Chapter 20- Nice Catch!
Once the sun disappears behind the horizon, Charlie and I go back down for dinner even though we are dressed unusually for dinner and we are sweaty. KC, Oliver, and Robin stayed behind to clean the equipment and set things up for tomorrow. As we walk down several flights of elegant stairs, I go over all the basic self-defense moves in my mind. I want to get every little detail right, and Charlie said sometimes if you do something wrong it can result in, not only your opponent, but you, also, getting injured. Charlie told me that ever since the age of fifteen he learned self-defense, and has been doing it ever since. He explained to me that it became a hobby for him in a way. It helped him cope with stuff that bugged him.
When we begin to approach the doors to the Dining Hall, he takes my hand and I step closer to him while we walk. I see a digital clock and notice that we are running slightly late for dinner.
Oh great, I thought, all the attention will be on us...
When we walk through the doors, of course, every eye is on us. Some just paid attention to our outfits, and others just gave us ugly looks because of us not being on time. I notice the queen, who seems to not have touched her shrimp pasta, which is the dish for tonight. She has her hands clasped in her lap and her nose is tilted up in the air. Her lips and nose scrunched up as if she smells something bad in disgust of how Charlie and I are late.
"Arizona! Charles! Well, I see you are both running fashionably late this evening." She complains.
"Sorry, Mum. I hope you don't mind that we spared a few extra minutes for Arizona to learn everything. I taught her the basics," he says as we sit across from each other, "She's done very well. Better than most people I have seen." His compliment brings a smile to my face.
"Well... that is good." She seems to be struggling to complain, "Couldn't you two change into... different clothing for dinner? It's a proper occasion, Charles. You know how I feel about that. We have guests and we should and we shall dress appropriately. Now-"
Her pointless babbling was interrupted by her husband, "Oh, Chelsea! Their young adults and they were doing their job. I don't see the problem. It's just this one time, and I'm sure they won't do it again. Agreed?" He turns to Charles and me.
"Yes, King Randolph." I reply, rather quickly.
"Of course, it won't happen again, Father." Charlie says, formerly.
I say a silent thank you in my head for King Randolph. How in the world has he handled this lady? She can be such a pain. The woman concerns me in a way. How has Charlie handled having a mom like her? He is so patient at times. He handles himself very well, and I do not know how he does it.
Servants enter with our dishes and they set them in front of Charlie and me. They lift the silver shiny dome from the plate which reveals a... salad?! Oh my gosh... I'm not one to eat salads! My taste buds don't enjoy lettuce and I'm not real fond of carrots. The only time I like salad is when it's drenched in ranch dressing which I was not given.
My server begins to walk off when I signal him to come back, "Excuse me," I begin as he makes his way back to me, "Um, may I please have something other than salad?"
The man opens his mouth about to say something but I hear Queen Chelsea interrupt, "No, Arizona, like I said, this is part of your special diet."
"Special diet?" The woman that thinks Charlie and I belong together that spoke to me this morning says.
I nod and the Queen gives me a look that automatically tells me 'Don't you dare speak of the engagement'. "Yes, Charlie and I are just trying to get into better shape, so I can become better at self-defense."
"Oh..."
I stare down at my not-so-tasty green healthy meal. There are some pieces of chicken put in my dish, too. Well, I do like chicken... my fork stabs a piece of chicken and places it into my mouth. The chicken is delicious, so I pick every piece out of my salad and eat it. I mentally groan because I dread having to eat salad, but my stomach begs for me to put something in my mouth. I reluctantly place a forkful of salad into my mouth. My tastes buds immediately disagreeing, leaving a terrible taste. I force myself to chew and eventually, swallow. I repeat this cycle until it is all gone, and I demand for a glass of water to wash the horrid after taste out of my mouth. Once my glass arrives, I gulp it down, but without people noticing how improper I'm being. I just have to get the taste out of my mouth! Once dinner is done with, I walk out of the Dining Hall with Charlie.
"Follow me, Ari," he whispers gently in my ear.
I let out a small laugh, "Where are we going?"
"Just follow!"
We go back upstairs from where we came from and into the elevator. "Why are we going back up?" I whine.
"Because, I wanted to work on one more thing that we didn't get to do. Plus, it would be a good way to end the night."
"How would it be a good way to end the night?"
"It'll make ya sleep better."
I roll my eyes, "You are just wanting me to work harder."
"Maybe."
