Getting my hours straight was certainly harder than I'd thought it would be.
Last night after I arrived back to my room, I took my dear sweet time eating and then took another long bath before finally giving in around two in the morning and going to sleep. Fern had done as she promised by getting me a clock to put on my nightstand, and I groaned when I saw that it was already three in the afternoon.
There was a soft knock on my door and Fern came in carrying a tray and wearing a kind smile. "I see you're having trouble with the time as well." She commented, setting the tray of breakfast out on the table. "That's alright though, Miss, the other girls are too. That's why they've decided to move up the meeting for you girls so that you aren't bored out of your minds. It'll be at five, which is a bit early for us, but everyone wants to make sure you girls are made comfortable."
I rolled out of my bed and drug my feet over to the table. "What meeting?" I asked with a mouthful of toast.
"You and the other girls are having a small meeting to go over rules, schedules, and that type of thing. After that you're all free to do whatever you please, there aren't any plans with the prince tonight. I'm told he's quite busy today."
All I wanted to be free to do was get the hell out of here, especially after the mention of the prince made me choke on my toast picturing his smile from last night and the kindness he'd showed me.
I downed my glass of orange juice and headed for the washroom to take another bath, but I was held up when there was another knock on the door. Fern rushed over to open it and a man came in carrying an obnoxiously large bouquet of flowers. "Delivery for Miss Rachel from the prince." The man announced as he displayed them on the vanity.
"Oh my, how lovely." Fern cooed over them. "You must have really made an impression, as I was sure you would." She giggled.
There were lilies, carnations, daisies, and peonies all beautifully arranged. I ran my hand across the top of the petals and smiled. They really were beautiful, which only made my heart do this weird fluttering thing and I didn't want to even think about why.
Fern helped me get ready for my day, well, my night. She and the other girls styled my hair into a long braid that wrapped over one of my shoulders, and they did my makeup again, but this time a little less dramatically. I picked out a flowy little white cotton summer dress that had little blue buttons running up the back and Fern paired it with a white pair a heels.
Once she was satisfied with the way I looked, she rushed me down to the conference room that the meeting was going to be held in. This time I was the first girl to arrive, rather than the last. The room was very simple. Just plain stone walls, and four round tables with folding chairs. In the front of the room was Master Pedro, who nodded his head to me as I walked in and took a seat. He stood behind a podium and shuffled through some papers while he waited for the other girls.
Not long after me, the girl Greer had pointed out to me as Lexton, walked in and took a seat at the table next to me. "Hello." She said with a smile. She had a strange accent, but she was very pretty. Her smile was kind and she had a long slender face that went well with her tall thin frame. "I did not get to meet you last night."
"Yeah, I was a little upset last night." I blushed. "I'm Rachel."
"Nice to meet you." She said shaking my hand. "My name is Lexton."
Tessa, Frankie, and Regina all walked in at the same time. The three of them already in a deep conversation and not one of them bothering to acknowledge Lexton or me. Finally Greer shuffled into the room with swollen eyes. "Are you alright?" I asked her as she took the seat beside me. It was clear she had been crying.
She nodded her head once and whispered. "Fine, just having a hard time taking this all in."
I started to tell her everything was going to be ok, but I knew that it was a lie, and Master Pedro cleared his throat and called us to attention before I could anyway. "Now that you are all here, let's go over a few things. I don't want to keep you long, there are just a few bullet point items that need to be discussed, and then you're good to go about your day." He smiled halfheartedly. "Alright, as your handmaidens have already told you, you six have been chosen to compete for the chance to become our princess. Each of you were picked by a different advisor to the prince according to his preferences. Prince Calvin has been alone for some time, and King Gordo thought of the brilliant idea to make it a competition to entertain his people, and find a mate for Prince Calvin all at the same time." Another fake smile. "The competition will last six months, on the last Friday of every month the prince will cut a girl who he does not see a future with. That girl will go back out to the auctions. During the six months there will be plenty of opportunities for you to get the attention of our prince, from balls, to organized dates, to whatever else the king can come up with. The girl the prince choses will become our princess and she will also become one of us." He paused for dramatic effect. "Please do try to realize how important it is for you to do well in this. The very fact that the royal family is allowing a human this kind of opportunity is unheard of, and you should consider yourselves very lucky, especially considering the conditions that other humans live in since the takeover."
I couldn't hold back my sarcastic laugh. "I should be happy I was stolen from my family as a child so that you people could parade me around for your entertainment that will ultimately lead to my demise?" I asked. "That's hysterical." Everyone gasped and Master Pedro's face froze.
"I guess we know who the first one out will be." Tessa giggled.
Regina joined in. "You girls are just lucky you didn't have to grow up with miss too good for anything." She told the room. "I'm glad she'll be leaving soon."
"Shut up, Regina!" Greer snapped at her as ferociously as Greer could. She always comes off more like an angry puppy than an actual threat.
"You people do realize we are all dying soon, don't you? You actually want this? Try to make some guy fall for us so that we can be turned into one of them?" I asked with a raised voice. "What is wrong with all of you?"
Tessa and Regina looked at me like I was a stupid child. "Um, he's a prince." Regina said. "I was born for royalty, so hell yeah I'm totally into this."
