Bloom: The Kingdom of Archer Series: Book I

by J Rose

  “Please. Please,” I cry to Maxwell, trying to crawl away as he moves closer. He shifts back to his Nova form in a blink of an eye, his mouth foams and I can see it in his eyes. He’s going to kill me.

  “I warned you,” Maxwell says, his voice menacing before he leaps and I scream.

  “Lyric!”

  “Lyric!”

  Waking up I find myself looking at Parker and I feel relief but at the same time, that nightmare is still fresh in my mind.

  “Parker,” I cry out while he hugs me tightly.

  “You’re okay. He’s not going to hurt you I promise.”

  “Please. Please. Don’t let go of me,” I wanted to say too afraid of finding myself alone. More than anything, of realizing that this was just a dream and my nightmare was my reality.

  #

  (Parker)

  I can feel her heart beating against my own. Both in sync, and at the same time we don’t seem to be close enough. Her soft scent clouds my senses. She’s so close and yet not close enough.

  “I love you so much,” I want to tell her. But I can’t seem to find the right words to leave my mouth.

  “I’m broken. I can’t love. I can’t. Feel.” She begins. Her voice is soft, but her eyes remain closed, welcoming my touch. All I can do is pull her closer to me. Her words make me hurt for her, for both of us. Though the distance between us now physically is nothing but a few inches, the distance in our hearts still feels so far away.

  “But. I want to. I want to give this a chance. Maybe just-”

  Her words make my heart race because it confirms what I’ve wanted to hear for such a long time. It gives me hope that she’s not forcing herself to be with me out of circumstance. Pressing my forehead against her own, unable to keep myself from resisting, because I want to kiss her again. I want to feel her lips pressed against my own. I want to have her reciprocate my love the way I want. My hand raises to her cheek and I can’t help but reach to caress her lips with my thumb gently. Mostly because I can’t believe she’s allowing me to do this. At the same time, I want to give her a chance to push me away if she wishes…. But she doesn’t.

  “I want to be happy,” She continues unaware that she’s pulling herself closer to me, further confirming to me that she also wants this.

  “I want to make you happy,” I say to her because now I know there is no hesitation on her part. There is nothing that can stop us from finally taking a step towards our happiness, from taking another step in the right direction.

  “Kiss her.” My heart screams out.

  “Please.”

  #

  Her pleas are what wake me up from my own dreams and I find myself going to her.

  “Please. No Please,” She continues to cry out while she flails around in a panic.

  “Lyric,” I call out to her, trying to wake her from her nightmare, but it’s no use.

  “Lyric!” I call out again grabbing her gently trying to shake her awake and this time she does open her eyes to look at mine. She’s shaking, her eyes are filled with so much terror. She had not looked at me that way since the fire and my heart clenches. I don’t need to ask because I know who brings her just as much fear as her father once did. Maxwell.

  Hugging her tightly I try to offer some comfort, hoping that she calms down.

  “Parker!” She calls out in fear hugging me back tightly, clinging to me in desperation as she shakes against me in fear.

  “You’re okay. He’s not going to hurt you I promise.” I tell her, trying to ease her worries. Instead, she tightens her hold on me wrapping her arms around my neck tightly and all I can do is hug her back.

  “Please. Please. Don’t let go of me,” She begs, resting her head on my shoulder. I can feel my shirt immediately wet with tears and I know that she’s crying.

  “I won’t. I promise,” I whisper to her and for the longest of times we simply sit there in the quiet, her clinging on to me. Her soft cries are heard across the room and all I can do is hold her, promising her that things will be alright.

  When she finally stops crying she just stays there in my arms. Her own arms are still wrapped around my neck while she lays her head on my chest.

  “You shouldn’t think of him anymore,” I tell her, causing her to lift her head up away from my chest and to look up at me. Her eyes are blotchy and stained red from crying so much. There is a look in her eyes that makes me want to pull her close to me again, but she pushes herself away from me and moves to hug her knees close.

  “I just. I can’t live like this Parker,” Lyric whispers, and my heart clenches when I realize this is also partially my fault.

