Struvland (REWRITING)

Chapter Ten: The Girl

STRUVLAND
Chapter 10
The Girl
Alessandra 

"No, you put it over here," I say, moving the vase of flowers across the table. Prince Oliver crosses his arms and shakes his head.

"Putting it on one side does not make any sense, Alessandra. It would--" Prince Oliver starts to say.

"It is Princess Alessandra, to you. I am not putting the flowers in the middle of the table, no matter what you say, Your Highness." I interrupt. He rolls his eyes and puts his arms up in defense.

"In my opinion, as I was trying to state, the middle seems to be the option that makes the most sense."

"It seems to be the option that makes the most sense." I mock. Prince Oliver sighs and runs a hand down his face. I grin and water the beautiful white chrysanthemums in the vase that were delivered to me by a lord on my father's council for my birthday. Prince Oliver pulls out a chair at the end of the table and sits. He studies me and I want to run away or sink into the floor with nothing but hardwood covering my skin.

"Did your parents or anyone ever figure out why you got so sick back then?" He asks. I rest my hands on the table and avoid his eyes.

"No, they don't understand what could've caused me to fall severely ill, everything seemed fine. They think it was blood mages or something evil lurking around the castle in plain sight, so they sent away every servant that worked for us. They employed new ones and nothing changed. They wondered if possibly my parents were to blame, so they instructed them to leave me alone so I would be isolated. Nothing improved in the many years my parents stayed away from me. I was miserable. Then, one day, it just stopped. I felt empty and hollow inside but it stopped and now I am here, a year later," I respond, taking a deep breath and flashing him a false smile.

"Why would they think a parent would do that to a child?"

"I fell ill around the time my mother became pregnant. There were suspicions that it might be a boy, so my parents would prefer him over me. Nothing was confirmed, just speculations. Then, my mother lost the child and my condition worsened. It was almost as if someone blamed me and wanted me gone. They suspected my mother was to blame, more than my father anyway. We never learned of the truth," I state. Prince Oliver nods in understanding and trails his finger across the lace on the tablecloth.

"Since we are speaking of our pasts, would you like to hear about Katerina? I figured it was time to tell you since we are going to be married soon. I won't say a word about her though if you prefer I didn't," He says. I look at him.

"Who is Katerina? A former lover of yours?"

"That is exactly what she is," He answers. I grab a chair and sit across from him.

"I was not aware you had been with someone. I just assumed you had not because of our engagement," I state. He looks at the ground and swallows before meeting my eyes.

"None of us were sure you would survive your illness. So, my mother had told me I could be with other people until we knew for sure. I just couldn't marry them," Prince Oliver explains.

"Oh."

"Katerina worked in the kitchens of the castle. She died a year and a half ago after Arcavia's soldiers attacked our castle on my birthday when I turned eighteen. Before her, I didn't think anyone could be more beautiful than you were to me. I had such strong feelings for you for years but when I saw her for the first time, all of that changed so quickly. She was so kind, gorgeous, and considerate. I do not doubt that I was in love with her. I would've married her if I had the chance," He states. I feel a sharp unknown pain in my chest but I ignore it.