A Love Unnoticed

Chapter Two

Valeria crosses her arms, waiting for an explanation. Everyone stays silent.

"This has to be a joke." She says, turning to Darius who was smirking like an idiot (according to Valeria).

"I feel rather hurt, Valeria, that this is how you greet me after I haven't seen you in a while." Darius says. "And the lack of respect towards the crown prince at that...it's honestly unbelievable." He pretends to be hurt by Valeria's comment.

Valeria scoffs. "You lack all the necessities to be the crown prince."

"Sister." Diana subtly warns with a smile on her face.

Edmund chuckles nervously. "Well, isn't this funny? This is a funny way to meet each other? How funny! Yes...very funny..."

Everyone turns their heads towards Edmund. Darius looks at Edmund, shaking his head as a sign that he should just shut the fuck up before he makes the situation worse. Both Diana and Edmund have been aware of Valeria's dislike towards the crown prince.

They have been this way ever since childhood. Edmund and Darius have been best friends since they were young, and because they were older than Valeria, the boys would hang out more often than Edmund would with Valeria. Valeria didn't mind it so much until Darius started being an ass about it. Since then, they haven't got along.

Edmund clears his throat. "Valeria, let's head back to the garden. I want to show you the, uh, plants that I have...planted."

"I would quite like to hear what the little lady means by the 'necessities' I lack to be the crown prince." Darius says.

"Shall we go on a walk, your highness?" Diana asks, butting in. "The weather is very--"

"You're a disappointment to your bloodline." Valeria cuts in. "And you are just as dense as you are incompetent."

Silence fills the air. Darius chuckles. "If we are talking about bloodlines, yours would be a great topic of conversation because it is about to be the biggest failure in history ever since that man married your mother." He turns to Diana. "No offense to you, though, Diana. You're wonderful."

Before Valeria could say anything else, Edmund interrupts. "I have added new books in my library, Valeria." He says. "I would love to show you if you could follow me." He holds his arm out.

Valeria glares at Darius for just a split second longer before she takes Edmunds arm. She turns around, seeing Darius waving goodbye at them with that stupid smile.

Valeria frowns, flipping him off. She turns back around and once she does, Darius flips her off as well. Diana notices this and decides that it was best to stay silent.

"I cannot stand him, Edmund." Valeria says once they are out of earshot. They start walking down the hall. "The more I look at him, the more I want to just chop off that pretty head of his."

Edmund stays silent as they continue walking. Valeria hoped that she hadn't gone too far with the 'chopping off the head'. Instead, she would just say that she would brutally murder him. That seemed more fitting.

She would torture him at first slowly, making those soft-looking lips on that bastard of a good-looking face rip out a long scream of pain.

Darius, sadly, was a very attractive man. Jet black hair, blue eyes, and his gaze as cold as ice, but warm as fire. It was a bit intimidating, but Valeria doesn't let him get under her skin, crown prince or not. Valeria snapped back to reality, wondering why she was planning a murder on the crown prince.

"Darius is a...difficult man sometimes but please don't let him bother you, Val." Edmund starts.

"No. Do not do that, make me try to like him. It is already bad enough that he is going to be the next ruler of the kingdom."