  “I’m sorry if I wasn’t-”

  “That’s not what I mean,” She speaks her voice soft.

  “I’m tired of being afraid. I don’t want to be afraid of everyone and everything that surrounds me. It shouldn’t be like this. I shouldn’t be so afraid,” Lyric says.

  “It’s okay I can-”

  “No.” She speaks tears in her eyes once more.

  “I shouldn’t be afraid to live, to love, to want to be happy,” She cried.

  “Lyric. This isn’t your fault,” I speak to her reaching to caress her cheek softly and wiping her tears in the process. Her eyes close gently, welcoming my touch, something that I realize is hard for her.

  “It shouldn’t be like this. And I’m sorry. But the life you lived before, and how I acted. It affected you but. I’ll wait,” I tell her, and she opens her eyes to look at me with confusion and a mix of something else that I cannot comprehend. Somehow I realize it’s not a bad thing because she simply reaches for my hand on her own and offers a soft sad smile.

  “I’ll wait for you to love me and want the same things that I want with you,” I tell her.

  For a moment, her bottom lip begins to quiver while she looks down.

  “I’m sorry Parker. It’s my fault too. I should have talked to you back then. I wanted to talk to you too. But I was afraid,” Lyric cried and my mind flashes back immediately to our first meeting.

  “I couldn’t face what my heart was telling me and I just. Couldn’t let anyone in.” I couldn’t hear it anymore not her cries or how much pain she was in because it broke my heart to hear her speak of that time.

  “I’m sorry that you’re stuck with me. I’m broken I can’t-”

  “You’re not,” I tell her cutting her off and pulling her close to me once again.

  “Life’s been cruel to you. But I can fix it. If your heart and your soul are broken then, I’ll give you my own. We both made mistakes back then but more than anything I wish I could have dealt with things differently. If only I had fought harder for you. Maybe then you would have been better,” I tell her.

  “But now. I want to fight harder. I want to fight for you and love you the way that you deserve. You say you’re broken, but that’s not what I see when I look at you.” She doesn’t say anything after that. Not that she needs to, instead she simply pulls herself closer to me and I can’t help but press a kiss to her cheek.

  “I promise. I’ll make things better. I’ll be better,” I whisper to her.

  Discussing Maxwell, the Kingdom, or anything else that was going on at the moment wasn’t important because I realized then that though I thought she didn’t need me. Lyric did. Whatever she wanted, whatever it was she needed I would try to be that for her because I loved her and nothing was going to change that. Time went on like this, and before long I could feel her begin to fall asleep again until she was practically laying limp in my arms. Her eyes were closed and her head slowly began rolling to the side on my shoulder. Laying her back on the bed I covered her up with the bed sheets and pressed a kiss to her forehead. I had every intention to leave but her voice stopped me.

  “Oliver says. You sleep outside my door every night,” Though she spoke, her eyes remained closed and her voice soft. From the way her voice appeared to slur I could tell she was not fully asleep and yet not fully awake.

  “You
don’t have to do that.” She whispered once again.

  “Stay with me. Here.” She spoke, and then, there was silence.

  CHAPTER 17:

  THIRD OPTION?

  (Lyric)

  Warmth. I could feel the ray of sunlight slowly rise to my face warming it up. The sun rays hit my closed eyes until there was a soft glowing bright orange light I could see through the darkness. Turning away from it to lay on my right side, I opened my eyes slowly to find Parker asleep on the floor. He was laying on his stomach his face was buried in a large white pillow one hand to his side while the other was at an odd angle beside me. Had I turned any more I would have crushed his arm.

  “Why was he here?” I thought to myself only for the night before to come flooding back to my mind rapidly. I had cried… I had told him my fears… I had let Parker comfort me the way no one else had and then… then I had asked him to stay with me. That part, I couldn’t understand. Yes, I wanted to be closer to him. I wanted to give us a chance. I wanted to have a life with a man I had for so long tried to avoid. It was never fear, never terror, it was confusion.

