hours. Charlie had always been a good friend of hers and she didn't want their friendship to end. They were forced to travel to Saroon, another planet close to New Vaticus. Atticus seemed to be worried sick about Julie.

Charlie was currently in a hospital and Atticus was losing his mind outside. He kept saying something about 'going back', even though that idea was ridiculous. They didn't know what happened to Charlie and Julie so their best bet was to wait until Charlie woke up. And that seemed like forever.

"Your Majesty, Prince Charlie is awake." A nurse told Aria as she walked back towards the ward. Aria was not going to wait any longer. She rushed towards his ward, shoving multiple nurses on the way but to her surprise, another lady was sitting next to Charlie, holding his hand. She had long black hair and a kind face.

"Ah, I finally meet you." The lady said while standing up. "I'm Hayley, Queen of Saroon. Charlie's best friend." She continued as she shook Aria's hand.

Aria was in shock. Why would the Queen of this City randomly be so interested in Charlie?

"Nice to meet you too...?" Aria said, still confused about the situation. For a second, they both stood there awkwardly but Aria decided to break the silence. She walked towards Charlie and sat next to him, before asking him who the lady was.

"Hayley? She's a friend." He replied, "She's here to help us out. She found a prophecy that has something to do with us."

Or a foe. Aria thought. It was weird seeing Charlie stare at her like that, probably admiring her. Affection was not a good look on him.

"You all are allowed to stay here for as long as you need to." Hayley said, approaching the pair, "As long as Charlie needs."

"Thanks but we really need to get goi-" Aria tried to say but was interrupted by Charlie. "We'd love to. You could even show us a quick tour around!"

"Sure, but can you stand?" Hayley giggled as she helped Charlie get on his toes. "Well, I can walk." He replied and grinned at her before the two walked out, leaving Aria alone.

"Tough life being a third wheel." A nurse whispered to Aria as she started to clean up the room.

She felt a sudden urge to slap the nurse but she decided to be the bigger person. Instead, she gave the nurse a death stare.

Independent woman. She kept telling herself before she turned on her heels and stormed out.

...

"So where are we?" Charlie asked Hayley as they walked on the sidewalk. It was a beautiful sight, you could see the main river flowing through the heart of the city and the bustling market.

"We're in my favourite part of the city." Hayley chuckled as she sat down on a bench. "I've missed you so much, Charlie."

Charlie knew that he missed her too but didn't want to say it. He met Hayley long before Aria and they were best friends. They would have never-ending days of fun and would pull pranks on innocent people in the city.

It always seemed like they were meant to be together but Charlie was told to move to another school. At first, Hayley agreed with coming but soon realized that she would be much happier in Saroon. Their friendship was precious and Charlie didn't want it to go to waste.

Charlie sat down next to Hayley, "I've missed you too", he said shyly. She grinned widely at her childhood best friend. She could tell he missed her too after all these years apart. They talked for hours about what's been happening in their lives, eating and laughing together. It was soon starting to get dark.

"I should go." Charlie said as he stood up, "Thanks for meeting me again."

"No problem," Hayley replied while standing up. They traded a look but then, Hayley took Charlie's hand and slowly leaned forward. She brushedher lips against Charlie's.

Her lips tasted like strawberries dipped in chocolate. They were so close he could smell her perfume, like lavender on a summer day. He kissed her back and held her closer. Before, letting go, and letting the kiss come to an end.

"What was that?" Charlie asked, finally taking his lips off of hers. He's never kissed anyone ever in his life. He was still in shock, and did not know what to do.

"....It was goodbye." She let go of his hand, and with a sad smile on her face, she walked away.

This was probably the last time Charlie would see Hayley for a while. He wished that she was able to come with him, but he knew the cost that would come with her leaving Saroon. For now; this was goodbye.

As he walked back towards the Nutcracker, he felt a wave of nostalgia hit him. The streets were oddly different than when he was here years ago, everyone seemed so miserable. He could stay in Saroon, but he didn't want to abandon Aria and the rest, they would need him in the future. And after all Aria had done for him, he couldn't abandon her now.