Masquerade [BANG CHAN FF]

11. Afternoon tea

The twenty-eight day of October marked the fifth day since Madeline's intense encounter with Prince Christopher in the castle's ballroom where he spat his anger at her, calling her out on her lie when she previously melted in his arms as they danced.

Since then, the two would only see each other in the large dining room yet Christopher didn't even bat an eye at Madeline during the meals, engaging in short conversations only with the members of his family. And those delicious meals tasted like sand to Madeline as she still felt the anger radiating from him even though he never looked in her direction from across the table.

Madeline was honored to be sitting at the same table as the royal family instead of dining with the servants but, given the circumstances, she much rather wished to crawl inside a hole and stay in that dark space for the rest of eternity so that she wouldn't have to sit through a nerve-wracking meal every time and endure Christopher's raging aura. His presence made her uneasy and she barely ate as being in the same room as him made her lose her appetite and struggle to breathe.

However, Madeline would eat slowly and only leave the room when the royals were done with their meals, standing up and bowing to them in respect. She'd help the maids clean up despite their protest, using that time to calm down her nerves before she moved on to another task of the day. But her mind would only stream more thoughts...

Madeline was surprised that the king didn't take any action against her and feared that the blond prince would call her out again in front of everyone during one of the meals but that never happened and she thought that he was compassionate and understanding toward his siblings, not her, seeing how close they were with their "favorite tutor".

Christopher never again came to check in on his younger siblings during snack time at noon. He barely even stayed at the castle during the day - he was either with his friends and girls out in town or training his body in ruthless combat, disciplined fencing, or galloping horse-riding. He would participate in any sort of action where his anger would stream out and leave his body. However, a new portion of ire would occupy his body with a mere thought of Madeline's lie. The displeasure of knowing he was so easily fooled and the fact that Liliana, a woman who piqued his interest with her elegant dancing, never existed made his blood boil and would request another sparring match with Changbin, a new rush of adrenaline coursing through his veins.

Madeline did her best during classes and night-time reading but she desperately needed someone to confine to. She wrote to Alissa the very next morning after her breakdown in the ballroom. Madeline knew how busy her friend was with her biological and botanical researches that she didn't dare to call her over the phone but she hoped that her letter reached Alissa and that a reply would return.

Lounging in the white gazebo behind the castle, enjoying the warmth of the late October sun, Madeline's reading was interrupted by a maid calling out to her.

"Miss Simmons, you have a visitor," the young maid spoke and Madeline looked up from her face at the approaching female. Recognizing the waves of blonde hair, Madeline stood up, tears welling in her eyes.

"Alissa..." she whispered, her lower lip trembling. She took off her reading glasses and placed them on the small table, on top of the closed book.

As her heart picked up speed and her feelings upon seeing her best friend doubled, Madeline jumped out of the gazebo and ran over the colorful fallen leaves to Alissa, enveloping her in a tight hug and letting her bottled-up sobs leave her chest.

"There, there..." Alissa hummed, caressing Madeline's back. "Let it all out..."

And so, Madeline cried her heart out. Alissa patiently waited, shushing and hugging her friend until she calmed down and stepped out of the hug herself.