♚ Zayn's POV ♚
I was silent as I stared at the battered and bruised girl in her bed, the only signs of life coming from her being the steady breaths she took from under the covers.
Her dark hair and pale face normally would've given off a confident, vixen-like aura. But now, it was different. The paleness of her face worried me, it made the dark bruising more prominent. She seemed fragile now, and it pained me to think that the one person she would want to be by her side was fragile too, stuck in a hospital bed and unable to wake up.
Her face had bruised substantially, and upon returning to the Manor, the royal medic had diagnosed her with a few broken ribs and an almost broken nose. It didn't sound like much, but looking at Ivy now, it looked like she had been hit by a truck.
The doctor had ordered strict bed rest for a few days, and then depending on how she felt treatment would be decided upon. I sighed before leaving Ivy alone to rest, deciding on checking how the other important girl in my life was holding up.
This morning had been the first morning I woke up alone. Odette had slept in her room for the first time since the beach house. When I had knocked on her door, Falene had alerted me that she had locked herself in her room, refusing to eat or drink or leave. I had no idea what brought on this strange behavior, no one had spoken to her all day other than Falene, and even she said that Odette's only words were: "Tell everyone to leave me alone."
I walked down the hallway with my hands jammed into my jean pockets, sighing when I saw the untouched food trays I had ordered the servants to leave outside her door. She hadn't eaten anything all day. I feared for her health, she was already pretty skinny, but God knows what kind of anorexic diets she had been taught to survive on her whole life. Girls wanted to be skinny to get a husband, and they would often resort to eating disorders. I hoped that wasn't what she was planning.
I stared painfully at the stack of pancakes and glass of orange juice on one plate and the grilled cheese sandwich with some tomato basil soup on the other. I sighed painfully. She hadn't touched a thing, the food still intact and picture perfect.
Taking a deep breath, I knocked softly on her door. I didn't hear anything on the other side of the door, and my hands reached for the set of universal Manor door keys in my pocket.
No, I told myself. Let her decide whether or not you come in.
So I waited. After about five minutes of nothing, I tried knocking again.
"Odette, baby, please let me in." I cooed through the wooden door, my response a small sound from the other side. I pressed my ear to it to try and hear it better, and when I did finally make it out, my heart had nearly shattered in broken pieces of glass.
Sobs were interrupted by small gasping sounds as Odette wept, refusing to answer me. She was crying hard, her sobs growing louder as time went on. I felt myself break into pieces as I listened, my forehead resting against the hard wood.
The girl I adored was shutting me out, and the one I needed in order to be a good king was unconscious in her bedroom. This was definitely not one of my better days.
"Little swan, what's wrong?" I tried again, my heart unsure if I could hear the terrible crying sound again. "Please tell me, I want to make you happy again."
A smashing sound hit the door a few seconds later, a shrill voice screaming afterwards.
"Leave me alone!" Odette screamed through the door, her voice cracking halfway through from not drinking anything all day. I heard her cough and gasp for breath afterwards.
What was she so upset over? I didn't know what she could possibly be so upset over, unless she was mourning over her family member that died a few years ago.
If that was the case, regardless of her screams to leave her alone, I would be here for her.
"I'll go get some water for you." I whispered, not really knowing if she heard me.
The only sound I heard was a thumping against the wood, like she had hit something against the door. Her broken sobs echoed through the door, and I decided this was the worst form of torture.
Odette was only a doorway away from me, but there was nothing I could do to help her.
***
I has been walking around the Manor gardens when I got the word that Ivy was awake.
I had sprinted to her room, thankful that she was awake and talking. That had to be good, especially after the beating she had gotten.
She seemed like her usual self, annoyed that doctor wouldn't let her leave. Ivy seemed relieved when I walked in, like the answer to her prayers had just arrived. I suppose, in a way, they had.
"Thank God you're here, can I-" She started, but I interrupted immediately.
"No. You're not leaving." I rolled my eyes at her, watching as she huffed before laying back into her comfy bed.
"What do you remember?" I asked, hopeful she still remembered her attackers. I was going to bring them to justice, no matter what.
"Um...I know we were going somewhere." She seemed thoughtful, eyes scrunching close as if that would help her remember better. "We left the Manor in your car, you dropped me off somewhere, and then it's all fuzzy from there."
"You can't remember at all? Nothing?" My heart sunk.
"Not really, no." Ivy sighed, her hands rubbing her temple. "Where did you drop me off at last night?"
"Some bar. You gave me the directions."
Ivy seemed to be in deep thought for a few minutes before letting out a cry of frustration.
"Dang it, why can't I remember?!"
