The Falling Rider

Chapter 3

"Where have you been?!" My mother asks, yelling at the top of her lungs.
"It's dark out! You should've been back by sunset!" My father scolds.
"I'm sorry. I didn't realize it was dark out. Besides I'm almost 18!" I say.
"And what is that supposed to mean? That you'll be an adult? Well, you won't get your freedom until you act like a proper young woman!" My mother shouts.
"I have been acting like a proper young woman!" I shout back.
"No you haven't! You're still goofing off with your friends and using your free time to fly instead of practice!" She yells.
"Why does that matter?!" I ask.
"You're to get married soon, Adira. You can't be playing with your friends when you are to be queen and when you are to be wed!" My mother explains. Did I hear her right?
"Marriage?!" I exclaim.
"Yes! Marriage! We have received an acceptance letter from the kingdom of Aranka! You are to be wed to Gallagher next week." She says, trying to calm down.
"But mother! I don't love Gallagher!" I shout at her.
"It doesn't matter! You will be wed to Gallagher! That's final!" My father shouts.
"It matters to me! You don't care about me, do you? You only care about the kingdom!" I shout.
"Adira! You don't have the right to make such accusations!" My mother shouts.
"Go to your room this instant!" My father exclaims. My eyes tear up and my vision gets blurry as I run to my room. I get into my room and slam the door behind me. I wipe my tears away and walk onto my balcony. I grip the railing tightly as I try to calm myself down. I then hear a tiny knock on my bedroom door.
"What?!" I shout at the door as I turn around.
"Adira?" The tiny voice of my sister echoes through my room as the door opens slightly. My eyes widen and I take deep breaths to calm myself down.
"Come in." I say to her.
"Are you okay?" Li asks as she walks into the balcony.
"No, Li. I'm not." I say as I turn back around and stare into the night sky.
"What happened?" She asks as she walks to my side and stares at me.
"Mom and Dad want me to get married." I explain, looking down at her.
"To who?" She asks.
"Gallagher from Aranka." I say.
"Oh. Why don't you want to marry him?" She asks.
"I don't love him." I say.
"Oh. Who do you love?" She asks.
"Well, uh, I'll tell you some other time. When you understand love." I say. I don't want to tell her I love Leo yet. At least, I think I love him. He's so sweet and caring and amazing. I'm so deep in thought I almost miss Li's next question.
"Can't you tell me? Please Adira?" She asks.
"No, not yet Li." I sigh.
"Is it Leo?" She asks. My eyes widen.
"How did you know?" I ask.
"I know my big sister. Besides its pretty easy to see. Your cheeks turn red every time you're with him." She says.
"Well, you're not wrong." I say.
"What are you gonna do?" She asks.
"I, I don't know yet." I say.
"Li? Where are you?" I hear a muffled voice call throughout the castle.
"You should go to bed, Li." I say as I turn to her and give her a hug.
"Ok. Night Adira." She says as she walks out of my room and shuts the door behind her. I turn back towards the sky and stare at the stars.
"Did you hear any of that?" I ask Storm.
"Every word. Are you ok? Do you wanna fly to clear your mind?" He asks.
"Yeah, that sounds good." I reply and wait for Storm.  A few minutes later, Storm lands gently next to me on my balcony. I get on him silently and we fly into the night sky.
"Thanks for coming to get me. I don't think I could've handled that situation on my own." I thank Storm.
"No problem. Also, I did you another favor." He says. I raise an eyebrow.
"And what is this favor?" I ask.
"I told Ember to get Skyrah." He says.
"You did what?! Skyrah doesn't like being woken up! She's going to kill me when she gets here if she even comes!" I exclaim.
"I figured you needed to talk to someone other than me about this." He says.
"Well, thank you. I suppose I do need to talk to her about this. You always know what best for me." I thank.
"No problem. Oh, look! There they are!" He says, looking towards the pair flying towards us slowly.
"Why did you feel the need to wake me up?" Skyrah asks, obviously pissed.
"It's my mom and dad. They want me to get married to Gallagher from Aranka." I explain. Her eyes widen a bit.
"What?! That's insane!" She says.
"Yeah, I know. The worst part is that I told them I don't love him and they didn't even care." I explain.
"I'm so sorry. I wish there was something I could do to help." She comforts.
"I just wish they had thought about my marriage plans later. Leo and I are supposed to be going out tomorrow morning." I say and her eyes widen even more. Wow, they look like saucers now.
"You and Leo are going out?! EEEEEEEEEEEEK!" She screeches.
"Shh! Could you be any louder? Yes! We're going out!" I say.
"Sorry! I'm just so happy for you!" She says.
"Yeah? Well guess what? It's not gonna matter if I marry Gallagher." I explain.
"That is so not fair. Did you tell your parents about Leo?" She asks.
"No. They sent me to my room before I had the chance!" I exclaim.
"Then tell them tomorrow! They've got to listen to you then!" She says.
"Yeah, I suppose I could tell them." I say.
"Good! Now go back home and get some beauty sleep! The sooner you go to bed, the sooner you go out with Leo! Go!" She shouts turning Ember around to block Storm and I.
"Fine. I'll go to bed! Night Skyrah!" I shout.
"Drop me off?" I ask Storm.
"Sure. Also, didn't I tell you? Leo likes you and you like Leo. I knew it." Storm says.
"Fine. You were right!" I say as we land on my balcony. I get off of Storm and he turns to face me. He rests his head on my shoulder and I hug his neck.
"Goodnight Storm." I say as he pulls away.
"Goodnight Adira." He says, then flies back to his stable. I go back into my room and lay down on my bed. I slowly close my eyes and drift off into a dreamless sleep.

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Hey guys! Hope you're liking the story so far! I'll post again tomorrow!