[Past Life]
Prince Erik and I began enjoying our second year together as a couple in school. We went on multiple dates inside as well as outside of the school. I could only describe our time together as bliss despite the fact that I had not yet found any of his hidden lovers yet.
However, reality must come back to our faces.
His Highness' advisor Garett Alvin (reality) came to me before lunch.
"Please stop hogging His Highness to yourself," Garett said.
"Hogging?"
"His Highness refuses to look for concubines and spends all of his time with you."
Garett Alvin is the son of one of many Advisors to the King. He has long black hair tied into a low ponytail wears unfashionably large round spectacles.
"I only answer to His Highness' calls. I do not have any right to refuse them. As his Advisor, I believe that any faults in him lies within your jurisdiction."
He is a really stingy person.
"Let me remind you that you are a replaceable piece," he said sharply.
I began walking past him.
"I see that there is no point in speaking to each other any further. A word of advice..."
"What is it?" he asked.
"A man like yourself should not go out of their way to invite a young engaged woman to a secluded area to talk of such boring things," I said coldly.
I went to see His Highness underneath the shade of a large tree afterwards.
"You took your time to get here, Ari," Prince Erik said with a smile.
"I was held up by trouble," I said as I sat beside Prince Erik over a red picnic blanket.
"Garett?"
"Impeccable guessing."
"...He has been bothering me too, asking me seek out more wives."
"He complained that I am hogging you to myself too often," I said.
"If I were to divide my attention to someone else, I would lose my time with you," he said as he pushed me to the ground and hovered over me.
"How about humoring him? It would release some of the scorn he has for me," I said.
"Are you telling me to find another wife?" he asked as he laid beside me.
"...I have no right over controlling your actions. You will be King...I am yours, but you will never be mine," I said.
"Why is that?"
"I am but a single flower to you. Once you remove my petals, I am no longer beautiful," I said as I swept part of his hair over his ears.
He rolled over and laid his body on top of me.
"In other words, you have no faith in me..."
Heavy...
"I believe that passion does not last forever..."
It is not like I did not believe that Prince Erik did not love me after all the time we had been together as lovers. It was just that I could not trust his base instincts as a man and there was his duty to produce multiple heirs to this country.
Seeing as how my own mother fell ill upon my birth made me feel uneasy about the future. Even though I trained my body, there was still a factor of uncertainty.
Would I be able to bear a child in my state? Would our own child grow without a mother or father? Would Prince Erik have to seek out another woman because of my fears? What value would I have as a woman if I were to not give Prince Erik a child?
"...If you need proof, I will show my love," he said as he tugged on my collar.
I felt embarrassed as I was with my neck exposed like this, but we were alone and far away from the eyes of others.
I felt his tender kisses over my lips and warm hands on my hips and thighs. As children, we were unknown of the ways people sent affection towards one another. Prince Erik was the one who led me in and began with light kisses, but now I feel that they have become more frequent. I do not know if the number of times we kiss is the average among long term couples. All I know is that it has been bad for my heart.
He pressed his thumb over my lips and stared into my eyes.
"Prince Erik?" I said his name in a dazed manner.
"Ari, would you open your pretty lips a bit more?" he asked in a husky voice.
My instincts were telling me that the look in Prince Erik's eyes meant something dangerous.
"Eri–"
He closed off my mouth and gave me a deep kiss. I felt as though I was being swallowed. My breath had been taken away. I began breathing out of my nose and began slowly collecting myself, but it was still difficult with Prince Erik kissing me.
The mood between us became rather sensual...
I was a bit shocked to find his hands over my bosom. I could not voice my complaints because of Prince Erik's lips over mine. I pressed on his chest with the little strength I could muster in my arms.
Prince Erik only moved his lips to my neck and collarbone.
"P...Eri...Erik, wait..."
An unfamiliar tingling sensation spread throughout my body.
A voice began echoing in the back of my head demanding that Prince Erik to touch me more. I scorned myself a little for my unladylike thoughts.
A gentle breeze brushed against my legs.
Breeze?
I looked at my legs and saw that my garter straps were being exposed to the air along with my bare legs and Prince Erik himself was placed between my separated legs.
W-When did they get separated? More importantly, my lower half is exposed!
"...I want you, Ari," Prince Erik said.
I was unaware of what he meant, until I felt my panties being slowly dragged from my body.
He wants that?
I grabbed his wrist.
"E-E-Erik! I'm scared!" I said in a loud voice.
Prince Erik halted in his movements.
He pulled my skirt back over my legs and hugged me.
"I am so sorry for scaring you."
I hugged his body and immersed myself in his warmth.
How fleeting it is...
This warmth may belong to another maiden.
In the afternoon, I heard rumors of a new girl who had just transferred in. She was the daughter of a Baron who had extremely rare easterner black hair and dark brown almost black eyes.
I only heard rumors of her because she seemed to gather the hate of females quite easily from how popular she was with men and refused to acquaint herself with other women.
On my way to class, I happened upon her while she was being scolded by a group of girls.
"The teacher will be coming around soon. It is best that you lot get on with your day," I told them.
"You helped me?"
She used such a rude way to address me, but I let her go since I doubted that I would see her again.
"My name is Arielle Ira Maddox."
"Why would you, of all people, help me?"
Instead of being grateful, she continued on with her questioning.
Ah, I see...
She did not want to be saved.
"Don't mistake this as kindness. I just did not like the way they were disciplining their peers," I said.
A group of men came coming our way.
She was waiting to be saved by a group of men...
"Is she bothering you in any way, Lady Arielle Maddox?" one of them asked with a glare in their eyes.
Beside her was a follower of the church sect Gavin Lord, my cousin Randall Maddox, and the son of a high ranked official Channing Wells.
Surrounded by powerful people, I see...
The one who asked me that with a nasty glare was the son of a Knight, Dolton Grass.
From their eyes, I am the same as those other girls.
Even if there was a misunderstanding, that Knight in training should not be allowed to view me with contempt.
I shot him a fiercer glare back. After seeing him flinch from the glare of a little girl, I loosened my stare.
"No, I was just passing by," I said as I began walking on my way to class.
Normally, Randall would be excommunicated from the family for opposing someone from the main branch for his disrespect towards me. I decided to let him go as a sign of mercy.
She seemed like trouble, so I decided to stay away from her. She will be fine if she has those guard dogs around her.