by sarah faith
Little by little, slowly but surely, the love of my life calmed down. I did everything I could in that kiss to get her attention, and I'm assuming it worked. She placed her arms around my middle and I felt her relax. Finally. I didn't want my lips to release themselves from hers but they did. It was the only way we'd be getting anywhere in this conversation of course I could kiss her all night but she would still think I was a liar well I guess I was in a way. Arrrgh! Why did being a prince come with such annoying side effects? She looked at me; eyes filled with love, and clung to me tighter than ever before. Gosh, I loved this girl.
I brought her back over to the bench and we sat down together. For a couple of minutes, I just stroked her hair while she rested her head on my shoulder. Then she sat up and wiped her face.
"I'm so sorry, Freddie. I must look like a freak to you right now. I don't know what came over me." "It's perfectly normal. Holding feelings like that inside for months isn't exactly ideal," I said.
She smiled at me sadly and laughed sadly as well. "You'd better start talking while I'm normal. It might not last long."
I took her hands in mine and took a deep breath. "Arianne I'm -uh- well I guess I'd better come out with it and just say it, huh?"
Arianne just nodded. So I cleared my throat and told her.
"Arianne, my name is Frederick Stephan Papillion III and I'm the Prince of Beiland."
And that's how it started. I told her everything. I told her of my parent's death, my search for a queen so I could finally rule, the enemies, the threats, the murder, the jealousy; hatred. I voiced my deepest concerns, my childhood, my favorite part of the palace, my favorite $4,000 suit Everything that I could possibly muster up about my life I told her. Then, an hour and a half later I told her about coming to America.
"I was walking up to my rooms and my bodyguard, Jameson, tried to tell me that I was knocking on the wrong door, but I didn't listen. And you know what, gorgeous? I'm glad I didn't. Because that's when I met you. You want to know something?" I asked softly.
She nodded a little bit.
"When I first saw you, doll, I was overwhelmed. I don't even remember what I said. Your beauty was beyond anything that I've ever seen in all my years of fancy balls and parties. All the women there are so artificial and since I've come to know you more and more, I find that I- I love you for a new reason every day. We ARE meant to be, Arie. I know it might not seem like it, but you've got to know that I have hated lying to you. Sometimes I couldn't sleep because I was forcing myself not to walk over to your room and just tell you all that I have now. I'm so sorry. All of this is my fault, none yours. How were you supposed to know that I am who I am?" I put my hand on her face and smoothed my thumb over her blushing cheek. "I love you Arianne. More then you'll ever possibly imagine. I don't know what else I can say. But you, sweet doll, are everything that I want, and it will always be you, only you. Until the day I die."
Arianne
Oh my Gosh. Oh my word, did he just tell me he loved me? Did he just tell me I was beautiful; gorgeous even? Did he just say that we were meant to be and did he just tell me that he was a freakin' prince???? I have never done this before, so don't ask me why I decided right now that my body was too weak for this
moment I fainted.
I woke up the next morning. My head didn't hurt, and my eyes weren't blurry like a normal case of what happens after fainting, but everyone WAS crowded around my bed like they thought I was going to die. What do you expect? My hunk of a boyfriend just told me that he was a prince AND that he loved me and I was pretty much going to be a queen in one night. That's a lot to take, thank you very much.
I saw everyone around me in chairs sleeping soundly. Freddie, my wonderful prince, looked like he had fallen asleep sitting beside me, because he was lying on the bed holding my hand in a strange position. My aunt and uncle had brought up their old rocking chairs and I laughed when I heard the comforting sound of my uncle's snoring.
The birds sang outside the window where the sunlight had broken into. It cast warm rays throughout my room causing a warm, cozy feeling on all of us. I looked at the ones I cared about so very much. They looked so very peaceful, and I didn't want to wake them up Just yet! As carefully as I could, I climbed out from under my covers and attempted to get out of bed without waking anyone up. I didn't succeed with my plan, for almost as soon as I moved, Freddie was awake, and alert. I put my finger over my mouth, telling him to be quiet and he glanced over at my aunt and uncle and then he gave me a knowing smile. He let go of my hand, but as soon as we had both tiptoed around the bed, we instantly connected again.
Like stealthy spies, Freddie and I snuck down the hallway, down the stairs, past the dining room and into the kitchen with success! Once there, before I could even breathe, Freddie had captured me into his strong arms and was kissing my cheek. I giggled at the feeling, I had always been ticklish there, and placed my arms around his neck. He loved it when I did that so I felt him respond by giving me a squeeze.
The feeling of knowing everything about him, every tiny little thing was so reassuring to me. For once it actually felt like a real relationship, not something that I forced myself to love. Don't get me wrong, though. I loved spending every second with Freddie. It was just hard to be happy when I knew everything wasn't completely right.
"Good morning, love." he whispered then kissed my nose. "Mornin'," I said, still breathless from his kisses.
"Are you feeling ok?" Freddie put his hand on my forehead.
