I put the glass back on the bedside table after taking the last sip of the warm water with freshly plucked lemon squeezed in it. It seemed like another routine day at the palace as I gazed out of the window next to my bed and observed the birds flying over the greenhouse. I pondered on how the birds were enjoying their freedom, flying high above in the sky, and wished that I were as free as that.
Though I found it hard to fall asleep at first last night, my brief sleep had been unexpectedly peaceful. I was reminded of the calm before a storm and hoped that nothing bad would happen tonight at the masquerade ball.
Jasmine was busy preparing scented foaming liquids for the bath for me before getting dressed for the event. In my life as a princess, I had never been forced to go through the process of getting ready from dawn to dusk for an event that was supposed to be starting at twilight. The entire day was bound to be exhausting, I was certain of it.
I picked up my phone from where I left it last night and turned it on before getting out of bed. The first text I received was from Calvin. I gasped unintentionally, quickly checking what it was about.
Jerk: Good morning, sunshine!
I let out a snort unable to digest the absurdity of his text.
"Sunshine?" I scoffed. I was wondering how his voice would sound, pronouncing this word. Then suddenly it dawned on me that he could be texting me this way because he remembered about the call last night and I started to panic when I received another text.
Jerk: How was last night?
I blinked several times and checked the message again. What was I supposed to make of it? Did he or did he not remember anything from last night? I told myself to take deep breaths to calm my nerves. I should be thinking with a clear mind. After a bit of more thinking, I decided to pretend to ignore his text by not sending a reply as it was the most natural thing for me to do if not for the conversation last night. That was the best strategy to follow right now. That way, if he had only a vague memory of it, then he would not bother to think of it any further as my actions only prove otherwise. And if he did not remember it at all, he would not find my behavior any different than usual.
Trying to push all thoughts about Calvin to the back of my mind, I finally got out of bed and walked to the bath in the adjoining room. I was swept in such a sweet fragrance, which was coming from the bath Jasmine and a few other maids had prepared for me, that I was instantly comforted. After getting scrubbed almost till my skin was raw, the maids helped me wash my hair.
I was in the bath for almost two hours long and then wrapped in a bathrobe, I was escorted to get seated in front of the vanity table. I had to stay there for some time and almost fell asleep as Jasmine applied some cream over my arms and legs. I was tired as I could not get much sleep last night all thanks to a certain someone.
"Bring the dresses for her highness to see," Jasmine called out to another maid, having done pampering my skin. When it came to matters that involved me, Jasmine had power over other maids. It was sometimes surprising to see how such an innocent girl could get so thrilled by the little power she got from time to time.
My thoughts were interrupted as two maids came, pushing a wheeled rack with several extravagant dresses hanging from it. There were dresses in shades of pastel pink, violet, teal, and lilac and my mind was instantly captured by the violet one, which had a puffed-up skirt and a tight-fitting bodice with sleeves up to the elbows. The dress was as beautiful as a violet itself. When I picked it out from the rest, Jasmine was disappointed as it was the simplest dress among all the shiny ones. However, she smiled as she knew my preferences.
After I was dressed, the maids dusted my skin with light makeup to match the outfit. Finally, my hair was done and I was allowed to check my reflection in the mirror. My hair was in a half-down simple updo with silver hairpins attached to add some elegance. I was pleased by the way I looked tonight, despite the nauseous feeling in my stomach as I was reminded of the time closing in for the ball.
"It's time, your highness," Jasmine announced, having dome checking and checking for any missed details.
With that, I left the room, accompanied by her and Headmaid -Ms. Martha-, and headed in the direction of the Royal Ballroom. My heart was pounding in my chest so loud as we drew near that I feared my maids would hear it. I was so nervous about tonight and was not sure if I would be able to perform the tradition of unmasking suitors that interested me.
The double doors to the ballroom were in view when I glimpsed from the corners of my eyes Fabien, pacing up and down the hallway to the left, wearing a troubled expression on his handsome face. I automatically stopped in my tracks for a moment, wondering what could be bothering him so much. Suddenly realizing that I was not ready for this embarrassing confrontation with him, I started to hurry toward my entourage, who were waiting for me a few steps ahead.
"Your highness!" It was Fabien's voice that stopped me. He had seen me trying to leave.
