The Dark Prince (Kylo Ren X Reader)

All Eyes On You

The bright shine of the cameras and show lighting surrounded you, bleeding even though the thick curtain hanging between you and the stage. You exhaled slowly, shaking out your hands with nervous energy--but it was no help to relive your stress. 

You'd always hated giving speeches. You really couldn't think of anything you dreaded doing more than being on television--broadcasted in front of millions of judging eyes, just waiting for you to make the smallest slip up. Then they'd plaster your face on the front of every newspaper, every tabloid--the headlines mocking you with relentless insults. 

It almost made you nauseated, thinking about having to put on that fake, trained smile and walking out to the podium, saying your speech without tripping over any syllables. Making no mistakes. Being robotic, not human. They never wanted you to seem human--because then you looked weak. 

You were lost in thought, your stomach churning painfully as you suddenly heard footsteps approaching behind you, stopping at your heels. You spun around, dreadingly expecting your mother or father. But to your surprise--and relief--neither of them met your gaze, but Kylo, towering over your head as he stared down at you. His hair was combed back carefully, not a strand out of place, and he was dressed in a perfectly-fitted suit, a red tie standing out on his chest. He eyed you blankly, his expression not revealing any sort of emotion, and you heard him exhale softly. 

"Hi," You muttered, flashing him a weak smile. He didn't smile back.

"Are you ready?" He asked simply, choosing not to reply to your greeting as he slid his hands into his pockets. You gulped, your stomach twisting again.

"No," You said, your voice threaded with barely-veiled anxiety. "Not at all."

"Well we're on in five minutes," He mumbled, pulling his hand back out of his pocket and bringing a folded piece of paper with it. He untucked the corners, flattening the note between his fingers as his eyes scanned quickly over the words scribbled on the surface. "Be ready by then."

You furrowed your brows as he pushed past you, wondering why he was still acting so off. Was he still mad at you? You'd thought that he was over the whole Alex thing. He'd said it himself. You'd made up. But he was still acting distant. Cold. It was like he was a whole different person than the man you'd met that night in the dining hall--like a flip had switched and a new side of him had been revealed. And so far, you weren't too big of a fan of this new attitude. 

But regardless of how he was acting, you were at least glad that there'd be someone else on the stage with you. Usually you were alone, and it was a big relief when you'd been told that you'd be speaking together, as a "new couple" being presented to the people. Whether there was any real truth to that statement, you weren't sure. 

But today would be the day that your two peoples would learn of your future marriage, and the uniting of your two kingdoms as partners, not enemies. You weren't sure how the public was going to take it. It had been this way for decades--the constant fear dwelling in the back of everyone's minds that at any moment, war might break out over the galaxy in the blink of an eye. You guessed that most would be happy to hear that peace would finally be secured, but something told you that not everyone would trust the First Order's intentions--and you weren't necessarily sure that you did either. 

But you shook your head, sighing again as you fixed the fabric over your figure, the deep red color cascading down your frame. The dress was tight against your skin, fitted to the curves in your body and trailing down to the floor. A slit was cut up your leg, revealing your bare skin and stopping below your waist. You'd thought it was too much, but you didn't have much of a say as your mother hissed at you to get dressed, practically forcing you into it and tightening the corset around your midriff. Your hair was pulled back into a tight bun at the back of your head, a white-jeweled crown digging into your scalp.