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November 19th, 1952

If I'm being completely honest, the past two days have been a drag. Date after date, and I'm getting nothing out of any of them. The most polite guy I've met is one who had the courtesy to say "thank you" after we ate. And I've been through five dates so far.

Yet, I still slip on a peach-colored dress, and doll myself up for the possibility of a real connection. I don't even know why I use my energy on it, I didn't go after guys in my town ever, being that they were always drunk, gambling, or pulling some scheme on the town girls one way or the other. I was hoping that these fancy suitors would be better, but believe it or not, the best experience I've had with one is when I got drunk and woke up with him. Although, I still haven't fully recovered from that either.

Fixing the neck of my dress awkwardly, I step out of my room, on my way to meet my next 'Mystery Man.' The reason it's a mystery is mainly because Florence was so hellbent on how wrong it'd be for me to learn a bit about these guys before I was sent out on a date with them. Logical, right? She's the main thing I've been ranting to Maggie about, who I've discovered is a wonderful listener, unlike some of the other women I've made an attempt at talking to here.

I step into the bright sunlight of a perfect Autumn day. I still find it shocking how many things are packed into this castle, as I make my way down marble stairs, onto soft turf of a golf course I've never had the pleasure of seeing before. Although it's so serene and beautiful, I look down at my dress and heels in distress. I can only hope we're just going on a walk, and not actually golfing. Small entries through balding leaves give way to a narrow, winding river, which peacefully tickles rocks on its way across the field. I take in the sight and look around for the next suitor. Awkwardly leaning against the marble railings of the stairs, I face the door, waiting.

Person after person walks by, not paying any mind to me. Over time, my attention frays and I impatiently tap my foot. Right as I look up to the big clock on the wall, church bells ring across town. It's already 12:00, and I got here a half hour ago. I purse my lips and exhale through my nose. I'm sure if the guy did show, he'd just be another jerk. I push myself from the railing, and make my way back up the steps. I watch my feet as I walk back into the palace without another thought.

꧁꧂

Just as I'm passing by the dining hall, I hear a voice call from behind me. Really one of the last things I want night now. I turn to see the blonde boy with glasses that was awkward with eye contact at the first lunch.

"Aurora- Wait!" He stumbles towards me, trying to hide the fact that he's out of breath, by the looks of it, from running through the entire castle. I cross my arms, waiting for more context, having a bad feeling that this is the guy who stood me up.

"Where-" He lets out an exasperated breath, and I try not to get grossed out. Something about loud breathing or chewing just brings me straight to irritation. "Where were you?" He asks, letting out quieter attempts at breathing. My disgust must be showing.

"I could ask the same about you." I look him up and down, and he gives me a look like he's on the verge of tears. Normally, that wouldn't work, but- no. It still doesn't.

"I was just at the course, I waited there for like- like an hour!"

"An hour?"

"Well- yeah, I tried to get ready early so that I wouldn't be late! And, uh- I've been looking around this place for you for like-" He looks up at the big clock ticking on the wall beside us. "Um.. an hour.. so I just really wanted- I mean- I feel so bad-" He gulps, his breathing getting louder and quicker again, and he leans against the wall with one hand while trying to reassemble himself with the other.

"Jesus- I mean," He pauses for one second to give me a confused look, and I wince. I forgot my family is supposed to be super religious or something.

"Um, will you please just, calm down?" I look around, and the people walking buy give us strange looks. They're lucky I'm not still in town, because I have to refrain from flipping them off. One of the few things I miss about that place is how I could just get away with being bitchy. Everyone was used to it, they'd even gotten used to calling me out on it. I guess that wouldn't change here, though. "Just.. Take a deep breath?" I say, looking over at him.

He looks back up at me. "I'm sorry, I- I'm really sorry. I wouldn't blame you if you kicked me out for-"

I stop him mid sentence. "Why don't we just take a walk around?" I ask. He looks up at me, confused that I was just letting this go, so I just shrug at him. "If you're alright, I'm alright. We can just forget about this." Truth is, I couldn't bare to see this guy go crazy over something so stupid. Chances are, yeah, he won't become the love of my life, but compared to all the other dates I've been on, this is a walk in the park. I enjoy the entertainment.

"Thank you." I hear him quietly mumble as I lead him to the nearest door.

꧁꧂

The wide river's water is clearer than ever today. I look over to James, as I've learned his name is, and he looks happy as can be, with the danish he bought from a bakery we stopped at in his hand. He smiles at me, then looks over the river. I feel myself smirk. What's with these guys inconsistent personalities? Either way, I like this one. He's cool enough, I guess.

Although, cool isn't the first word I'd use to describe him, now that I'm thinking about it.

We walk in a surprisingly comfortable silence for another minute before I speak again. "So, was the golf date thing your idea? All of the other dates I've been on were just in the gard-" I stop myself. I had another date tonight, but I just know that if I freak out, this kid will just as well.

"What?"

I shake my head, discreetly picking up walking speed. "Um, yeah- the other dates have just been in the garden, besides this one. So, golf was your idea?"

James chuckles. "I guess, my dad was kinda a golfer, so I figured it'd be cool to, y'know, carry on the legacy?" He says it as a question, laughing at the end of his sentence. I feel like he's pretty much me if I wasn't so used to faking my confidence. Which is kinda nice to see.

"What's funny is how we ended up standing each other up," I join in his laughter. I kinda feel bad about this morning, but I feel even worse that I stood up my next date as well. I speed up the date without James noticing, as guilty as it feels. I just hope the next guy isn't a prick about it.

aurora | 1952Where stories live. Discover now