King | j.b

XX

"I also saw Harry today," she said hesitantly. Justin's smile slowly faded. He slightly backed away and Ariana had quickly regretted her statement. He looked out towards his lands and sighed.

"I just wanted to thank you for, you know, not killing him," Ariana said, hoping Justin's mood would change. He looked at her with sincerity.

"When I saw the look on your face, I didn't have the guts to do it," he admitted. He moved his body closer to her's and tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear. He felt her cold cheek and looked at her pink nose. Ariana shivered. Justin slowly slipped off his fur coat.

"It's cold out here," he said as he came behind her and wrapped his large coat around her tiny body. "Let's go inside."

He lead her inside to his warm, toasty room and shut the balcony doors behind him. Ariana was immediately filled with warmth. She took a seat on his comfortable bed and delicately took off his warm coat.

Justin sat next to her and looked at her with admiration. Ariana looked back at him with flattery.

"I also wanted to say one more thing," she said slowly. Justin chuckled.

"You are just full of things to say aren't you?" he laughed with a playful smile. Ariana giggled.

"Yes I am." She put her hand on his large one. Justin looked at her hand and back at her.

"You are so beautiful," he said in a low voice. He impatiently crashed his lips against her's. Ariana's heart leapt with excitement. How she missed that feeling.

Justin pushed her back onto the bed and kissed on her neck. Ariana let out a breath as the butterflies in her stomach were uncontrollable. He eagerly pulled her shirt up over her head and threw it to the side. He did the same with his. Ariana felt his perfect abs on her bare stomach and traced them with her hands.

The king kissed down her stomach, as Ariana fumbled with his expensive pants. Justin roughly connected his lips with her's once again, his body moving with her's. They parted for just a moment to catch their breath. And that's when those words slipped out.

"I love you Justin," Ariana whispered.

The king froze. He stopped whatever he was doing and Ariana quietly whimpered. He brought his hands up from her pants and set them on each side of her head.

"You- you love me?" Justin asked shakily all of a sudden. Ariana's eyes furrowed and the butterflies started to die out. She looked at him as if she was expecting him to feel the same way.

"Yes," Ariana said. "I- I do." Ariana searched Justin's eyes for anything that would indicate he felt the same. She realized her hands were still on his chest and she could feel his heart beat speed up. She withdrew her hands from his soft skin.

Justin sighed and rolled onto his back next to Ariana. What was the matter? Ariana thought. Was she not good enough for him? The king stared at the ceiling in pure silence. Ariana flipped to her side and looked at him helplessly.

She felt broken. Completely broken. The only thing that made her happy in this castle was him. Only him. She didn't know why she was feeling this way or how it came to be. But whatever she was feeling was true.

She felt like she had been stabbed in the chest. Rejected. An awful feeling formed in the pit of her stomach. A feeling she could not escape. The king sighed once more and opened his mouth to speak.

"Love is a strong word Ariana," he breathed. Ariana just stared at him in disbelief. "You don't love me. It's just a phase. Do you even know what love feels like?" He turned to Ariana for an answer but she just stared blankly at him.

"Love is the best and the worst thing that will ever happen to you. Being in love is the best feeling you will ever feel in your whole entire life. It was for me. But sometimes it hurts. Love hurts Ariana. And I don't want it to hurt you."

Ariana remained silent. Was she truly, deeply in love with him? It certainly felt like it. But how would she know since she's never been in love before? Maybe this was just all in her head. Maybe Justin was right. Maybe it is just a phase. Maybe she was pushing things too quickly. After all, good things come to those who wait.

The king sighed in frustration.

"You don't want to be in love with me. Why would you want to be in love with a monster?" He ran his fingers through his hair.

"You're not a monster," Ariana said softly. "You've changed, for the better." Justin turned his head towards her, gave her a sad smile, and looked back at the ceiling.

"I used to be so in love," the king started. "When my wife died, I turned into a horrible monster." He shook his head.

Bang bang bang.

Ariana and Justin's heads cranked towards the door.

"Breakfast is being served you're majesty," they heard through the door.

The king looked at Ariana with wild eyes. He put his finger up to his lips, signaling Ariana to remain silent.

"I'll be right there," he hollered. He turned his attention to a sad Ariana.

"You must go now," he said silently. Ariana slowly nodded. She threw her shirt over her head and adjusted her loose clothes.

She took one last look at the king who was still frustrated with himself for some reason. She frowned and retreated for the door. Opening the door, she looked both ways, making sure she would not be seen.

When she saw the coast was clear, she scurried away into the dark halls.

* * *

"I'm sorry for acting weird today," the voice of Rachel said. It was finally nighttime. Ariana had felt like the day had stretched longer than ever. With the king's response to her statement running through her head all day, she couldn't help but feel distressed.

Ariana gave her a small smile.

"It's okay."

"It's just-" Rachel started but stopped herself. Ariana gave her a look.

"It's just what."

Rachel looked hesitant with her words. Ariana could see her lip trembling. She looked nervous.

"What's wrong Rachel?" Ariana asked.

She remained silent for a few moments before answering.

"I think I like Harry," she said in almost a whisper.
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Yay new update! I hope this chapter didn't seem too rushed :/

I wanted to update today because I'm going to camp tomorrow for a week and won't be on wattpad to update.

So I hope you enjoyed this chapter! If you did please vote, comment, and share!