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TRAINING WAS rigorous. Her personal trainer was not just focused on her powers, but rather had taken in interest in her strength in general. It was no secret that Andorra was weak physically, and after taking one look at her, the trainer immediately put her on a workout regiment that felt like it was more suited towards someone training for a marathon.

As she ran down the beaten path, her trainer in front of her a few paces, she realized that perhaps she should have taken gym class more seriously. Or, perhaps she should have tried her hand at sports.

They hadn't even gone very far, but Andorra was already out of breath, panting and cursing the pain in her side from a cramp.

"C'mon, Princess!" The trainer yelled. "Give me something to work with!"

She narrowed her eyes at those words, but she pushed herself to run a little faster. She was trying her hardest, but she wanted to start a little slower, maybe focus more on building her cardio up before throwing her into a mile run.

If she was being truthful to herself, she actually was thankful for the distraction. She wanted to curl up in her bed and think about Noah kissing her, over and over again. She wanted to close her eyes and relive it. She wanted to relive the moments at the pond, where she watched him smiling, bending towards the water, showing his emotions to nothing more than a reflection of her.

She wanted to think about Anders, her very own Prince, but she knew she'd have plenty of time later that night to think about how Anlithamy was taking away the freedom of her future. How they didn't trust her, and why would they? She knew why they were making her marry a Prince they raised, but it still hurt.

She focused on her running, on her breathing, trying to forget Anders, to forget the way Noah's lips had felt on hers, to forget the way he had smiled down at the pond as she danced in her bedroom in nothing more than her pajamas.

"Princess!" Her personal trainer yelled. "Why are you slowing down? Pick up the pace!"

She was terrified at how Noah was going to act after what had happened between them. She knew he was going to avoid her, that he was going to run and hide from her after showing such a vulnerable state.

In her dreams, he would sweep her off her feet and forget everything about Anlithamy and the caste system. In her dreams, he would never hide his emotions from her. He would talk to her and joke with her and throw snow at her, just like he had as a child.

But, as much as Andorra wanted that, she knew her dream version of Noah wasn't the boy she fell for.

She picked up her pace, feeling like she was chasing her trainer instead of running with him, and her lungs burned. She felt like she couldn't get enough air down her throat, and her legs hurt with every step. She remembered then why she never enjoyed gym.

As she rounded a bend in the road, she saw her trainer leaning against a tree, waiting for her. When she finally reached him, she stopped and pitched forward, leaning her hands on her thighs.

Without warning, she vomited all over the grass not once, but twice.

"So, I'll tell you right now what I didn't like. Your form was off, your pace was erratic, and you don't know how to breathe properly."

Anger slithered up her spine at his words. "I tried my hardest!"

"Your hardest isn't good enough."

She met his eyes with a glare, tasting venom on her tongue. "Listen, if you don't want to do this, then just stop. No one asked you to train my cardio!"

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