~LEVI~
Amelia and I exchanged a strange glance as we sat together in my father's office. He and my mother sat on the other side of his desk.
"You're probably wondering why we summoned you here," the King spoke. Neither of us responded, so he continued. "Your mother and I need to discuss something with you two."
"Yes," my mother said, her hands folded neatly on the table. She always had a very regal, businesslike posture, even with her own children. "Amelia, we've been thinking, and we decided to make a change that will benefit not only our kingdom but the kingdom of Elizabeth as well."
"Alright," Amelia said slowly, "what is it?"
"You're going to be marrying Prince Charles," my father announced.
I tensed and felt Amelia stiffen next to me.
"You're kidding, right?" I said incredulously.
"Why would we joke about this?"
Everything inside me seemed to deflate all at once. Despite my anger towards Prince Charming, I couldn't deny that I'd been grasping onto the hope that I still had a chance with him. He kissed me back, there had to be something there.
However, I was not selfish enough to make that my biggest concern. Amelia had a boyfriend, Adrian. He was a secret to mother and father; they'd never approve of her relationship with a commoner. Yet there was no denying that she was head over heels in love with him.
"You... You can't do that," I said shakily. I glanced to Amelia for backup, but she was frozen. Unshed tears sparkled in her eyes. A wave of protectiveness crashed over me, sending my brain into overdrive. "You can't."
"Yes," the King spoke, "we can."
"She'll be unhappy her whole life!" I argued.
"She will learn to love him!"
"That's not how love works! It can't be forced! Arranged marriages haven't occurred in this family for generations—why now?"
"Because," my mother's voice was calm, "it is what is best for the kingdom. As the royal family of Author, it is our job to do what is in everyone's best interests."
"How is Amelia marrying a near stranger going to affect anybody in the kingdom?"
"It is not about what it does literally," my mother spoke softly. She was trying to calm me down. Try harder. "It is about what it symbolizes. Our kingdoms have been at odds for centuries, it's time we form an unbreakable bond."
"So you're willing to let your only daughter be unhappy her entire life to end a stupid feud that shouldn't exist in the first place? What kind of parents—"
"Listen!" My father bellowed. "We are not making this decision as parents, we are doing this as the King and Queen of Author island. We are not asking you if she can marry him, we're telling you. The subject is not up for argument!"
"When," I spoke slowly, shaking with anger, "have you ever made any decisions for us as parents?"
"Enough!" My father's face was turning red. "I don't want to hear another word out of you!"
Part of me knew that my father wasn't one to push too far. That part of me forced my mouth shut.
"Amelia hasn't spoken a word of protest, and it's her business not yours!"
I wanted to say something, anything, but my voice simply wasn't working. I was glaring daggers at my parents, but I bit my tongue. The King gave a tight, satisfied smile.
"Good. Now," he returned his attention to a still-frozen Amelia. "We have arranged for you to stay in Elizabeth for the next month so that you can get to know Charles a bit better. Understood?"
Amelia nodded stiffly. She was biting so hard on her bottom lip I was afraid she would start bleeding. It was obvious that she was trying not to cry, although my parents didn't seem to notice. Somehow, that didn't surprise me.
"What does any of this have to do with me?" I asked bitterly after a minute of silence.
"Ah, yes. Amelia, you are dismissed," my father said. He was still stiff, but he faked a smile to my sister, who practically ran out of the office, her head down. The moment she was gone, his gaze hardened. I glared right back.
"Alright, I don't want a word of protest from you, understood?" My father said seriously.
"No promises," I muttered. My father looked like he would blow up on me at any moment, but my mother butted in.
"Levi," she spoke slowly as if I were in kindergarten, "We need you to go with her."
"What? No! Why?"
"I know this is sudden for your sister, so we need you to go and, well, clear the air. We know that you are friends with the Elizabeth boy—"
"No I'm not!" I shook my head frantically as I felt myself begin to panic. There was no way I could go back.
"We need someone to be there to make sure that we're giving Amelia to a good lad with a secure family. Also, you're friends with Charles, so we need you to go and make sure that things aren't awkward," my mother continued, ignoring me completely. "They'll both be more comfortable around you. Charles and Amelia will get along, but they may need a few pushes in the right direction..."
"I am not spending a month in Elizabeth to play matchmaker for this hellish wedding!"
"You don't have a choice!" My father bellowed. "I am tired of you acting as if you have the power to make these decisions! It is time you start acting like a prince! That means doing things that you sometimes don't want to do!"
"You don't understand," my voice was quiet. "I can't go back to Elizabeth."
"Why?" My father was livid. "Why are you so against going? First you refused to go to the ball, and now this? What's wrong with you?"
"I... I can't tell you." My eyes were trained on the floor. If I told him... I don't think I'd ever be allowed back into the palace.
