Being the heir to the royal crown isn't the perfect life everyone thinks it is. Being primped constantly, constantly trying to be courted, and having to be perfect all the time takes a toll on you eventually if you don't find somewhere to rest and think. I eventually found a time and place I could do that when I ventured out into the forest behind the castle. My parents, the King and Queen, knew I was a wayward soul and loved to explore the world around me. Almost every night I would sneak out and walk to a certain clearing where I could see the moon and all the stars. The only people that knew I would go out were the guards and my personal maid.
One cool summer night, I snuck out like I did every night. My trek to the meadow went on with no bumps or problems. Following the path my feet had beaten in after using it so many times, I come across the massive rock in the middle of this clearing. A while ago I had snuck a hammer and chisel out to make steps in the stone. I situate myself to a comfortable spot and just stare at the stars for hours. The only thing that broke my focus was very loud branches snapping. I could feel the little nip of fear and anxiety crawling up my skin before I saw the man in a trench coat and head wrap.
"Who goes there," I ask trying my best to sound confident; I think I succeeded, but who knows. He looked around for a moment before his eyes found me on the boulder. He stayed silent and started to walk towards me. He got about five feet away from me before he stopped and just stared at me.
"Who are you," I said once more. He looks me down one last time before he speaks.
"None of your concern, I am no danger to you," he said he said before he found my make-shift stairs and began to climb up them. Once he was on top of the rock he stood over me as if I could read his mind. After a moment I realized he wanted me to scoot over so he could fit next to me. I rolled my eyes slightly and scooted about two feet over. His towering stature slumped over next to me as he also looking up at the stars. There was a long silence before I decided to break the ice.
"What your favorite constellation?"
We had a long, mostly one-sided, talk about the stars before I had to leave and go back to the castle. For many more nights, he can back and decided to sit next to me. So much so that the conversations began to get less and less one-sided and I learned his name.
Kars.
It's a very interesting name, but I decided to not ask about it too much. One night he even took off his head wrap and let his hair down. And, after a few more nights he let me brush it, play with it, and braid it. Now many nights after he lets me put multitudes of braids and flowers in his hair.
This night was after my father had me engaged with a boy who only wanted to marry me for the throne. He treated me like dirt and now I was just ranting to Kars about him.
"He doesn't treat me right and he acts so differently towards me in front of my parents. He acts like a prized jewel, but on the other side, it's caked in stinky mud. I don't care if he gets the throne. I just don't want to be around him." Kars says something I never expected next.
"Run away with me."
Could I actually do that? Do I trust him enough to run away from home with? He can obviously see the surprise, worry, and debate going on in my head.
"I'll give you time to think about it, but know that I couldn't stand seeing him treat you less than your worth."
His words were full of support and gentleness. I gaze into his eyes for a moment and think about his proposition. They say the eyes are the window to the souls and the longer I look into his eyes the more of his soul I can see.
"Tomorrow... I'll run away with you."
A surprised smile washes over his face and he wraps his arms around my waist in a hug. He's never hugged me before.
"I love you (y/n)."
His words were so abrupt that I pull back. I didn't realize those are the words I want to hear over and over again until he actually said them.
"I love you too Kars. I want to spend the rest of my life with you."
"Then we will meet tomorrow and your wish will come true."
830 words
I didn't have an idea for this at first so I was a little nervous about the outcome, but I'm happily surprised that it's not trash. Thank you for reading.