  For a moment I contemplated what to do. Should I wake him up? What would I say? How could I act when the night before I had invited him to my bedroom?

  “Our bedroom,” I corrected myself because we both lived here. We were both supposed to be sleeping in the same bedroom.

  The sun began to move closer, rising above higher and higher, ready to light the room up. I realized it would be a few seconds before the room was entirely lit up. I didn’t want to wake him. Mostly because I didn’t really know how to do that. I wanted to give us a chance but part of me was still so shy. I suppose shyness was part of my character, so I would wait. Pulling the bed sheets closer to myself, I laid back on my side raising the bed sheets just above my chest and facing his hand. I would wait for him to wake up when the sun hit but that didn’t seem to happen when the room was lit. I realized he was facing down, and that was partially why he didn’t wake up. The other part was exhaustion. Parker had stayed countless nights sleeping outside my bedroom trying to protect me, taking care of me, stressing over me, even before Maxwell came in to the picture. Reaching for his hand I traced his knuckles softly with my finger. I had held his hand before and it always felt so rough. His hand wasn’t much bigger than mine but they were always so rough and somehow, even with that, he had the gentlest touch I had ever felt. No matter what happened in the past, or even now, never once had Parker Archer laid a hand on me that was not gentle. Never once had he tried to grab me by force or force me to do anything I didn’t want to.

  “I’ll wait for you.” That was what he had said to me, and I realized that he had been waiting.

  Long before either of us knew what was ahead of us. Parker had been waiting for me. My heart began to flutter and I could only pull the sheets closer to me and curl myself into their warmth. Not because I was trying to stop the fuzzy feeling inside, but because I was afraid Parker would hear my heart. Did the past matter? Did my past with Parker Archer matter? Yes. Why? Because it was what shaped this life that we were to live together. I would be kidding myself if I were to say that what he had done to me had been okay; because it wasn’t. I was still hurt by his words, but somehow what he had done for me afterward had certainly outweighed that past. There was so much I didn’t know yet. There was so much of both of us that I had not figured out as a whole and as separate people. But I wanted to discover that part together. I wanted to discover that future with him. Was I in love with Parker Archer? No. But I was pretty damn close. Getting up from the bed quietly, I simply headed to the window to shut the curtains, so that once again there would be darkness in the room. Grabbing a few of the bed sheets on the bed, I covered Parker up and then headed into the shower to get ready. If he wanted to rest, then I would let him.

  #

  Walking downstairs to the dining area, I could see Andrew, Crystal, Spencer and King Thomas already at the table. Once they saw me, they simply offered a smile and Oliver, who had been waiting outside my bedroom, had simply followed suit.

  “Morning Lyric,” Andrew spoke up, offering a bright smile while Oliver simply pulled a chair out for me to sit next to Andrew on my left side. With a polite bow, Oliver then walked away.

  “Morning. Everyone,” I managed to say before I was served by one of the maids. My breakfast consisting of chopped strawberries, melon, grapes and several other fruits. In front of me a glass of fresh squeezed orange juice.

  “Lyric. Where’s Parker?” Crystal questioned, a confused look on her face. Something else flickered in her eyes that I couldn’t quite understand, but she seemed to be looking between Andrew and I.

  “He’s asleep. He was tired and. I didn’t really want to wake him,” I whispered feeling my cheeks tint with their usual red.

  “Oh.” Crystal spoke quietly before once again, the room filled with silence and everyone began to eat. The only noise really coming from the room was the clinking of the forks hitting the plate and the lifting and setting down of the glasses.

  “Mr. Green,” King Thomas spoke up to Andrew, who turned to look at the King immediately. Though unlike the normal Nova, Andrew was not intimidated when addressed by the King. If anything Andrew seemed quite relaxed and confident.

  “How is your father Councilmen Green?” The King asked.

  For a second, I had almost forgotten the fact that my lion friend was indeed the son of a councilmen. Councilman Green was one of the greatest and fairest of the councilmen. I had no doubt in my mind that it was because of Andrew’s father that I had been able to decide my own destiny. If not for Councilman Green my faith would have been much different.