The room was abuzz with girls yelling over each other until Master Pedro slammed his fist down on the podium, demanding our attention. "I have better things to do than to sit here babysitting a bunch of bratty little girls." He said. "Now if you are quite finished, I'd like to move on." He paused and looked at each of us individually, waiting to see if we were going to interrupt again, then continued. "Now for some rules. None of you should wander around the grounds alone, for your own protection you should always have a guard or handmaiden with you wherever you go. There are plenty of things for you to do. There is a recreational room on level 5 that you are welcomed to, there is a library, a small theater, a greenhouse, and other forms of entertainment to keep yourselves busy. However, be mindful that the times of operation for most things around here are between the hours of 5pm and 6am. Your meals will all be delivered to you, unless there is an event that throws that off. If you'd like to have your meal in another room, just let your handmaiden know and they will make the arrangements. You are welcomed to visit each other's rooms, or whatever you please." He shuffled through his papers again with a sigh. "Last but not least, no one is allowed on level 6, not that it is too much of an issue, seeing as the elevator requires a passcode, but that is the royal floor and trespassing will result in immediate repercussions." He checked his watch and smiled. "You all are free to go." He said, then flashed out of the room.
Greer was the first to stand. "Where are you going?" I asked her.
She rubbed her eyes and yawned. "I just want to go back to my room, I'm so tired." She mumbled.
I stood from my chair and wrapped her in a hug. "Alright, I will see you later, ok?"
She nodded her head and walked out of the room.
"Big plans today, Rach?" Regina asked sarcastically as all the other girls rose and walked toward door.
I just ignored her and followed them all out into the hall. Once we were in the corridor the other girls furrowed their brows and looked up and down the passage. "How do we get the guards to take us somewhere? I don't see any."
I rolled my eyes and walked out from behind them. "Guards!" I said loudly, and two seconds later I was flanked by two of them. "Like that." I said to the girls, then walked away from them.
The girls began chattering on to the guards about how they wanted help to go find Prince Calvin, but I just kept walking. Once I was far enough away from them I called for my own guard to give me directions to the library. I didn't want an actual escort. If I'm stuck here, I at least want my independence.
The library wasn't hard to find. It was on the same level as the conference room and only took two turns. I pushed open the creaky door and marveled at the large room. The ceiling was domed and had murals painted across it. The bookshelves held more books than I've ever seen in my whole life and they reached all the way to the ceiling. There was even a sliding ladder like the one I remembered from the old Beauty and the Beast movie I used to watch as a child.
I was so caught up in the memory that I didn't even notice someone else was in the room. "Don't tell me you're lost again?" A musical voice asked.
I whipped around with my heart in my throat and saw Prince Calvin sprawled out on one of the red velvet couches reading a book. He never even lifted his eyes from the page he was on. He looked so perfect in his black button up shirt with the top few buttons undone and exposing the top of his sculpted chest, and his dark wash jeans, that I couldn't help thinking that he should be painted on the ceiling with all of the other gods. "I'm not lost, thank you very much." I told him, trying to sound disinterested in his presence. "I meant to come here."
"Ah, I see." He murmured still looking at his book.
I just stood there awkwardly staring at him. "Oh, um thanks for the flowers." I said politely.
"I didn't send you flowers." He said back curtly without missing a beat.
"Oh." I felt my face getting hot, so I turned and pretended to be really interested in the books on the shelf in front of me, running my hand over their spines.
"Let me guess," His deep voice called out. "some large flashy arrangement?"
"Yep." I answered, trying to sound preoccupied.
He huffed and I heard him turn the page in his book. "Yes well, believe me, if I were to ever send a girl flowers, they wouldn't be like that."
"Oh?" I asked aloof.
"I would send roses." He said softly. "They're the type of flower you send to a girl. They're beautiful, but not showy or obnoxious. They are timeless, and elegant."
"I didn't know you were such a flower snob." I joked with him.
"Well I didn't know that you were so interested in candle making." He said with a smile in his voice.
I crinkled my forehead. "Huh?" I asked confused.
"You have been standing there pretending to look at that book about candles for quite some time now." He answered back, a gentle playfulness in his voice.
"Yes, well, I am thinking about taking it up as a hobby since I suddenly have so much free time, what with my being a prisoner here and all." I told him, hoping my lie sounded believable and feeling a little proud of myself that I'd been able to think on my feet so quickly.
"Ah, yes, of course." He said. "I also was unaware you could read Latin." He chuckled. "Or is that also on your list of new hobbies as well?"
"Huh?" I asked again feeling stupid.
"All of the books in that section are written in Latin, but I'm sure you already knew that." He chuckled to himself, the sound of it making my heart beat faster.
There was nothing else for me to do except laugh with him as I turned away from the books to look back at him. He was still reading his book on the couch but he yawned then closed it after a moment. "Are you tired?" I asked suddenly.
"I suppose I am." He nodded, then stretched his arms over his head, causing his shirt to rise slowly up over his thinly muscled torso.
"So you sleep?" I asked dumbly.
He rolled his eyes and stood, walking over to me. "Of course I sleep, and before you ask, no I don't sleep in a coffin. I sleep in a bed, just like you." He said trying to hold back a smile.
"I wasn't going to ask that." I lied, holding back my own smile.
"Of course you weren't." He said shaking his head. "Anyway, I'm going to go get some sleep."
He turned to walk away, but I called him back. "Wait, Prince Calvin?" I said nervously.
He was back in front of me instantly. "You can just call me Cal or Calvin." He said. "I hate the formality." He scrunched his handsome face and I smiled.
"Ok, Cal." I said awkwardly. "I just wanted to thank you. You know, for saving me last night, and for the color change in my room, and the food... I do assume that those things were actually you?"
He half smiled. "Yes, those were me, and there's no need to thank me."
Before either of us could say anything else, Tessa barged into the room. "There you are, Prince Calvin." She cooed. "I have been looking for you everywhere."
"Lucky me." He said dryly and I slowly slid around the couch to go out of the room.
"Thank you so much for the flowers!" She said loudly as I got to the door, probably trying to make me jealous. I had to laugh to myself though. The joke was on her on that one.