I sighed, it was painful to hear him call me that as if a line was drawn between us. I wanted to believe that it was as usual, only because of the maids' presence and not because of any ill feelings or a misunderstanding between us as his voice suggested.
After asking my maids to give us some privacy, I turned slowly to face him. He gave me a small smile, running his hand through his perfectly combed hair. His face looked haggard, even his attempts to look presentable had not been able to mask it. And his eyes were puffy as if he had not slept well last night. Instantly I remembered how he had been there the entire time I was talking with Calvin over the phone and felt a sense of guilt building up in the pit of my stomach. I tried to reason with myself as to why I should be feeling that. It was not like I had promised anyone anything or that I needed permission from one to speak with the other. But I could not battle with the way I was feeling.
Despite the urge to walk away as it was hard to handle the inner dilemma, I just returned a warm smile to him.
"Are you alright?" I questioned him. I was worried about him above everything else that I almost touched his face, but drew back immediately, realizing what I was doing.
"Yeah," Fabien replied, tugging at his hair. He looked uncomfortable and somewhat nervous and I tried to look calm for his sake.
"Ava," he began again as if finally having collected his emotions, which were all over.
I was relieved when he called me by my name that I could let go of the momentarily doubt that our relationship had been strained.
"Please, don't avoid me. I know I behaved inappropriately that night in the library and I'm so sorry about it. I really am," he said, pleadingly.
I blushed at the thought of that night and I had to chew the insides of my cheeks to refrain from giggling like a silly school girl. At the same time, I felt bad for making him feel this way even though, I was not avoiding him for the reason he had assumed. I wanted to tell him that it was perfectly alright and that he had not done anything wrong, but I could not trust myself to speak. I would blabber something meaningless and end up being embarrassed. So I just nodded and walked away towards the ballroom, Jasmine and Ms. Martha trailing behind me. I knew that I was wrong to leave Fabien in a confusing situation.
"Your highness, you're blushing," Jasmine looked concerned as she observed my face.
"I'm fine, Jasmine. Don't worry," I assured her, trying to ignore the way Ms. Martha was looking at me after Jasmine's comment.
The two guards, who were stationed at both sides of the entrance to the ballroom, hurried to open the door as soon as they saw us approaching. Orchestra music that was coming from inside, filled the hallway and I started getting nervous. With a smile at Jasmine and Ms. Martha, I walked in, trying to take control of my emotions.
I quickly scanned the room before the messenger drew attention to me by announcing my presence. Suitors were scattered everywhere, some in groups of three or four and some alone. All were clad in formal white dress shirts, black dress pants, and black blazers with their faces covered in masquerade eye masks. Their families were seated at tables assigned for them at one corner of the ballroom while my parents along with my three siblings were all at the high table on the raised platform, overlooking everyone from the far end.
Immediately dramatic music started playing and all eyes were on me as I walked to the center, where a fountain was built. It was a tradition that the heiress to the throne mix wine with the water by emptying a goblet into the fountain. This signified the opening of an event and hopes for prosperity.
As I tipped the goblet and let the wine flow down, a few suitors started gathering around the fountain. When I was done, two handsome men walked up to me and extended their hands toward me. Bile rose in my stomach as I was reminded that I might not be able to identify those, who only wanted me for the sake of power and end up with some selfish douchebag.
"Can I have this dance?" One asked, grabbing my attention while at the same time the other said, "Do you remember me, your highness?"
I was caught off-guard by the question of the latter and quickly realized by the way he spoke that he had to be one of my childhood friends.
"You're Edmund, I assume?" I asked him.
"Yes, your highness." He replied with what I assumed to be sincere respect.
Then I turned towards the other. "And you are?"
"Jason Ainsworth of Briston, your highness."
Swiftly apologizing to Jason and promising him the next dance, I turned to Edmund and took his hand.
"You can skip the honorifics," I whispered to him to which he smiled heartily, reminding me of the good old days.
As I walked up to the dance floor with him, I noticed Calvin standing close to a set of long windows at a far corner, away from the rest. He was with another guy, who seemed to be in his late twenties. I quickly noticed that he had green eyes and dirty blonde hair, cropped short, and resembled Calvin in many ways. They were talking in a rush and Calvin looked annoyed as if he hated being told whatever his brother was saying.
My attention was suddenly caught by a movement to the left of Calvin and saw Fabien entering the ballroom through a side door, desperately trying not to draw attention to him. I could not help the smile that crept up my face and Edmund was quick to notice it. Following my gaze and seeing Fabien, he gave a playful smirk.