I laughed at his silly attempt to be a doctor. "I don't have a fever, silly. Maybe you should stick to being a prince?"
"I don't really have any other choice," he grinned. "So you aren't disappointed?" "About which part?"
"My being a prince."
"How could I be? Every girl wants to be a princess!"
"Even vicious creatures like you?" He teased and reached his head down to bite my earlobe.
I squirmed and playfully slapped his arm for saying such a thing. "Of course. I don't think I'll mind it." "Well, it's not a piece of cake you know. Like in stories or movies. It's much different than that. Reality is something even Hollywood doesn't want to mess with."
I looked at his hair then brushed my hand through it. It was soft and playful. "I know. Especially from what you told me last night. What, with being kicked out of your own palace? That's awful. But I'll be there for you, always," I said looking him straight into the eyes. I saw his eyes flicker with love and it made my heart well with pride. "There's something I never got to tell you last night though, Freddie."
His eyes suddenly flashed worry and his voice matched it equally. "Oh, yeah?"
I nodded solemnly. "I love you too," I practically whispered. I never thought I would hear those words come out of my mouth. Finally! He knew; I knew everything was right.
Someday My Prince Will Come : Chapter 14
Thanksgiving Break was over much too quickly. It felt so nice to spend a day with Freddie without worrying about leaving for school or volleyball practice. Now that I knew the truth, I looked up to him even more then I previously had. I could tell he was thrilled to be himself again. He could talk the way he wanted, act the way he wanted and say whatever was needed.
We suddenly became like peanut butter and jelly, pizza and pepperonis; even more inseparable then before. Freddie and I still continued our Saturday morning breakfasts, but one morning he changed everything up on me.
"Let's not go to breakfast, tomorrow," he said with a glint in his eye. "Why not?" I pouted, wondering what I could've done?
"Because. I want to take you somewhere a little nicer, and there's not an upscale breakfast place around. Let's do lunch instead."
"Fine," I murmured. "Where are you thinking of?"
Freddie leaned down from where he was standing and kissed my nose. "It's a surprise."
"NO!" I protested. "I hate surprises! They make me feel nauseous," we were walking out of class together and Freddie placed his arm around my waist
.
"That's okay. I'll bring a bag for you to puke in."
I pulled away and smacked his arm as he laughed at me. "You're awful."
"I'm sorry, doll!" he dramatically wrapped his arms around my shoulders and gave them a big squeeze. "How will you ever forgive me?"
"By telling me where we're going?"
"It's nowhere fancy, Arie. Just some place that I saw when I was driving around yesterday," Freddie said, casually.
"Ugh. Alright, I'll go with your obnoxious little plan," I said haughtily, "but you owe me big time!" "You're right. I do," Freddie kissed my lips lightly. My body went into raptures.
Saturday morning came, and I found it strange to wake up with nowhere to go. I decided to take a quick jog; to help myself be alert when Planet Freddie attacked later this afternoon.
I slipped on my running shoes, pulled back my hair and looked at my face in the mirror. Man, I was ugly. I had these horridly dark circles under my eyes, but they weren't too obvious by the way they sparkled. Freddie's powers were uncanny.
I grabbed a Post-it note and scribbled a quick message on it. Smiling, I left my room and shut the door behind me, leaving the note hanging from the front of it.
If, or when, Freddie came over looking for me, this note would tell him why I wasn't answering my door. It read:
'Good morning, sunshine! I'm taking a run, I'll be back in about 45 minutes. I love you. Can't wait until this afternoon. Xoxo. P.S. If you read this before I get back, take it off so I'll know that you haven't been killed in the night. ;) Love, Your doll.'
50 minutes later, I stumbled back into my dorm with heavy legs. They felt like Jell-o! How could I be this out of shape; I was on the volleyball team for goodness sakes! And I hadn't even run the whole 50 minutes! Feeling like a lazy butt, I almost forgot about my note as I neared my door, but then I saw the little yellow slip of paper still on the door. I stopped in front of my room, and realized that it wasn't my note, but a note from Freddie stuck in the place of mine.
Excitement passed through my fingertips as I lifted the adhesive off of the wood, and brought my face closer to the paper so that I could read it properly. The fancy cursive stretched all the way down the front and onto the backside as well. I don't think it's very fair for a boyfriend to have nicer writing than you. Oh pooh.
'Good morning, yourself, doll. I love you too. I'm not going to be around this morning, I have a meeting with Jameson. I just thought I'd let you know, so you didn't come looking for me and then suddenly think that I had been killed in the night. How silly, doll. I love you, again. I'll pick you up at the fountain at around 1:30pm. With all my love, your prince. P.S. Dress VERY warm.'
I sighed dreamily as my door shut with a 'click' behind me.
1:30 could not have come any slower. It was 2,000 years before I finally met the breeze on my face as I walked out of my dorm. It was a beautiful day! The sun was shining and there was a cold breeze, but it was a real pick-up from what the weather had been like recently. I was guessing it was probably 70 degrees; that HAD to be an all time high for Massachusetts weather! Still, I was happy that I had worn something with a little substance.
