The Princess In Disguise

Chapter 12

~Rosella's POV~

"I am Erickson Jade Smith, Nice to meet you." He said as he handed out his hand for me to probably shake hands. I nodded and smiled. 

"Rosella Nicole Hilton, Nice to meet you too. Erickson Jade." I said and took his hand and shook it. He smiled back which made me feel my cheeks heat up. I avoided eye contact as I loosened my grip from his hand. 

"You can just call me Erick. Most of the people around here call me that, so its fine." He said as he let go of my hand. I nodded as then a woman showed up in front of us. I looked up and noticed her looking at Erick with a glare. 

"Nanny..." he said in almost a whisper as the woman just looked at him with a death glare.

"JADE!!" The woman shouted. Then we heard footsteps coming up from the stairs. Now a young girl was standing in front of us catching her breath.

"What is it now Mom?" she asked as she stood up straight.

"Mop the entrance, Erick made another mess on the front door again." The woman said and the young girl, whom she called Jade, who went straight to the front door without any other words.

Now the woman was facing us again. She looked at me and raised an eyebrow. Then looked back at Erick.

"You brought a girl to my shop?" the woman asked calmly while looking at Erick. I looked at him as he nodded.

"She's just a friend. I saw her outside under the rain all soaking wet, so I decided to help her and let her stay here for the meantime." He answered and the woman just sighed.

"You're too good to be true." The woman said and looked at me. I suddenly felt scared since her stares were not the normal looks you'd get from a stranger. It seemed like she was warning me of some sort.

"Anyways, I am Ms. Flores. The owner of this shop. The girl you saw earlier is my daughter, Jade Flores." She said and pointed at the girl who was mopping the floor. I nodded and turned back to her.

"I'm Nicole, Nicole Hilton. Nice to meet you Ms. Flores." I said and gave her a light bow, since I was sitting down. She nodded and turned back to Erick.

"Take her to the couch, you might disturb customers while your here at the entrance." Ms. Flores said as she nodded her head to a door. Erick nodded at her and stood up. 

"Come, you might get uncomfortable here. Let's go to the living room." He said and I nodded as I followed him on the way to the door Ms. Flores was nodding at earlier. I then turned to Ms. Flores and told her. "Thank you." she smiled and nodded.

We went inside and I noticed how it was a small space yet it was a well designed living room. The couch was soft as I sat on it. I looked around and saw pictures hanging on the wall. 

"So..." Erick started which made me turn back to him. Who is now actually seating beside me. 

"You aren't really from here, are you?" he asked as he looked at me straight into the eyes. I nodded and a thin smile formed on his lips.

"I see... No wonder you have an unfamiliar face." he said as he laid his back on the couch. I looked at him unable to utter a word. It might be because of the cold air that was touching my skin which made me shiver.

"If you're not from here..." he said which made me focused on him. "Then what brings you here?" He asked as he turned his head to me. I stopped for a second and thought about it. Then I remembered Miss Rose. Right... She was one of the reasons why I got here, partly why I came here.

"Well... There was a favor I was asked to do, you see one of the people from where I came from wanted me to send a message to their relative, which is actually one of the people here in Ellesmere." I explained and he nodded. I gave him a smile, although I wasn't sure if it looked like a genuine smile or an awkward smile.

"I see... Have you done the favor that was asked for you to do?" he asked. I nodded and smiled.

"Yes, I have done the favor. Although that's only a part of why I actually came here in Ellesmere." I answered and I felt his gaze turn to me.

"Really? Then what is the main reason you came here?" he asked still looking at my direction.

"It may sound crazy to you... But I wanted to see what its like in other kingdoms." I answered and turned to him. I then noticed the serious look on his face as he looked at me.

"Weren't you allowed to leave the kingdom you lived in?" he asked which made me stop for a quick second. It somehow made me realize that I was giving too much personal information to a person I don't even know much of.

"You could say that. But I'd like to think that my parents are just very protective over me." I answered and looked at him to see his reaction. Although all I saw was a blank expression on his face, as if he was... thinking or confused maybe?

My thoughts were bothered when I suddenly heard him chuckle. I raised an eyebrow while looking at him smiling like a weird person to themself.

He then looked at me and suddenly his cheeks turned pinkish. He avoided eyecontact while I just looked at him confused.

"Did I said something funny?" I asked clueless to his behavior. He looked at me and smiles while shooking his head.

"I just found it odd." He answered and I just raised an eyebrow at him.

"Odd?" I asked and he nodded.

"Its the same for me. My parents don't really like me going out of the kingdom. Specially when I'm on my own. They mostly get over protective over me since I'm their youngest son." He answered.

"Youngest son?" I asked and he nodded.

"Actually, there are 3 of us siblings. Both are girls, so I have two older sisters. The oldest is married while the other one is still focusing on her duties. While me, I'm just chilling while freedom is still visible." He answered.

"What do you mean by 'While freedom is still visible'?" I asked as curiosity filled me in. It was as if we were in the same shoes. The way how I would be taking over my duties once I turn eighteen.

"You know... Its like leaving your childhood days. Where there would be no time for games or doing useless things. Its as if you are walking into a door where the world is somewhat different. A different world where there is no joking around, no more games, and mostly no more fun. Its kind of like maturing as an adult. You know what I mean?" He said as he looked at me. For a second there I suddenly saw sadness in his eyes although they soon faded away.

"Is... That so?" Was all I could utter. He chuckled and messed up my hair. I looked at him and saw the smile he had earlier. It was as if something didn't happen.

"Anyways, you should get changed. Don't you have any clothes with you?" He asked changing the topic.

"I do have clothes..." I said and looked at myself. 'My bag?? Where's my bag??' I thought to myself as I stood up looking around me in a panic.

Then It caught me. 'Miss Rose. Its at Miss Rose's place. I slept there last night.' I thought to myself and mentally facepalmed myself.

"Well?" He asked that made me jump a bit.

"I... I kind of... left it... somewhere." I said embarrassed as I sat down.

"Wait here." He said and stood up. "I'll see if Jade has a pair of clothes that could fit you." He said. I nodded as a response as he left me alone in the living room.