  “He’s doing fine.” Andrew answered politely; before he continued.

  “The council’s been quite busy lately given the situation at hand, but my father says they are handling the situation as best they can, given the circumstances.” Feeling a hand reach for my own I jumped in surprise, startled at Andrew, who held my left hand tightly in his.

  “We care for Lyric. Ever since she came to live with us five years ago we’ve been taken with her. She’s kind,” Andrew spoke, and I found myself feeling uncomfortable. More so with the stares I was receiving from everyone.

  “The council has to remain neutral should they not?” Spencer spoke up calmly; though his gaze shifted towards our hands. Pulling with much more force, I managed to set my hand free of Andrews’.

  “Yes,” Andrew spoke offering a smile, though I felt more uncomfortable than ever.

  “My father has to, but I don’t. Not yet anyway.”

  “Won’t that affect your eligibility for Council? Taking sides?” Crystal questioned.

  “Maybe. But I’m my father’s only son and I’m not going to fight anyone. I’m just here as Lyrics’ friend. And I want to protect her.”

  “That’s good. We could use more protection for her.” Parker spoke, walking into the dining room.

  Parker’s hand brushed my right shoulder first, kissing my temple, before the screeching of the chair to my right being pulled sounded, and he sat next to me. I didn’t want to turn to look at him, not at the moment. Everyone’s eyes were fixated on the three of us. It was only when Parker took hold of my right hand and gave it a squeeze, that I found myself turning to meet his gaze. In that moment his eyes immediately softened. Offering a smile, Parker simply placed a kiss to my knuckles, and I found myself blushing. I couldn’t seem to move my hand, which somehow felt limp, my heart was doing a little jump causing me to look down.

  “I suppose you do. Given what’s been happening but. If you don’t mind Prince Parker. I’d like to take Lyric on a walk with me. To catch up later. We have a lot to discuss,” Andrew spoke, though when I looked back at Parker there was an edge to his eyes, anger maybe.

  For the longest of times, there was silence and Parker’s gaze was hard, looking past me and towards Andrew. I didn’t want to look back at Andrew either, mostly because I was afraid that the sa
me look would be on his own face. The silence remained for a few more seconds, then Parker’s eyes shifted back to look at me once again and he smiled.

  “Okay. Just don’t leave the castle,” Parker said. After that, no other words were really uttered again. There was such tension in the air I almost forgot to breathe. Had Parker not kept his hand interlocked to mine squeezing it every few seconds I would have forgotten to keep breathing.

  #

  Walking with Andrew had always come so naturally. We could be together silently, and I would always find myself enjoying it because there was calm. There was always such peace, but now? I felt uncomfortable. Now there wasn’t peace because there was someone else. The hardest part was not being able to reciprocate Andrew’s feelings. I cared for Andrew. Of course not in the way I cared for Parker, but it was mostly because with Andrew, I was simply grateful for everything he’d done for me.

  “Lyric,” Andrew spoke first. The way he always did, cutting off the uncomfortable air between us and causing me to look at him. There was a smile on his face that seemed melancholic, it was ironic really. I had always been the lost one, the sad one, and right now it seemed like our roles were reversed.

  “Do you remember when we met?” Andrew questioned sadly, taking my hand as we walked along the green grass of what was the small forest of the Archer castle.

  “Of course.”

  #

  It was strange… Being in a place that was outside of Archer. Sure, this was a city that was part of the Kingdom, but it was mostly leading toward neutral ground where the council lived. The council could choose to live outside of Archer, they could choose to live in Archer or Cray for that matter. Though it seemed like everyone that belonged to the council seemed to drift mostly toward the middle line right smack down where Archer and the Council lands seemed to meet.

  “Lyric. We’re here sweetie,” My mother spoke up gently, while I clutched my bag to me tightly and stepped out of the car. It was hard to move again I realized, and I feared loneliness. I could have laughed at how pathetic I was being but then again, I didn’t know what laughter was.