I had decided on a cute, cozy red turtleneck sweater. It was made of that comfy fabric that had sparkles sewn into the thread, and it was very warm. I had a dark wash pair of straight leg jeans on, and I decided to wear some boots. They were made of dark brown leather and came up to about mid-calf. There was only a tiny bit of heel, but the boots were amazingly comfortable.
Freddie was waiting for me at the fountain when I got there. He was definitely royalty; always on time and precise, looking just about perfect as if it was nothing. A forest fire grin reached his eyes as he saw me. "How is it," he said as both of our hands linked, "that you look so stunning no matter what time of the day or night it is?" Freddie greeted me with a warm hug, and kissed my hand. Yup, prince.
"Oh please," I said, blushing. "So are you going to tell me where we're going, now?" "Of course not," Freddie grinned. I frowned. He smiled. I smiled.
We made our way to his rental truck and he opened the door for me like the gentleman he was. "Do you have everything?" Freddie suddenly asked me.
I thought for a moment then nodded my head. "Mhm. Why?"
"I feel like I'm forgetting something," he responded. We sat in silence for a little while, and then he shrugged it off. "Oh well."
Soon enough we were off, making our way through the ritzy, more upscale part of town. I was twiddling my thumbs in anxious excitement, wondering what would be our final destination.
Then, suddenly we were passing all of the restaurants and pulling into a retarded looking parking lot. Freddie was grinning as he pulled into it, and his face almost burst as we parked. I didn't say anything, partly because I was expecting him to say 'you've been punk'd', and take off to some NICE place; but he didn't. Instead, he surprised me with something else.
"Alright doll, we're here!"
I gave him a look and that was ALL that needed to be said.
"Trust me!!!" he whined. "Oh, and I'm gunna' need you to put on this-" I gaped as Freddie pulled out a black blindfold.
"What the heck, Freddie?" I ogled at it. There is no way that I was getting out of this truck with that thing on my face!
"Please, Arie?" he begged. "You're going to ruin the surprise if you don't."
"UGH!" I groaned, knowing that I couldn't resist his begging. "Fine, but as soon as we get into the restaurant, it comes OFF!" I exclaimed.
"That's the plan." I saw Freddie grin before he tied it around my head, carefully. I couldn't believe I was going through with this. I was going to look like a FOOL.
Freddie got me out of the car a few moments later and I stepped out, like I didn't even have a blindfold. "Which way," I asked spinning in a small circle. Freddie laughed at me and took my hand.
"This way." Freddie grabbed my hand and started leading me off in a random direction. I liked the feeling of following him, and I didn't murmur a sound of distrust. I needed him to know that I trusted him completely now; it wasn't an option. After all, wasn't it the least I could do for not trusting him before?
I was caught up in my thoughts, but the smell of cooking food caught my attention. Apparently, we had walked into a restaurant, for I could hear the murmur of people and glasses and cups clinking. The food smelled delicious, but I couldn't put my finger on what kind it was?
Someday My Prince Will Come : Chapter 15
It definitely wasn't Italian or French, no not Japanese, I ruled that out as well. Greek? Maybe. I found this all very exciting as Freddie spoke to whoever the hostess was. My heart was pounding, and I was glad that Freddie forced me into this. It was fun.
I was carefully listening for the hosts' response and the dialect of the diners; maybe their accents would give me a clue as to what culture this was? However, Freddie and I started walking to our table without even a word from the seat assigner or any of the guests. What???
I smirked as I realized that this was planned. My, my, seems that my little Freddie isn't as innocent as he looks. My heart swelled as I realized how much thought he put into all of this. Did I have the best guy out there or what?
"Watch your step, we're going up!" Freddie warned me. "Stairs?" I murmured to myself. "What on earth?"
I climbed the steep stairs with some help from Freddie. They were wooden and they creaked from the wind, which told me we were now outside. I had thought that I figured this whole thing out, but this new outdoor thing threw me off completely!
We finally reached the top of wherever we were, and I heard some footsteps pat away from me. Now, it was just me and Freddie.
"Alright, we're here!" Freddie took my hand from his, but gently placed it on a chair. I seated myself and I couldn't help but smile. This was something completely new to me. It's not every day that I get blindfolded and led around.
"So," Freddie said, as I heard him take his seat, "Have any guesses so far?"
I could hear the
smile on his lips and I wrinkled my nose at him. "How could I? Everyone in the entire restaurant went silent as we walked through. Very sneaky."
"I thought it might be. But go ahead. Take a guess."
"Hmm," I pondered. "I'm thinking it's pretty dainty but fancy at the same time, seeing as how we're on a roof/patio of some sort, but it's at the back of the restaurant…there's no noise."
"Bravo," Freddie said, still smiling. "What else?
"It's an exotic sort of place, maybe Greek? I'm not sure. I can't put my finger on it. But I'm assuming that was also planned."
"Bravo times two," he said with a slight chuckle. "You really are perceptive for a blind woman."