The Next Chapter: Twisted Series Next Generation

Chapter 49: Anastasia Larsen

The endorphins of my confidence begin wearing off the moment I suck in a breath of fresh air.

Sobering me up and wrapping a noose of embarrassment around my neck as I realize what I am truly doing. My features begin to harden and my nose wrinkles from the harshness of the sun. Regret begins to pile within me and the nerves shoot tremors through my veins.

What sane human being actually goes up and speaks to the person they have been wildly intrigued by.

The reasonable part of my mind finally chips her two cents into the conversation and orders my feet to come to a halt.

Some servants offer me a polite look and bow their heads politely.

All I manage to do is offer them awkward smiles and waves.

My people skills excel as much as a hippo trying to climb a tree. While Camilla has the elegance that contorts peoples faces to melt into one of awe at the mere sight of her. And Charlotte's sunny proposition earns her the skill of collecting others hearts.

I struggle to even fulfil a proper greeting.

It used to bother me royally to the point where I pushed myself to go out and meet people, however I knew I was not exactly the most friendly person.

The features on my face were sharp due to my fathers genetics and I appeared intimidating to most.

As the constant need to push myself to become more friendly grew, the more I found myself hating whatever interaction I had in an attempt to create relations with others.

Nerves would swallow me whole as I struggled with what to say and the fear of upsetting people with my blunt tongue would wear down on me.

Alongside the atrocious attention the media had prevailed upon me at such a young age.

My parents made sure to remind me that my personality was one I never needed to change, however I always wondered if they felt burdened by a child who could barely keep up with the image of the family she was bred in.

Making me feel like a liability. I began hiding myself, I could be me. My time was satiated into moments fulfilled by the atmosphere of nature. The presence of the forest behind the castle was what taught me that I enjoyed my own company.

The pressure to go out and address those I was unfamiliar with for the sake of an image was dispersed.

So what if people did not like me? Although it is a journey I was still in the middle of, I was beginning to like myself.

However, for the past couple of minutes my thoughts were completely distracted. I felt like a new person.

As if those years of past attempts never existed, my mind could branch into the world any cancerous notions no longer existed.

After Charlotte's pep talk, for a moment I forgot who I was.

Until now.

Staring out into the lush atmosphere of the garden, the lively colours of the flowers fight to capture my attention.

Yet all I manage to see is him.

The boy from last night.

A thin layer of sweat laces my palm the longer my gaze stays glued on him, my mind astonishes me at the fact that I was truly excited to go up and speak to him.

Would he be disappointed once he saw me? When the moment I open my mouth arrives, would he run for the hill?

These thoughts plague my mind and a coat of bitterness dances over my tongue.