"It could be temporary. You had blood all over your nose and the back of your head. Maybe it's temporary memory loss?" I suggested, Ivy nodding as she thought it over.
"Still..." She seemed to think it over more before groaning and rubbing her temples. "My head hurts, bring me something to eat, servant." She mocked me, but her request only brought me pain.
"I might as well bring you Odette's food. She hasn't touched it all day, it's just sitting outside her bedroom door." I sighed, Ivy's face becoming serious in seconds.
"Why is she doing that? Is she sick?"
"I don't know. She won't let me in her room, she won't talk to me. She's been crying all day and I don't know what to do."
"Well, first you can get me some food." Ivy pestered me, my eyes rolling at her stubbornness. "And then you can go to her and apologize."
"Apologize? For what?"
"I don't know, usually girls take their boyfriends back when they apologize for whatever they did wrong. I have no idea what you did this time though." Ivy scolded me, but I was in no mood for her rambling.
"But I didn't do anything, remember? How am I supposed to apologize when I didn't do anything?" I huffed, Ivy giving me a glare at my sarcastic tone aimed at her.
"Well, is there any other reason she could be so upset?" Ivy asked.
"Apparently a family member close to her died a few years ago shortly before her birthday, maybe that's it?" I offered, Ivy running a frustrated hand through her tangled hair.
"Maybe...you didn't open her door with your keys?"
"No. I want her to feel like she at least has the right to privacy whenever she needs it." I explained, Ivy placing a hand over her heart.
"Aw, that's cute, but that's not going to solve anything. You need to open the door and find out what's wrong with her. Her birthday party is tomorrow for God's sake."
So here I was in front of her door, a tray with a bowl of chicken noodle soup and some crackers on it as dinner, praying that for once Odette would just open the door and let me know what was wrong. I sighed before raising my hand to knock on the wood, hoping Odette would stop being so stubborn and just let me in. I knocked, but the only sound on the other side was still of her sobbing. I was silently impressed, I figured she would have tired herself out by now, but apparently I was wrong.
I tried talking again.
"Baby, please let me in. I brought you something to eat, I know you must be starving." I begged, the sobs still there. I sighed before pressing my forehead to the doorway, the tiny 'O' engraved in it seeming to mock me now.
Odette was slowly drifting away, soaring higher and higher out of my reach as the seconds passed, just like the swans I had painted in her room so long ago.
I was about to just leave her be, set the tray down next to the others and let her have her desired privacy, when all of a sudden the sobs stopped. At first I had thought I imagined it, the abrupt stopping of tears, but soon realized something worse was happening.
I set down the tray and raced to open the door with my keys when I heard a hard thud hit the floor, the air suddenly eerily quiet.
"Odette? Odette!" I had shouted as I burst into the room, the sight in front of me haunting in a strange way.
Jewelry had been scattered all around the room, the light gleaming off the precious gemstones almost blinding me. Diamonds, rubies, sapphires, emeralds, all of them had been seemingly thrown around as earrings, bracelets, and necklaces lay on the floor. Dresses had been yanked from the closet, tulle, satin, and lace creating an angry mess of pastel colors. The sheets had been pulled off the bed, like Odette had ran out of things to throw and ended up settling for her sheets. Her vanity mirror had cracked, spilled makeup littering the tabletop along with my anchor ring.
And there, in the middle of the chaotic mess of beauty and the tools needed to acquire it, lay my little swan.
Her quest for perfection had finally broken her.
I rushed over to her as soon as I saw her unconscious form, holding her in my arms tight until I let out a sigh of relief. She was breathing, her heart was still beating, she was alright. She had only passed out from a lack of food, and I had to hold back tears when I saw the horrid state she had put herself into.
Her ruby red ballgown had been haphazardly thrown on, the buttons in the back not even buttoned up all the way and a sleeve falling down her arm. Her hair, usually in one of Falene's intricate creations, had pieces falling out of the beautiful braid I'm sure it was before. Her mascara had made dried trails down her cheeks, and her eyes were red and puffy from crying all day.
She was a mess, but she was still the beautiful and vibrant girl I had Chosen, and I was going to fix her up and get her back on if her feet if she needed it.
I gently carried her to her bed, laying her down on the plush mattress before picking her blankets up from the floor and returning them to their rightful place.
No matter how long I spent rummaging through her cabinet drawers in search of a proper nightgown, I couldn't find one. My mind refused to wonder if maybe she had thrown those too, or maybe ripped them apart somewhere hidden in her room. I didn't dawdle on the thought for too long though, rushing to my room to grab an old soft t-shirt and some flannel pants of mine before rushing back.
I had undressed her quickly, slipping my t-shirt and pajama pants on her tiny frame and tossing the ballgown to the side. Any other time, I may have undressed her for a totally different reason, but now was not the time to think about that.
