The Destitute Queen || h.s. au

37. Prue/Liam

Prue

     Attending the engagement ball was something I wasn't looking forward too. Honestly, I'd much rather be resting at the moment, considering how much I have had to do today. But my tiredness wasn't the only reason I didn't want to attend.

     I was supposed to meet with Liam last night, but I didn't show up. This morning, I heard that he was looking for me, so I have been avoiding him all day. I just don't know if I can do this anymore, my heart has become too heavy. I love him more than anything, but this secret seems to be physically weakening me. I know that, if I speak to him, he will try to convince me not to end this.

     Now I am in the least crowded corner of the ballroom, hoping that he won't find me. I can see him from here, dancing with his little daughter while he has the biggest smile on his face. That right there is the reason why I have rejected his suggestions to run away. He seems happiest when he's with his daughter, and I can't take that away from him. I also can't take that little girl away from her mother, even though Liam did suggest that we should take her with us the last time he and I were together.

     Suddenly, he hands Genevieve over to one of the older maids I barely know, and starts looking around the room. There's no doubt he's looking for me. If his wife were here, he wouldn't give me so much as a second glance. But she's not here, she still hasn't fully healed from giving birth. I lower my head so there's less of a chance he'll see me but, when I look up, he's heading right towards me.

     Without thinking, my feet begin to move towards the stairs and I run up to the second level of the ballroom, where I saw Lena come out of half an hour ago. I can't face him.

     I make it up the stairs and halfway through the second ballroom when he grabs my hand.

     "Prue," he whispers, but I don't turn to face him. "Where were you last night?"

     "I," I try to come up with an excuse. "I was tired, I fell asleep early."

     He gently pulls me towards him, forcing me to turn around and look into those big, brown eyes of his. "That's not true. What's the real reason?"

     He wraps his arms around me and kisses the top of my head.

     "I already told you, I was tired," I stick with my excuse, even though we both know I'm lying.

     "Do you really not want to be with me?" He suddenly asks, and I look up at him.

     "What-"

     "You've been distant lately, and you didn't show up last night," he cuts me off. "If you don't want to be with me, just say so."

     "Don't make it out like I don't want to be with you, because I do," I say. "Why, after six years, would I change the way I feel about you?"

     He sighs. "You say you love me, yet you keep trying to put an end to us. You can't be so indecisive. What do you want to do?"

     I step away from him, hugging myself. "I want to be with you, you know that. I just don't want to be in this circumstance."

     He gently places his hands on both sides of my face. "I don't, either. But I can't just stay away from you. We should have run away together when we had the chance, our life would have been much better, but you kept rejecting that idea."

     "Are you saying that it's my fault we're in this situation?" I frown, stepping even further away from him.

     "What?" His eyes widen. "No, I didn't mean it like that."