The Royal Rivalry

chapter six

That night, when I reach the palace, I immediately collapse on my bed, too tired to remove my makeup.

                      *****************

I wake up the next morning, feeling devoid of energy. 

I hear a knock on my door, and I instantly jump. I scramble to flix my hair and put on fresh clothes. I don't forget to tuck a small dagger in my dress, concealing it from any prying eyes.
Better safe than sorry.

I open my door, praying that I look half-decent.

"Prince Noah requests you to come to the strengthening area," says the guard standing outside.

Then he quickly walks away. "Ugh," I groan.

Yes. The palace has a gym room.

And yes, they have the audacity to call it the 'strengthening area' instead of a 'gym'.

I walk down the palace's corridors to the gym.

It's early morning.
What could Noah possibly want?

I push open the doors to the room.
I take a step inside, and find the prince doing crunches on the carpet. He stops when he sees me.

"Would you mind holding my knees while I exercise?" he says, the slightest smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth.

Without replying, I go and sit near his feet. I hold his knees as he does a few crunches.

Then, he suddenly says, "It sure is hot in here, don't you think?"

And then, the future heir to the throne of the Elyxian empire takes off his shirt.

"Y-Your Highness?" I feel my cheeks on fire as I cover my eyes with my palm.
His perfectly-toned abs-

Agh, no- Focus, Valerie!

"Your ears are red," Noah notes.

"And you are shirtless! What's the meaning of this-!"
"Shut your mouth. My knees aren't going to hold themselves."
"Unfortunately enough." 
"I'm not done doing crunches yet!"

I remove my hand from my eyes, and grip Noah's knees tightly. I honestly just want to get this over with.

Noah clears his throat. "The stunt you pulled yesterday was rather commendable," he says.

I look away. Does he mean kissing Alex-

"It takes a lot of confidence to stand up for yourself in front of a hundred conflicting opinions," he goes on, "You really taught that bastard and Duchess Lucia a well-deserved lesson."

"Teaching him and his mother a lesson wasn't really on the agenda. In truth, I couldn't bare watching my reputation tarnish," I say, avoiding Noah's steady gaze.

"Did that man really-", Noah says, his voice displaying a tinge of unnatural concern. His perfect face turns serious.
I scoff, "Since when did you start caring about me? Anyways, yes, he really did do that. And I really did punch that bitch's face."

"Remind me to never mess with you," Noah says, laughing.
"Too late," I reply.

Prince Noah goes silent.

He suddenly gets up, and because I'm still holding his knees, there is barely an inch between our faces.
He looks directly into my eyes, and my heart pounds against my chest.
I can feel butterflies in my stomach.

'Curse mortal feelings! Get a grip on yourself, Valerie!' I think to myself.

The prince gently tucks a strand of hair behind my ear.
I find myself breathless as I gaze at him; his blonde hair, sea blue eyes and beautifully structured face make him look more attractive than ever.

I know this is wrong. All of this is wrong.

But then again, what isn't  wrong in my life anymore?

Noah leans in closer. Is he going to-

No.

I shove him away hard. He looks disappointed, but not surprised.

"I'm sorry-" he says, looking down.

"For what?"

"For treating you like that."

"Don't you think it's a tad bit too late to apologize?" I say.

Noah doesn't reply to that. He continues staring at the floor.

I laugh bitterly, "You shoved me off a fucking waterfall."

"I jumped in and saved you after everyone left."

What??

Oh- I remember being pushed into the bone-chilling water, and then going unconscious after Noah and his friend's laughter ceased.

Could it really be-

"You made me bow down and touch your feet in front of all your friends." I say, defiant.
"Zephyr nocked an arrow that flew above your head after you bowed," Noah says.

"What? Zephyr was going to-" I exclaim, flabbergasted.

"Kill you. He would've killed if you hadn't bowed down and ducked just within time."

"But what about making me do all those petty and disgusting tasks-" I question.

"That was to make sure my comrades didn't believe I was going to lose my control over you," Noah goes on, " Valerie, you may think being a prince of the imperial family is easy, and in many ways it is, but my life is not all fun and games."

"So mine is? I'm not your toy, Noah"- I didn't add how he already has plenty of human toys, "You can't mess with my life because you're so unsure of your own. You have everything you could possibly wish for. Everything is at your little fingertips. What isn't  perfect about your life?" 

Noah looks at me a little sadly, "One day, you'll know."

"Know what?" I ask.

Prince Noah gets up, buttons his white shirt, and goes to the door.

He turns back for a moment to glance at me. "You'll know why nothing is truly perfect."

And saying that, he leaves.

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