Riches to Royalty

Chapter 8: Clara's Tale

CHAPTER 8: CLARA’S TALE

~Rosie~

I stared at the white ceiling. The moonlight was shining through the window, just bright enough for me to see everything in the room. I was laying on the bed between Clara’s and Heath’s. I couldn’t sleep as I played the events that happened that day. It was so unreal; me running away from home with a prince. It was more of a story taken from a storybook than it really happening. Does my mom miss me? Does my dad miss me?

“Can’t sleep?” I heard Heath whispering to me from his bed. I turned onto my left side and looked at the blue eyes that were staring intently at me. Even if he hadn’t told me he was tired, I could see it in his eyes. There were little dark rings beneath his eyes, indicating how tired he was.

“No.” I responded. He sighed softly and waved his hand, signaling me to go over. I hesitated before moving, worried that Clara might wake up or something.

I slowly got out from the bed. As soon as my feet made contact with the cold wooden floor, a shiver spread all over my body, making me jump at the slightest bit. Shivering, I quickly climbed under the covers and snuggled next to Heath.

“Your feet are cold.” He commented. I could almost hear the amusement in his voice, even if he always tried to keep his voice as monotone-ish as possible. I chuckled a bit before letting a few space separate the both of us. Laying my head onto the pillows, I soon drifted off to a dreamless slumber, all thanks to the warmth and familiar-ness by Heath.

***

Sunlight was shining on my face as a yawn escaped my lips. Memories from last night flooded my mind and I started searching for the presence of the prince that wasn’t even there. The bed was cold and the sheets were tangled with my legs. I carefully got up and stretched, careful to not make any noise because Clara was still in her bed, sleeping. Luckily she wasn’t the first one to wake up or else she would get the wrong idea.

There was a knock on the door and I heard Clara grumbled, annoyed. The door edged open and Eric came in, holding a tray of food. At first I thought it was for Heath, since he was royalty and all, but Eric didn’t even spare a glance at my direction as he set down the tray on Clara’s bed.

“Clara, it’s time to wake up. We’ve got a big day and I brought you breakfast!” Oh if my dad did that for me, I would’ve been really happy. Back at the mansion, only the servants served me and dress me up. My parents were both busy with gardening and selling the flowers off as a tiny way to replace the money they spend. There was something about flowers that both my parents love to talk about, like it was their private joke or something. Most of the time the jokes were made by dad though.

“I don’t want any of that crap, Eric.” Clara sat up from her bed and glared at him.

“But-“

“Get out, Eric. Now.” She didn’t even softened her gaze. With a sad frown, he retreated to the door with the tray of food in his hands.

After the door slam shut, I jumped out of the bed and went straight to Clara. “What is wrong with you? Your dad was being nice! Why didn’t you just accept it?!” I scolded her. She hid her face from me, refusing to even glance at me. I inhaled slowly and glanced at her again. This time, she was looking right into my eyes, tears flowing down both side of her cheeks. Her eyes were puffy and red, only make-up could cover that up.

She threw her covers away and ran to the bathroom, slamming the door behind her.

“Go away…you don’t understand…” She said, through the sobs.

“Fine.”

***

“I’m sorry you had to watch that.” Eric apologized as I ate my breakfast. I shook my head and placed the toast on the plate.

“It’s alright! I won’t tell anyone!” I promised, giving him a reassuring smile. He smiled at me weakly and continued to nibble on his piece of toast. Heath just sat beside me, his usual poker face on as he nibbled on his own toast.

“Clara has issues with me that I think many people wouldn’t understand.” Eric explained.

“Rosie is a very understanding person. Talk to her.” Heath stated. He shoved the whole piece of toast into his mouth and picked up his plate. After giving me a slight push on the shoulder, he went off, leaving Eric and I alone in the dining table. Eric sighed and placed the toast on his plate.

“Clara’s uncle Lance got sick and my wife had to take care of him for the mean time. So without an assistant in my shows, I was forced to beg Clara to help me. Before this, we spoiled her in the most…worst ways there is.”

Eric paused.

“She insisted that I could handle the show alone. I knew I couldn’t because I had always needed her mother. So I took away everything she had, made her break up with her boyfriend, everything that would get her to surrender to me. It was wrong…I hurt her and it wasn’t something a father should’ve done. She hates me, Rosie. She wants her mother back.”

It was like my hands took control, because I didn’t even realize I was patting him until he looked up at me. A weak smile broke through his face and I said the words that I wished I could believe in. “It’s okay, everything would be fine.”