"So you already have a preference?" He asked out of the blue as we started to sway to the music.
"No, what are you even talking about?" I replied too fast, realizing that he was referring to Fabien.
I must have looked horrified that he chuckled and said, "Don't worry, I don't intend to marry you. I just couldn't ask my parents to not send in an application. So here I am, watching my old friend falling in love. Besides, it's nice to catch up after a long while."
He seemed to find all these amusing, but his sincerity and lack of interest in me as more than a friend lightened my heart.
"At least I found a friend among the suitors. That's progress I guess." I teased him as I made my first decision on the members of the Royal Court, whom I would have to appoint once I was crowned.
After dancing with Jason and another, who asked for a dance right after, the orchestra changed to a much faster-paced music. The suitors moved to stand next to one another in a circle to the edge of the dance space, facing the fountain. It was another tradition that was followed in Suitor Introduction Balls that the royal family member, awaiting marriage dance with all the suitors in one dance. The dance would begin with a suitor of choice and the couple would step close to the center and waltz around the fountain for a few seconds. Then the partner would be changed to the next in the line. I had not witnessed this tradition before, but I was trained enough to not ruin the event.
I did not know what gave me this idea to start with the suitor on the right of Calvin, but I was keen to see his ever-present smirk slide off his face. I knew it was crazy and not so elegant, but I found the thought of annoying Calvin tonight a little too temping to resist. 'Besides, no one would ever think it was done on purpose, perhaps no one, but the one I intend to annoy,' I thought playfully.
The dance lasted about fifteen minutes before I had to switch to Calvin for the final few seconds of this chain dance. The moment he grabbed my waist somewhat roughly, I realised that I had played with his temper too much. His eyes looked fiery, but as I entwined my fingers with his and placed my other hand on his shoulder gently, his temper seemed to diminish. I was surprised by the unfamiliar effect I had on him just now.
We had to waltz for a little longer than I had to with the previous suitors as the orchestra dragged the last notes in a much slower pace to signify the end.
"Want to dance with me for the next song as well?" Calvin asked as the last note was played.
"Oh, I'm sorry. I need to grab a drink." I said instantly, feeling that if I spent more time with him, he would somehow find a way to pierce my shield as always and make me cry. I did not want to ruin tonight and for the sake of my family, I was determined to not crumble down in tears.
So ducking my head to avoid meeting his eyes, I walked away from the dance floor.
Seeing Fabien, who was standing in a corner alone, seemingly avoiding the crowd, I changed my direction and walked up to him. I had been wanting to talk to him for some time anyway.
"Hi!" I said energetically, hoping to lighten the atmosphere.
He looked up from his phone, which he had been engrossed in and smiled awkwardly.
"What's so interesting that you didn't even remember to ask me for a dance?" I added in mock accusation, peeping into his phone. Of course, he must have been reading his all time favourite classic Hamlet, I could tell by the way he tried to hide his phone..
"Isn't it too grim for an occasion like this?" I teased.
"It is." Fabien admitted with a smile, proving my guess was right. "So would you honour me with a dance and help me to stop feeling grim?"
"The next song will be ours," I said with a playful smile.
I noticed Calvin watching us from the beverage stand as he grabbed a glass of red wine. I ignored his stares, reminding myself for the second time tonight that I was not bound by anyone and that I was free to talk with whomever I liked.
After some time, the music changed and Fabien guided me to the dance floor. Unlike Calvin, Fabien was gentle as he placed his hand on my waist and held my other hand and we rocked to the slow music. I looked at his eyes unintentionally and noticing it, he smiled warmly as I looked away, feeling my cheeks heating up. The music changed again and it was a fast paced one this time. I had so much fun dancing to that as Fabien tried to avoid stepping on me and I tried to keep up with the steps while trying to hold in my laughter.
I would have kept on dancing with him for the rest of the night, but I could not do even one more dance without drawing unwanted attention to us. So I had to give in when another suitor asked for me. I was tired and was not the least bit interested in dancing anymore that I did not realise who my partner was until the guy came too close to me.