The elevator dings and we exit to find nobody else in the Defense Arena except for us. Everything is set neatly in its spot where it belongs. KC, Oliver, and Robin must've cleaned up pretty quickly. My muscles still feel warmed up and stretched, so I guess there is no danger in doing a little extra exercise. Honestly, I'd rather take a bath and crawl into bed, but Charlie brought me up here so might as well do just a little more. Charlie struts on over to the rope hanging from the ceiling.
"What are you doing?" I ask.
"Rope-climbing?" He says, obviously.
The thought of rope-climbing reminds me of Jasper and a sense of emptiness creeps into my chest. A lump swells in my throat, and I gulp down. I push the thought aside even though it's hard. I mean, he's my best friend that I told everything to. I should miss him this much, right? Ugh, Ari, you're thinking about him! Why am I talking to myself in my mind? Oh, well...
"You like rope-climbing?" I ask, watching him clasp his hands on the thick rope.
"Yea, I guess." He shrugs before he begins climbing and it's as if he is a superhero. He climbs up the rope with ease, barely using his feet for support.
"Dude! How can you-" I just stop myself as I drop my jaw in awe.
Strong, I thought, He is very strong.
Then, he climbed back down, making it look like a breeze. His face was red as a cherry, though, and he was sweating but how could you not after that? He smirked at my reaction and my arms felt tired just watching him. He is strong inside and out. He must've done this a time or two.
"You're turn."
"Well, don't expect me to be as good as you. I'm lucky if I get a foot above the ground."
He chuckles, but in reality, I haven't done this in forever so I bet that I won't be able to climb really high. It's worth a shot, though, so I walk over to the rope. I grip my hands on it. I take a deep breath in and pounce onto the rope. I begin to shimmy up at a steady pace. My grip tight, and my knuckles white. My feet urging upwards, and my face looking to my destination. I am determined.
"Woo! Go, Ari. You can do it!" I hear Charlie cheering from below me. His voice echoing throughout the room. I see that I'm halfway up the rope already and my legs are aching and my arms are on fire. My arms begin to shake involuntarily because of how hard I'm working.
Don't give up, I tell myself, you can do it.
My body stopped and I didn't want to fall. I mean, I know there is a mat below me, but that would still definitely hurt if I landed on it from this height. It would probably knock the wind right out of my lungs. I hate that feeling. It feels like you are suffocating even though in the back of your mind you know you aren't.
I try to lift my hands to reach for the rope to pull myself up, but my hands slip from my palms being covered in sweat. The ceiling gets farther and farther away from me, and I see the floor becoming closer out of my peripheral vision. I shut my eyes, not wanting to see the ending to this situation.
I suddenly land, but not on the floor, into someone's arms-Charlie's arms. My eyes flick open and our eyes meet. His green eyes are as big as those elegant porcelain teacup saucers. His eyes are a deep green. Not like the sea, but like an emerald which I find a tiny bit ironic. There is a few seconds of silence until we both decide to smile and laugh.
"Nice catch!" I exclaim.
"Well, thank you, and you really weren't lying when you mentioned that you were a klutz." He chuckles.
"Oh yea, I'm one of the worst. Not royalty material."
"Well, sometimes that's a good thing. I mean, being different in a place where people want you to follow their footsteps is good. It's boring just doing the same stuff. Royals repeat and repeat history, nothing changes since everything is 'tradition'."
I can't help but smile wider, "Yea, but I still wish I wasn't a klutz. Thanks, by the way, and how in the world did you catch me?"
He shrugs, still holding me in his arms, "Quick reflexes?"
"Well, I've had enough of this for tonight, so... please carry me to my room."
He laughs, "What? Like you're a princess or something?"
I roll my eyes and smile, "Just carry me. I'm too exhausted to walk by myself."
***
Once Charlie dropped me off at my room and I had a bath, I lie in bed in a pitch black room. I reach over to where I assume my nightstand is and snatch my LivingSquare off of it. My fingers click the button to turn it on, and the screen automatically adjusts to night mode so it won't blind my eyes in the dark. The screens tints itself to be darker so it won't irritate my pupils.
The room was too dark for my liking, so I have an app that I used at home to comfort me at times when I was going to bed. I pull the app up and activate it. My LivingSquare begins to project stars all over the ceiling and plays soothing music. When morning comes, the app will shut off on its own.
I stare at the different constellations that are all along the ceiling. I find The Big Dipper, The Little Dipper, and I make up some of my own constellations in my head. There was one that looked like a crown to me, but maybe it was just my imagination. Coincidence? I think not! Again, maybe my imagination. Maybe...
Looking at the stars is counting sheep to me, before I know it, I'm in a deep sleep. Charlie was right... doing all that exercise does help you sleep better. Especially, when you have a mini heart attack from falling off a rope.