Her green eyes were absolutely mesmerising, you would want to simply drown in them. Her rosy cheeks complimented by a captivating smile. And for a moment - in that specific moment - we got lost in each other's gaze.
But she was the first one to return to reality. Immediately, she pulled her hand back and hid her face further into the hood of her cape. "Forgive me for staring, good sir."
"There is no need to apologise. As a matter of fact, I should be the one who needs to apologise for all the mess I made," I replied. I continued, "As a man who upholds the belief of being well-mannered, every action that I did has been wrong decision-making on my end." Once every single fruit was returned to her basket, I stood back up alongside her.
She then scanned my entire being. Her eyes travelled from my head, down to my toes and back to my face. "Why are you even in this alley, good sir? By your manner of dressing, you don't seem to be from around this area."
"I am but a humble traveller. However, some men were sent after me, and I needed a place to hide. Not only for myself, but for my horse as well," I explained as I gestured towards Lady. "However, as I can see from here," I continued as I looked around, "There's nowhere to hide in this part of the town."
The thunderous gallops of horses echoed from afar. "Are those the men after you?" she asked.
I turned to look behind me. They were getting closer by the second. "Please, madam," I returned to her, "I need a place to hide quickly."
She nodded and without hesitation, she grabbed my hand. I grabbed Lady by her reins and merely followed the madam's lead. She led us into a dark, narrow alley with a dead end. I put Lady at the very end so nobody could see even a trace of silhouette. We waited patiently until they arrived.
In a matter of seconds, they stopped right in front of the alley where we were hiding in. I held my breath and turned to Lady. I touched her face to keep her calm and quiet. I then closed my eyes and silently prayed that they wouldn't be able to find us.
"Search every alley! Scout every street!" the captain yelled out his orders. He continued, "The prince must be returned to the castle before the royal family arrives!"
My heart raced faster as multiple close calls happened.
Thankfully, they didn't remain in the alley for that long. They all rode away, their horses whinnied as they galloped away.
The lady then stepped out from the hidden alley, and looked in both directions. Once everything felt settled down, she gestured for me to come out of the dark. I grabbed Lady's reins, and immediately stepped back out the light.
I sighed, relieved. The few seconds that the Royal Guards were within the same proximity as us felt like an eternity of torture. A situation that I would never want to put myself back into.
"That was a close one," I remarked. I proceeded to look around once more, still on my toes with my surroundings.
"Those men looked like royal guards. Why were they after you?" she asked as she stared at me and waited for an explanation. Slowly, her eyes widened, as if she came into a realisation. Once more, she looked at me from top to bottom and asked, "Are you… some sort of… royalty? Were you the prince that their leader mentioned?"
My heart froze as she carelessly blurted out her questions.
"Come," I gently pulled her to the side, my voice lowered. We stood in front of an abandoned shop and I continued, "You were right when you said I am not from this place."
"You are not the humble traveller that you claimed to be, aren't you?" she asked another, a bit impatient with my response.
A smile slowly crept on my face. "Yes, I am the prince that the captain mentioned a while ago. They were sent after me because as a prince, I wasn't supposed to go outside on my own. Most especially, if it's in a place that I am not familiar with," I replied.
With a teasing tone, she remarked, "Well, that explains why you're running into random streets."
I chuckled as I scratched my nape. I then replied, "But, with all that debacle aside, I would like to thank you for your help, madam."
"There's no need to thank me, sir," her smile radiated from under her hood. She continued, "Also, you don't have to address me so formally. I am of humble birth."
Even the slightest silhouette of her smile was enough to drive me insane. I would love to see her beauty without the cloak on.
I looked up to the sky and said, "It's not that hot here." I returned to her and reached out in an attempt to remove her hood. "Don't you think it's best to--"
"Don't!" she screamed, holding her hood in place as she stepped away from me.
"My apologies," I knelt right away, with my head lowered. "I understand that it was too invasive. I crossed a line."
"No, wait," she stuttered. I looked back at her and she continued, "I'm sorry for my sudden reaction. It's just that whenever I'm outside, I never remove my hood. I don't like the feeling of being stared at by other people." Her gaze immediately landed onto her feet.