"So you expect me to excuse you without giving a valid reason?" My father asked rhetorically. "Do you think that after your behavior recently I would let you off the hook so easily? You are going on this trip, Levi. That is final."
"But—"
"No. Buts."
I'd never felt more drained. I knew I'd lost the battle. There was no getting out of this. Still, just the thought of staying in Elizabeth, with Charles, for a month, made me want to throw up.
Seriously, I felt sick. My stomach was churning, my hands were shaking. Suddenly I wished that I'd never eaten breakfast.
"F-fine," I attempt to sound strong despite my shaking voice. "But only on one condition."
"You are—"
"Let me bring my guitar."
My father looked ready to argue, but my mother put her hand on his arm. "Fine, that's fair," she said. "You are dismissed."
I went up to my room quicker than I ever have before and fell straight into my bed. Burying my face into a pillow, I let my tears soak the soft fabric.
Everything about this was so unfair. Unfair to my sister, unfair to me, unfair to Charles. Amelia should never have to give up her love for a stupid arranged marriage. There were so many ways that the kingdoms could end this feud without it, the main one being to just get the hell over themselves. Who cares about wars fought before we were even born? If people would just put aside their pride, none of this would be happening! Poor Amelia didn't deserve any of it!
Despite all of that, my selfish brain couldn't allow my biggest fear to be Amelia's sake. All that I could think about was the fact that I'd be living in the same castle as the boy who'd called me a fag for a month. He still hated me, I just knew it. Amelia gave me his apology, but there was no way that I'd go to Elizabeth and we'd just be friends. He wouldn't want to talk to me, or even be in the same room as me. Part of him would still be disgusted with me. Despite having spent the last two weeks telling myself that I was angry with him, I was still blaming myself.
Even scarier than the thought of confronting him was just the thought of seeing him again. I was weaker than I liked to admit. I've been trying to get over him, yet I just know that once I see him again, that will all be history. I'll see his dark blue eyes and cute smile and I'll be putty in his hands. I would fall all over again in an instant.
I mentally smacked myself for being so selfish. This was a much bigger problem for Amelia than it was for me. She needed my comfort more than anything.
I pulled my face away from the now soaked pillow and quickly found my way to her room, keeping my head down so that no passing workers saw that I'd been crying. When I opened the door to Amelia's bedroom, she was curled into a ball on her baby blue king bed, her form shaking slightly. Shutting the door, I crawled onto her bed and wrapped my arms around her.
She buried her head into my chest and sobbed. Seeing her like this made me even more infuriated with my parents. It made me realize that I did have to go on this trip. She needed someone to be there for her. I had an inkling feeling that, even if my parents had let me off the hook, I would've eventually chosen to go anyways. It was my job to be there for my sister.
"Hey, Lia?" I whispered.
"Y-y-yes?"
"Guess who's going on this hell trip with you?"
She looked up at me in surprise. Tears streaked her red cheeks and her eyes were bloodshot. It hurt to see her so distressed. "R-Really?"
"Yeah, they want me to play matchmaker. As if."
She giggled lightly. "It's like th-they don't even k-know you."
"I know, right?"
~•~•~
One week, one plane trip, and two long limo rides later, Amelia and I approached the intimidating castle doors.
"Are you ready?" Amelia asked.
"Not even slightly."
Despite the fact that Amelia should have been more frightened than me, I was the one who needed comfort. I shoved my shaking hands into the pockets of my jeans.
"You'll be fine," she said reassuringly. She fixed the collar of my black button up, which was tucked neatly into black jeans. The look may have seemed formal to anybody outside of the aristocratic community, but it was casual wear to the royal households.
We stood in front of the massive castle entryway apprehensively. I held my breath as the guard escorting us spoke to the guards at the door. One of them opened his door and disappeared into the castle, returning a minute later and nodding towards the other guard. The two opened the massive wooden doors, revealing the Grand Common Room. A man and a woman—the King and Queen, I'm guessing—stood waiting for us, smiling brightly. Next to them stood a young man in a tuxedo; a butler, I presume.
"Come in, come in," the woman said cheerfully. Amelia and I reluctantly entered the castle, forcing smiles onto our expressions. I bowed and Amelia curtsied, the King and Queen doing the same. "Sorry for the unorganized greeting, you arrived an hour earlier than we expected you too."
"No worries, your highness," Amelia said sweetly.
"Please, call me Meredith," said the Queen. "You two look absolutely stunning. I already knew you were quite beautiful, Amelia, but I didn't realize your brother was such a handsome young fellow!"
A blush rose onto my cheeks. "Thank you," my sister and I said at the same time.
"And thank you for having us," Amelia added.
"Thank you for coming," this time the king spoke. "I'm sure you'll be wonderful guests. Now where's Charles?"
My chest tightened. Amelia glanced at me worriedly, but I kept my eyes focused straight ahead, suddenly finding the royal blue curtains to be quite fascinating.