I started feeling uncomfortable and when I looked at his greasy face, I knew that this guy was creepy and that I should get away from him soon. I tried to create space between the guy and me, but he did not let me. He grabbed my waist tighter instead and pulled me towards him. I got scared and found it hard to breathe. My mind was screaming to get away, but I could not cause a scene. I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out and that creep gave the scariest smirk I had ever seen. I was terrorized beyond words when the guy's had slid down my back and rested on my hips.
Out of the blue someone grabbed me by the elbow and I almost jumped out of my skin. I was so nervous that I would have screamed if not for the small voice in my head constantly reminding me of the image of the Royal family. But when I saw the cat-like green eyes, which rarely showed any emotion, I was relieved for his presence for the first time in my life.
However, Calvin was not looking at me, he was looking directly at the creepy guy, who looked as if he could kill Calvin for interrupting him. If not for the guy's hand still on my back, I would have gladly hidden behind Calvin. I was feeling safer with Calvin next to me that I took deeper breaths as I felt the air returning to my lungs slowly.
"I need to take her highness away for a moment," Calvin said authoritatively, not flinching the slightest bit as the other guy stared daggers at him.
"What do you think you're doing? Ruining the perfect moment I was about to have with her?" The guy hissed. "Who do you think you are?"
I was trying to think of a way to end it before a fight broke out that I did not realise Calvin taking off his mask by himself, until he spoke out in full certainty. "Ava chose me."
I snapped my head at him so fast that my neck started to hurt. I was so surprised and shocked, but I had a desperate need to escape from the pervert that I remained silent when Calvin grabbed my wrist and guided me away.
However, the jerk did not stop there. He followed us and grabbed me by the shoulder. Despite how I feared him, I stopped and turned to face him, tugging at Calvin's hand to alert him that we needed to settle this as quietly as possible. I was glad when he complied and just hoped that this would not attract people's attention and ruin the event.
"Was he telling the truth just now?" The pervert asked in low growl.
I was not expecting this. It was hard to answer to this. I could not risk telling him the truth. On the other hand I did not know what would happen if I told otherwise and there was no time to weigh the pros and cons of both choices as it would make whatever I said suspicious.
However, I was saved from answering by Fabien's appearance next to me. I could see the concern and anger in his eyes. He looked as if he could kill someone right now. As if sensing that something was not right, Edmund along with Jason and a few of their friends hurried over.
"What's this?" the jerk demanded with a mocking laugh. "You want to scare me?"
"Take your filthy hands off her." Fabien growled at him.
"Or what?"
Fabien would have sprung at the jerk had Calvin not held him back by gripping on to his hand. By that time, the pervert had withdrawn his hand from me and was backing away slowly.
Instantly Fabien looked at me with concern and then his eyes shifted to Calvin, who was fuming. As if noticing Calvin's unmasked face for the first time, Fabien took my hand and guided me to remove his mask as well, his eyes trained on his cousin all the whole time. I was so caught up in the moment that I did not realise what I had done.
Not wanting to draw attention to any of this and to prevent the jerk from causing a scene anymore, I had to do something quickly. I looked from Fabien to Calvin, they were now staring at each other as if they were rivals. Now that the jerk had backed away, why were they behaving this way? I had no time to ponder on any of this.
Finally deciding what was best to do, I composed myself and walked up to the fountain gracefully.
"I have taken a decision on whom to unmask." I spoke out loud enough to get the attention of the entirety, who were there at the event.
When all eyes were on me, I walked up to small group of suitors, who gathered there for my aid when the jerk tried to cause havoc. They were looking at me with confusion clear on their faces and I smiled reassuringly. As all the others waited impatiently, I walked up to Edmund and unmasked him. He smiled as if he understood my intentions and nodded in my direction, showing his approval. Then I moved to the next person and unmasked him and continued to do the same till the last guy of the group. I gave a swift look in the direction of Calvin and Fabien to make sure that they were back to their senses in the time I bought for them.
When I turned back to face the King and the Queen, I heard applause filling the ballroom, congratulating me and the unmasked suitors. My dad and mum gave me approving smiles all the while keeping their regal composure.
Deep down I was elated that I could identify a set of suitors, fitting to be unmasked and it was all thanks to that jerk. By unmasking these men, I had given them an advantage over others in the selection process yet to come and I hoped that my decision would not backfire at me as I understood the gravity of my action well. Behind the smile I showed, I was determined to disqualify the pervert, who tried to harrass me and to find a good partner to help me in protecting my people in the end of this.