"My sincerest apologies," I bowed briefly. "I was being too brash. I didn't even ask for your permission. You were uncomfortable with it, and I didn't even consider your feelings."
"However, you were right about the weather. It's not that sunny today, and I've been feeling a bit of sweat for a while now," she replied. She added, "And besides, it's best to see the face of the stranger you're speaking with, am I correct?"
"You don't have to remove your hood if you don't want to," I quickly answered. I continued, "I understand completely that it would make you feel uncomfortable. And I wouldn't want you to feel that way."
"No, truly, I don't mind," she said as he put her hands in front of her. "I appreciate that you apologised for what you did, and you didn't push anything further. It's mere manners that I should show my face," she continued.
Gently, she removed her cloak, revealing a brownish-black hair; a small amount of it was braided into a crown. Her eyes glowed in the faint sunlight. Her smile became clearer, which left me completely breathless.
I didn't notice that I was staring for quite a while until she asked, "Is there something wrong with my face?"
"Oh, um," I stuttered as I looked everywhere else to avoid her gaze. I looked down to my feet and continued, "There's nothing wrong with you. You're… quite… beautiful." Slowly, I returned to her.
Her cheeks turned red immediately. She looked away to hide her blushing face. Right then and there, a painful silence came in between us.
My mind panicked as I struggled to keep the conversation going.
'Oh, her name!' I thought to myself. 'You haven't asked for her name yet, you idiot!'
"If you don't mind me asking, my lady, but may I ask for your name?" I asked as I broke the silence.
"Well, my name…" she stammered, her eyes landing on her feet. "I can't say that it's my real name."
"What do you mean?" I asked as my eyes furrowed.
"I don't really have a name. Well," she immediately shook her head and continued, "I was given a name. But, it was more of a… title, of some sort."
"I don't understand," I replied as I was even more baffled.
"It's quite a long story. It may take the whole day for me to explain everything," she giggled shyly after her reply.
I smiled, "I think I can keep up with any story. But, before you tell me the story, can you tell me your name first?"
"I don't think that will be a possibility," she chuckled. She added, "And I don't recall even agreeing to tell you the reason behind my given name."
I asked, "Why is telling your story an impossibility?"
She said, "I have to return to work, unfortunately. I've already taken too much time away from it."
My eyes widened as my brows furrowed even more. "You… work?"
"Yes, in a bakery," she nodded with enthusiasm.
"In that case, we should start heading back," I turned to Lady and prepared her for the journey.
"Wait," she put her hand out, stepping closer to me. She continued, "Did I hear you correctly? Did you just say 'we'? And won't your horse attract a crowd, prince?" she smirked as she called me by my title.
"Oh, of course," I stopped, remembering the chaos that happened just not too long ago. I already caused too much chaos, and I wouldn't want that to happen again. However, I couldn't just let her walk alone. " As of the moment, I couldn't care less about that. What matters is to keep you safe on your way back," I replied.
"What for?" she asked again, confused. She continued, "I'm not trying to be rude towards you. But, I don't think my safety is any of your concern."
I explained, "Look at it in this perspective: it's me, repaying the kindness that you've shown me a while ago. At the same time, it's another sort of apology for scaring you with Lady."
"Goodly prince, there is no need for that," she replied.
I knew it. She truly has a persistent character to herself. It was too strong for someone who looked demure and gentle. It was quite a shock, but interesting as well.
"First of all, madam," I winked as I uttered "madam". With a smirk, I continued, "I insist on doing so. Second, you don't have to address me by my title. You may call me by my name, which is simply Robert."
I added, "And third, I believe you owe me a nickname, as well as a story. I might as well walk you back to the bakery."
"Wouldn't it be better if you simply do not repay my kindness, and we go our separate ways? Which is how perfect strangers should be?" she asked with a child-like smile.
"I'm afraid it's a bit too late for that, madam. At this point, my interest in your story has piqued. I must know the person who helped me today," I replied, insisting on what I want. "And trust me, I won't stop until I know your name, and the story that you still need to tell me."