"Phillip, go fetch Charles for us," the king told the young man. The butler hurried off with a 'Yes, sir'.
So that was Phillip, Charles' butler and best friend. He had looked to be in his early twenties and was rather attractive, with dark hair and a muscular build.
"They'll be down any moment," Meredith spoke a minute later. "Ah, there they are."
Everything seemed to slow down. There he was, walking down the hall towards us. The boy who had plagued my mind for the last three weeks was right there. My breath stopped as I took in his appearance. He wore a white button up that was rolled up to his elbows with a black bow tie and black jeans that fit his form well. His brown hair wasn't done in any way, it just fell swept to one side over his forehead, almost reaching his right eye. He looked incredible.
His head was turned towards Phillip as they approached—he hadn't even looked at us yet.
"Charles, hurry and greet your guests!" Meredith scolded. Charles hurried forward and bowed, muttering apologies and looking over us as he stood back up.
He froze in his tracks. His wide, unfocused eyes were trained directly on me. He looked like he'd seen a ghost, as if he hadn't known that I would be here.
Wait, did he know that I would be here?
~•~•~
~CHARLES~
I stopped dead. Levi was standing right there, next to Amelia. I felt my heart hammer almost painfully against my chest at the mere sight of him. His bright blue eyes were as entrancing as ever. I found myself getting lost in them.
I'd forgotten how beautiful he was. I knew that I was staring, but I couldn't look anywhere else. We held eye contact for what felt like years, when in reality it was only seconds before he diverted his glance.
I hadn't been told that he would be coming with Amelia. All of a sudden the wedding seemed even scarier. Levi being here terrified me; would he hate me? He couldn't even look me in the eyes for more than a few seconds, he probably despised me. I couldn't blame him, after what I said the last time I saw him.
All I wanted was to be able to talk to him again, like we had on the night of the ball. I simply wanted to be in his company.
Yet I knew that being in his company wasn't good for me. It wasn't healthy. Already, after being in his presence for less than a minute, I could feel my resolve beginning to shatter. My brain became cloudy, my limbs weak. I was excited at the idea of spending time with him. I was terrified that he wouldn't want anything to do with me. I was confused as to why he was even here in the first place. I was worried that the feelings that I'd been both trying to understand and trying to push away would persist even more now that he was here. I was angry; angry at myself for ever shoving him away, angry at him for making me feel so strange.
An elbow in my side from Phillip snapped me back into reality. I bowed and then mentally slapped myself as I realized that I'd already done that. Focus, Charles.
"Hello, Princess Amelia and P-Prince Levi. It's... A pleasure." I failed miserably at a formal greeting, mentally slapping myself again. Get it together.
The twins bowed and curtsied. Both wore matching uncomfortable expressions.
"Phillip," my mother spoke, "please take their bags and show them to their rooms."
"Yes ma'am," Phillip nodded toward our guests and led them down the hallway, up the stairs, and out of sight.
"Charles, is everything alright?" Asked my father.
"Of course, why wouldn't it be?" I lied, still trying to slow my heart rate. Although Levi wasn't near me anymore, the image of him still burned bright in my mind.
"You just seem a bit shaken," My father worried. "And you were staring at the Author boy for so long."
"Oh, yes, I just...I just was not expecting him to be here..." It was at least half of the truth.
"Oh, really?" My mother furrowed her perfect eyebrows. "We must have forgotten to mention it to you. But I suppose it's alright since you two are friends, yeah?"
"Um... Yeah... I'm going to head up to my room..." I said as I felt a headache begin to pound at my temples. My brain felt as if were being torn into different, conflicting pieces.
"Alright then, you are dismissed," my father said warily. I nodded slightly and hurried down the hall and up the stairs to my bedroom, trying to ignore the ripping sensation in my brain. I fell straight onto my big white bed. I had barely gotten a moment's break when there was a knock at my door.
"Come in," I called. I heard the door open but didn't even bother to ask who it was; I knew it would be Phillip. I felt the bed dip where he sat and a comforting hand on my shoulder.
"You alright, mate?" As expected, it was my butler's voice.
"Yeah, 'course I am," I lied.
"Don't lie, kid. Tell me what's up," he insisted.
"Nothing is up," I denied uselessly.
Phillip sighed. "I know you're shaken because of Levi, Charles. You might as well explain why, you'll be better off once you talk about it."
"Truthfully, I don't even know where to start," I gave in. "It's just... Scary. He's going to be here for a month, Phillip. A month."
"Why does that bother you so much?" I finally looked towards my friend. The question threw me off guard.
"I... I don't know."
"Yes you do," Phillip caught my attention with his argument. "And I do as well. We both know why you're upset, so just say it and you'll feel better."
"I don't know what you're talking about," I insisted. Phillip sighed again.
"Okay. When you're finally ready to face your feelings, you know where I am."
He was starting to say that a lot.