"Please! Let me go! I just want to be like all the other kids!" Prince Reymond begged his parents.
"No, Reymond. We've had enough of this conversation already. You cannot go to school with everyone else! Besides, you already have a tutor here." His father rolled his eyes in annoyance. This was the billionth time he has been asked this by his son.
"But-"
"I said no!" The king cut off his son, "Go to your room!"
The prince stomps away. Upset he didn't get his way. He goes to his room and sits on his bed. He sighs as he sees his laptop and remembers looking up the admission for all kinds of different schools.
Meanwhile, the king pinches the bridge of his nose in frustration. "It's ok, Patrik. He'll be fine. But, I think he could benefit from going to a public school," The queen said. She has been sitting next to the king this whole time.
"I don't see what he sees in it though! One of my best friends went to public school and he hated it there," the king got more aggravated. Enough to not notice the civilian who walked through the door.
"U-uh, y-your maje-majesties? I, uh, I have a-a concern about th-the, um, w-water supply. It's n-not as fresh as it used to be," the citizen said just loud enough for the king and queen to hear.
"I'm sorry there's a problem. I'll get someone on that right away," the queen smiled at the citizen as he walked off. "Get Reymond in here. I have a solution to our little problem."
"REYMOND!!" The king called. The prince came running to the throne room faster than a lightning bolt.
"...Yes....Father…?" He said as he tried to catch his breath.
"We have given this public school thing some thought, and we have a deal." As Patrik said this, Reymond piped up.
"If you are able to keep your grades up above average, then we will let you go to public school," The queen started," How-"
"However, if your grades slip for any reason, you will be coming back here and doing private lessons with your tutor. And you won't be going back." The king finished. Reymond's face lit up with joy from hearing this.
"Are you serious?! I'll go get ready!" Reymond went off, leaving the room with a true smile on his face.
As he got to his room, he packed a small bag with his computer, a folder with some paper in it, and a few pencils and pens. He also decided to change from his regal attire into more casual clothes. He changes into a light blue shirt with one single stripe going across the chest. And a pair of dark denim pants with some black and white checkered Vans.
By the time he was ready he rushed into the kitchen and grabbed the pre-made lunch that was sitting on the counter. "Are you ready to go?" Patrik asked his son. Reymond nodded yes and they went to the private limo. "There's a driver in there already. He will take you to and from, and I would like an hour's notice if you decide to bring anyone home."
Reymond nodded as his dad told him the rules. When his dad was done, he got in the limo. "Please take me to Maple Ridge High School." The driver nodded and started to drive off away from the mansion the family lived in.
The ride to the school was quiet. But not in an uncomfortable way. Reymond was practically shaking from excitement. When they got there, Reymond caught the eyes of everyone. Since it was the middle of the day, there were only a few delinquants who weren't in class.
"Bye, I'll call when school lets out." The driver nodded as Reymond got out of the car. He waved off the driver, and walked into the building. This was it. This was a new start to his new life.
✦✦✦
"Alright, Mr. Griffin. We can get you registered through some paperwork, and you can wait here while we get a schedule started. Unfortunately, that schedule is gonna take a few days to register," The receptionist in the front office explained with her sweet smile. She left for a moment and came back with some papers in hand.
She places them on the counter and slides them towards Reymond. "These are the papers you have to sign now, and you can wait until the school day is over. It should be a few hours until the school day is over." Reymond looks at the clock.
"Ok, I can wait until then, thank you for all of your help." Reymond goes and sits on a nearby couch. He reads through all of the papers slow enough to understand what each signature on each document was for. He was able to finish all of the papers by the last bell of the day.
When he texted his driver, the halls emptied. Reymond kept a mental note to 'text my driver earlier'. He waited in the main office until the limo came to the parking lot. He handed the receptionist the small stack of papers and walked outside.
"Hey, sorry it's so late. I texted when the bell rang. It rang at about 4pm. So, I think it would be nice to be here around that time," Reymond set his bags down in the car and climbed in himself.
The ride back to the palace was quiet. When Reymond got home, he set his bags down and went straight to his room to set his bag down and relax. Even after a few hours of just signing paperwork, he was exhausted.
✦✦✦
"So, Reymond. How was your first day?" The queen asked as she ate her dinner. The king remained quiet because everyone already knew his opinions on this matter.
"It was really boring. I got there in the middle of the day, and all I did was sign registration forms. I also need to wait a few days for a schedule to generate," Reymond responded as he ate the lunch he was given before. He didn't get to eat it because he was really busy.
"I guess that's karma for wanting to go to public school," Patrik laughed as he ate. "And, how long do you have to wait?" He asked after he calmed down.
"The receptionist said to wait a few days, but I did give the school my email so I'm just gonna wait for an email from them to appear."
After dinner was over Reymond went to his room and slept until the morning. Each day went slower and slower until three days later. When Reymond got the email that his schedule had been made and that he can start coming to classes the following week.
✦✦✦
By the time Monday had rolled around, Reymond was so excited to start his first day in a public school. He had his bags packed the previous day. And he had picked his clothes out too. He woke up almost at dawn to be ready in time.
When he got downstairs, his lunch was prepared for him once again. He grabbed it and left a note on the table and went out the front door. He walked to the limo and got in, then the driver drove off.
As they arrived, the kids had already started being dropped off. All Reymond could hear was mindless chatter among students. His new classmates.