She rolled her eyes, and scoffed. "My nickname - well, what is considered to be my name - is Laura," she smiled.
I bowed and reached for her hand. Gently, I laid a peck on her knuckles. "It's an honour for a man, such as myself, to meet a lovely and kind-hearted lady like you," I smiled as I looked up to meet her gaze.
As soon as our eyes connected, she quickly pulled her hand back and turned away, right before she blushed completely. "You love to be too formal with everything," she remarked after clearing her throat.
I chuckled as I smiled to myself. "I guess I do," I said as I stood properly.
She then returned to me, smiling gladly. A small amount of blush remained on her cheeks.
Oh, how I would love to stare at her smile for as long as possible. Her smile somehow has given me the feeling of unbothered calmness and joy. "I'll consider Laura as your true name. May I ask why you call your name as your given name only?" I asked.
"It's part of the long story that I mentioned," she replied, shyly scratching her nape.
"Then, I suppose we should start heading back to the bakery," I smiled.
She shrugged after a sigh, defeated. "I suppose so," she said, giggling after.
Without another moment to waste, we began to walk and she started her story.
~*~*~*~
We had walked for a while now, and Laura has told me almost everything about her. From her unknown origins, to being an abandoned infant found at the footsteps of a failing orphanage, Laura managed to survive the odds. It made her become the strong person that she was today.
At this moment, we were walking down a street that was called Bullingar. It was also a busy marketplace, but it wasn't as chaotic as the first one I encountered. It was filled with numerous stalls with different themes, creating a wide range of colours on the street.
And to my relief, not a single crowd happened when we took our first steps into this area of the town. It would seem that the people in this certain part of town weren't fazed with seeing a stranger and his horse.
"How is your origins connected to your given name?" I asked.
"According to the headmistress, there was a storm when I was found on their doorstep. They thought I was going to catch a cold, and have a high fever. But to their surprise, I didn't," she explained. She continued, "I also had my fair share of illnesses before, both mild and deadly ones. They believed I was going to be devoured by a certain deadly disease. But, I never crossed the bridge between life and death. They thought I was favoured by the heavens. They named me 'Laura' after that, which meant victory, strength, and favoured by all."
I nodded. "I understand why they gave you that name. It suits you well," I replied.
"And why would you say that?" she asked.
Smiling, I said, "Your attitude is one of someone who refused to quit. And that quality of yours has helped you survive over the years."
Smiling to herself, she turned her face away from me. As she tucked some of her hair onto her ear, she returned to me and said, "That was too kind for you to say. I don't usually accept compliments, but I want to thank you for what you said." We shared a brief giggle when she came to a halt. "Here we are."
I looked up and read the sign that was hung in front of the roof.
Winston Bakery.
I looked back to the front of the bakery and it was a modest-looking shop. A few bricks were out of order, and the front window seemed to be a bit slanted than the normal fashion. Barrels and crates were placed beside a wooden bench that sat in front of the said window.
But, even though the bakery didn't look fancy, nor did it have vibrant colours, it was still visited by many. The townspeople would come and go from the inside. Perhaps, the food here was amazing. And that could easily be proven as I could smell a bit of the aroma from the inside as it escaped through the door and chimney. Suddenly, my stomach grumbled as my mouth thirsted for what entered my nostrils.
"Are you a baker? Or do you have a different position?" I asked as I turned to her.
"I don't have a particular task here in the bakery. I simply assist everyone with theirs," she replied. "And as you can tell," she briefly raised her basket, "I was asked to buy some ingredients needed for today."
I nodded.
"Well, I should head back inside. They're probably looking for me," she slowly made her way towards the entrance.
"Oh, of course," my tone changed as my emotions rapidly went from being enthusiastic, to sombre. For some reason, I didn't want her to leave. I wanted to spend more time with her. Her kindness and calmness radiated all over her. And that wasn't easily found in my realm, even here amongst the mortals. Maybe, that was the reason why I found her to be intriguing.
"Robert?" I looked instantly at her as she said my name. She walked back to me and asked, "Are you all right?"
"Well–"
"Laura, where have you been?"