The Princess Needs A Prince

[Chapter Seven]

I rub my forehead with my hand. Once again, I can't fall asleep. As I pass the large windows, I can see the dark sky lighting the night. I turn my attention back to where I'm headed.

In front of me, I see a silhouette of a man. I smile knowing who it is. "Aala?" I say. He turns around and jolts in surprise. I catch up to him. "What are you doing?" I question.

"Couldn't fall asleep, so I thought I'd get myself a cup of warm tea," his shoulder sags. "But then I got lost," he smiles sheepishly. I laugh lightly.

"Well, I could show you the way."

He opens his mouth to protest but he thinks again and only nods. His shirt is crinkled and his hair's a disheveled mess. I can only imagine what I look like. We reach the kitchen. It has an orange glow and a warm fog. "Would you like to join me?" He points his head through the doors of the kitchen.

"I would love to," I reply. I sit on the stool by the counter. Aala boils some water, then pours it into two cups. Next he adds a tea bag to each of them. He hands one of them to me as he sits in the vacant stool beside me.

When my hand wraps around the cup, it immediately warms me up. I take a sip. "It usually calms me down. The tea, I mean." He says.

"I can see how it does," I say. We sit in a comfortable silence. Just hearing the soft whispers of each others breathing.

"How was your day?" I finally ask.

"Um, lunch was fun," he chuckles. "Cepos reminds me of my younger sister. The way he's all giddy."

I laugh. "Really now? How old is she?"

"She's 13," He says. I laugh louder. Cepos reminds him of a thirteen year old girl. He chuckles. "I only now realize how that sounds," he confesses as he smiles. His ocean eyes smile warmly.

"Glad you know now," I say in between laughs. I take a sip from my tea and let the steem consume me. "So, how are you getting along with the boys?"

"Well, they all seem pretty cool. Although Hoshang usually keeps to himself. Not that I think that's bad or anything," he says quickly. "But I find myself talking to Xavier and Cepos the most,"

"Mm! Really?"

"Really?" His face is confused.

"Xavier? I can understand Cepos, but Xavier?" My voice is filled with surprise.

He shrugs casually. "He's a chill guy and he talks to everyone like he's known them his whole life." Then he looks down. "I wish I could be like that. Yet all I do is stumble with my words. Why can't I just be like him." He grips his mug tight. His knuckles turning white.

"Hm?"

"...He isn't afraid to be him. I'm different, I'm...afraid, scared, like a coward, of just, being me. Showing people who am. I feel like I'm fooling people. I feel like a fraud when I get up there on the podium and speak to my country. When my voice has no tremble, but my heart beats a mile a minute. They don't know how much of a...wimp their prince is." He finishes.

He says those words with so much force that I wonder if I flinched.

I choose my words carefully and place a hand on his shoulder. I laugh lightly. "You have no idea how much I can relate." I can feel him tense under my touch, but I brush it aside. Looking into his eyes I can see frustration. I can just see a young boy. A boy who just wants to be a normal man. I soften my gaze. He's not a normal boy, and he never will be.

"There are two Aalas. Prince Aalaadihth of India, and just Aala, a normal young man with big dreams." I smile at him. "But both of them are you. They're both Aala and Aala is both of them."

When I see those twin oceans again, they reflect some sort of realization. A spark that has ignited, his eyes shine bright. Only making him oh the more handsome. I want to know. I want to know what he's thinking, what's running through his mind.

At that moment, I realize how close we are now. Our noses are a couple of inches from touching. Neither of us wanting to move closer or further away.

His eyes glance down to my lips and linger there for a second longer.

I wait.

For what?

But he only squirms back uncomfortably. He clears his throat. "Y-yeah." His eyes dart around the area. Never landing on me. I feel my face burning.

As I get up to take my leave I tell him, "Thanks for the tea and company. Good night Aala."

Right as I'm about to exit the doors, I hear him speak. "Good night...Nayla," he pauses, "Thank you."

The corners of my lips rise.

"Aala?"

"Yes Nayla?"

"Remember, Aala. It's just Aala. You're just Aala. You don't have to be a prince when you're with me. We're just Aala and just Nayla." I say before I walk out the doors.

I reached my room in minutes. When I see my bed I flop on top of my sheets. My face is still warm.

Me and Aala.

We almost kissed.

We were dangerously close. But what was keeping me from moving closer?

What was I afraid of?

Thanks! (I'm just going to keep saying it until it's engrained into your heads. Hopefully it already is.)

Yours Faithfully,

BookwormStory101 :D