Selected: Part 1 - Rags to Gowns

19. THE BEAR

I STARED AT MY FINISHED work, feeling my chest tighten and my heart beat loud. Unable to control myself, I stared into the teddy bear's eyes, and hugged it as tight as I could. The stuffed bear was dark brown, like Ethan's hair, and had gray, beady eyes, reminiscent of Ethan's eye color. I dressed him up in a little purple shirt, his best color. In the end, I wanted so badly to keep this little Ethan-bear for myself, but that would leave me without a gift for him.

I wondered if Prince Ethan got a lot of gifts on his birthday. Surely, he would get cards. A card! I had forgotten to make one to accompany my gift. It was late when I put the finished bear inside a gift bag. I waited until it was just Maya left in the room, after my maids had gotten me ready for bed, to sit down and write a card for him. I knew Maya wouldn't pry, so I felt safe writing in front of her. Not wanting to be awkward, I kept the card simple.

Dear Prince Ethan,

I want to wish you the happiest of birthdays.

I hope you don't find my gift too silly; I just really love stuffed animals, and thought that maybe you would, too.

You'd be surprised how great they are for relieving stress.

Happy birthday,

Luna

Ps.: The bear's name is Than-Than.

PPs.: You must admit, he looks good in purple.

I slid the card inside the gift bag, feeling a bit lame. At least I was being myself, and I could only hope Ethan would be charmed by whatever that is. I fell asleep quickly, completely accustomed to my new, temporary room.

The next morning, the palace halls were bustling with people. The grand ball for Ethan's birthday was tomorrow, and the entirety of the staff was rushing to get things clean and ready. Honestly, I was grateful not to be part of the palace staff during these busy times. On our last lesson of ballroom dancing with Miss Nicole, we got to practice with guards as our partners one last time. I wasn't the best, but I also wasn't the worst. Agatha and Mai were the most graceful, Hazel and Naomi had the most fluid movements and Taylor had the most style. On the other hand, Claire and Elena were struggling quite a bit, even after all those lessons. I felt bad for them, and hoped the prince wouldn't hold something so trivial against them.

For my dress, my maids had recreated one of my designs once again. It was a full, sleeveless gown. It's color was lilac, with hints of pure white. I grinned ear-to-ear at the mere thought of getting to wear it. My anticipation accompanied my nerves, as I thought of giving Ethan his birthday present. I briefly wondered if anyone else had made a gift for him. I knew that Hazel hadn't, claiming she wasn't good at handmade things. Of course, we couldn't just go to the store to buy something for him. Gwen had wrote him a card, but what about the other girls? Did it even matter? I didn't want to get competitive; that just wasn't me. To be sincere, all I really wanted was to see Ethan's smile again. He didn't do that enough.