Odette was sick, albeit mentally, but still sick.
I couldn't stop the small smile from forming on my face when I saw just how tiny she was compared to me. The t-shirt hem fell to her thighs and the pants made her little legs look like a child's. She was adorable and cute, and if she didn't see how perfect she was to me in my eyes, she must be blind.
I pulled up the blankets to keep her warm, then went and grabbed her soup from outside the door. Placing it on her nightstand for when she woke, I mentally debated on whether or not I should stay. She had been locking me out all day, she surely must not want me around when she woke up. Then again, I had to make sure she ate something, so hanging onto that excuse, I pulled up a chair to her bedside. Before sitting by my little swan's side, I grabbed the anchor ring that rested on the broken vanity, slipping it on her finger before kissing the back of her hand.
***
She woke up not long after.
Her hazel eyes had fluttered for a few moments before locking onto me. I waited for a reaction, anything at all, but Odette didn't show any emotion. I held my breath, watching as she tried to sit herself up. A groan escaped her and I immediately got up from my chair to help her, gently easing her back down to lay on the bed.
"How are you feeling?" I asked quietly, but she only turned over and ignored me. I tried my best to not let the stinging sensation inside me get the best of me.
"Can you please eat something for me?" I offered, Odette not moving from her spot. Her back was to me, the fabric of my t-shirt enveloping her tiny torso. I sighed. This was going nowhere, but I had to be patient. "The chefs made you chicken noodle soup, I brought some crackers too if you don't want soup." I whispered, Odette still not moving.
"Please," I begged her for what felt like the hundredth time today. "Please, say something."
There was a deafening silence, and then her voice sounded out, raspy from her crying.
"I know." She spoke in a chilling monotone. I was confused, know about what?
"What do you mean?"
"I know about you and the servant girl." She continued, her back still facing me. She knew about the party? About the presents? I was about to ask her how she had figured it out, when she spoke again.
"I know you've been cheating on me, Zayn."
Wait...what?
"Huh? What are you talking about?" I questioned her, but she only scoffed. She turned back around to face me, hazel eyes now watery with more tears.
"I heard your entire conversation with her two days ago. You told her to tell me she was doing some cleaning and then she should meet you in your quarters. Don't bother denying it." She whispered. She was broken, falling apart right in front of me. But she didn't need to be, I had been faithful to her the entire time. I had no idea where she was getting this idea from.
"Yeah, but you don't understand. I was asking her to-" Odette was angry now, cutting me off halfway.
"I found a shirt with her lipstick on it. I have all the evidence I need." She argued, and my mind suddenly connected the pieces together. The lipstick that had uncapped in my closet, it had smudged on the shirt she had found. My eyes grew wide with the realization.
"Wait, baby, no. That's not it, I swear." I started, but she was already crying again.
"I'm sure that's what they all say." She whispered before moving to turn away from me again. I gently gripped her hand, refusing to let her pull away until she heard me out. I decided to give up on the surprise party, deciding spoiling the surprise was worth saving my future with Odette.
"No, you don't understand. I was asking her to come to my quarters to wrap presents. She was helping me plan a surprise seventeenth birthday party for you, everyone has been." I admitted, Odette staring at me in confusion. "Falene took you out shopping that one day so I could pick up some presents, we were going to decorate the entire Manor tonight for the big party."
Odette seemed speechless as she processed this new information.
"B-but...the shirt..."
"Had a lipstick stain from one of your presents on it. I hid the presents in my closet, and one of them was a few new lipsticks. I guess one of them uncapped and smeared all over the shirt you found. I had to go get a replacement one yesterday night."
My little swan didn't say anything as she took everything in. I got up from my chair, leaning over her until I kissed her forehead.
"Please, believe me. You're the only one I've ever-" I stopped. I was about to say something I wasn't supposed to yet, my body freezing before I regained my composure. "Wanted. You're the only one I've ever wanted."
Odette didn't seem to notice my hesitation, her hands reaching to wrap around my neck and pull me down in a hug before she wept happy tears this time.
"Oh my God, I was so scared. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." She blubbered on and on, a tiny laugh escaping me as I wrapped my arms around her, hugging her back just as tightly.
I've got you baby, don't worry. You're my one and only.
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A/N: MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE EVEN THOUGH IT'S REALLY LATE AND BASICALLY NOT CHRISTMAS ANYMORE lol. I hope everyone got everything they wanted, and if you don't celebrate Christmas, I hope you had a wonderful holiday season! :) -M
Also, I'm so proud of myself on this 5 page chapter like yes, you go maddie *gives self high-five*