Sebastian's Web

8)

As his 13th year passed by in a flash, so did the next years. In the blink of an eye, Sebastian was 16, and so was Arabella.

The two had found themselves growing ever so close. Best friends. Sandbox love never seems to die. She was the reason for his smile. The stress of being the next king weighed heavy on him. Only when he could see her, could he feel like he could breath.

Arabella found just as much joy in him. Being one of the kingdoms cleaners, shouldn't feel this good. But it does, because she gets to see him everyday.

"Fresh towels?" A head peeled into Sebastian's room. Most maids wouldn't have the audacity to enter a royals room with their head not faced to the floor. It felt wrong to treat him differently, so she didn't, and Sebastian loved it.

Sebastian's ear perked up at her angelic voice. He swirled around to meet her gaze. "Thank you" he grinned.

"Washed them in lavender soap like you requested" she mentioned as she plopped herself on his freshly made bed. She nuzzled herself into his sheets, melting into the soft sheets. It was so different from her rough dirty sheets. Sebastian had offered one of the guest rooms for her and her mother many times before, but Arabella didn't want the other maids to feel jealous, much to his dismay.

He placed his pen down and let his eyes eat up her presence. Her beauty only grow as did her age. Her hair got longer, she grew in height, and her facial features seemed to sharpen. She was cute before, now she was beautiful. The kind of beautiful you can't process even if you tried.

He moved around his round table and laid opposite his best friend. Their faces just centimeters away. "I have something to tell you."

Her eyebrows creased. "I don't like the way you say that."

He sighed and brought his knuckle up to her temple, sliding it down. She grabbed the hand, "tell me" she insisted with a stern look.

His face dropped as he mustered up the words. "Father said we need to prep."

She looked down, already knowing what those vague words meant. It was no secret, everyone knew. Tension was rising between the neighboring nations. She could only pray in her sleep that it would simmer down, for the sake of everyone.

"You guys haven't reached an agreement." She breathed out, shakiness evident in her voice.

He decided to rip the bandaid off, he couldn't stand keeping it from her. "I'm going to fight with them. It's my duty."

She shot up, a look of horror on her face. She shook her head in denial. "No."

"Bella—" he tried.

"No" the tears already reaching the surface.

"I have to, I can't let my kingdom go down without a fight." He attempted to get close enough to cradle her face but she kept backing away.

"You'll die!" She tearfully yelled. Red painted her nose and cheeks. She sunk to the floor, the reality of the situation hitting her. That's why he's been so busy, he's been prepping to go to war.

He caught her in his arms and dropped to the floor with her. Circling his arms around her and rubbing her arms, attempting to give some sort of solace. It seemed impossible to comfort the sobbing girl.

"When?" She choked out after a while of just being in his arms.

He pressed her closer to his chest. Kissing the top of her head. "Soon." He felt her shake as she broke into harder sobs.

—

Letting go was never easy. But it was something everyone had to do once in their life. This was the first of many for the two.