The path of the fire escape must've been designed by arsonists. There's no way anyone would be able to to escape in time with all the twists and turns of the dark narrow stairway. I yelped with every squeak the wooden slabs made when I attempted to run up them.
The pretty bartender was practically gliding up the steps. You would think she were the princess.
"Thank you so much," I said to the her once we had finally arrived in an alleyway.
"Don't worry about it, you really ought to be careful next time," She said.
Before I go pivoted out of the alleyway I asked her name.
"I'm Kierra. Now go before they catch up." she shooed me away and went back to tame the crowd.
I took a tram back to the castle. luckily not many people were on at this time so it didn't make many stops.
Bickering with Dorian was why I didn't notice the paparazzi. The photo was sure to make the headlines the next morning. A photo of me and Dorian. Together. Face to face. Oh god, the rumours would be unbearable.
Anna called me this time while i was running towards the back of the castle.
"Hello?"
"Hurry up bubba your father is looking for you and he's about to go up to your room," She whispered through the phone.
"I'm on way,'m just outside" I panted.
"I tried to cover for you saying you were in the bathroom but the west wing bathroom door was open"
"Oh good he'll check all the other bathrooms." That would take a while.
"That was ages ago I told you he's coming up to your room now."
"Oh shit"
"Don't curse Noelle it's not ladylike," she hissed.
"Ladylike my ass."
She hung up.
I started sprinting to the fence and crawled under the tiny door. I didn't have time to remove the sweatpants and the hoodie so I went straight for the climb. It took me longer to get up since I was going uphill now. I climbed as fast as I could slipping occasionally and let out a sigh of relief when I reached the window.
I was still hanging from the window like a burglar sneaking back into her own house when I heard the doorknob twist. I tried clambering up the sill quickly but failed. The door opened to reveal the enraged face of King Julien Janvier. Another word of advice, do not get the king mad.
Especially if the king happens to be your father.
"Papa, how are you?" I said as casually as one could while dangling like a pair of diamond earrings from a castle tower.
He said nothing. That's not a good sign. My father was a king. Words were his fortè. His words were his weapon. So if he was beyond words, believe me, it's not because he was overjoyed. He was furious. I wished he would talk. It's the look on his face that hurt the most. His brown eyes were full of utter disappointment and they weren't leaving mine.
"You know we can just do the whole 'you're a disappointment' thing after you save my life." I was panting at this point.
Sarcasm probably wasn't the best thing to reply with in a situation like this.
He walked up to the large window and I put a hand up for him to help me up. He pulled me up like I weighed nothing and placed me on the soft carpet of my bedroom floor. My feet and my hands were hurting terribly and all I wanted to do was sit in a cold bath. But I couldn't do that. Not with my father looking at me like that. I looked at anywhere in the room but at his piercing eyes.
"Why are you doing this to me Noelle?" he said with so much hurt in gravelly his voice. This was worse than when he was angry. I didn't dare look at his face. I could guess that it was just as distraught as his voice. I remained silent.
"Tell me, Noelle"
Still, I say nothing.
"You're being selfish,"
I wish I had kept quiet.
"I'm not being selfish," I wish I had kept quiet
"It's all you've ever been. Do you not realize that as heir of Lavandia you can't be acting like this"
"Oh but you don't care do you," He continued.
"I do care."
"You don't," he said "because if you did, you would do as I say and get your act together. Because you can't be climbing down once you're on the throne"
I fought the urge to roll my eyes. As if he was going to die anytime soon. I sometimes think he only cares so much about his health to delay putting the kingdom into my hands as much as possible.
"I wouldn't have to sneak out if you let me out, i'm 18 now I can-"
"exactly, you're 18 now Noelle, you're an adult playing such childish games"
It was better to say less in an argument with him. Because he would find every way possible to use your words against you.
He sighed and massaged his nose bridge with his thumb and forefinger and left the room and the door ajar.
As soon as I was sure he was out of earshot. I let out a scream. With my mouth closed, of course, I wasn't trying to get killed. I stomped to the door and went to slam it only for it to stop midway and close slowly by itself because of the stupid automatic door closer thing my father had installed.
With an amplified frustration, I grabbed the first thing I could get my hands on and threw it at the wall. I turned around expecting a satisfying crash only to hear the shrill squeak of a stuffed giraffe toy.
I gave up and flumped down on my bed. I sat there and stared at the intricate crown molding on the ceiling and thought of all the things I could've said to have won that argument and kept mentally ranting about how he had the nerve to leave the door ajar.
My thoughts were hindered by the sound of my door opening.
"I told you so"
"Go away Grace," I said without turning around. I didn't need my stepsister's irrelevant-ness at the moment.
"That really hurt." Now that my ear was raised from my pillow, I could tell the voice was higher and less obnoxious. It was Anna.
Anna had been assigned as a nanny to me since I was a baby and gradually expanded her duties as a member of the royal staff. She was my only friend and she kept me in check.
"You heard?" I said once i realised who it was.
"Mhm" Anna nodded.
She was putting the laundry away in my main closet. I knew she was only doing it because she wanted to talk to me.I felt bad so I slid off my bed and stood next to her 5'3 frame to help her.I was a whole head taller than her at 5'10. We were the exact opposite in appearance. While she had straight honey blonde hair cropped at her shoulders, fair porcelain skin and stern blue eyes, I had a wild mane of curly chestnut hair that ended at my lower back, warm brown skin and dark brown eyes.
"I didn't even do anything bad and he barges in here like he owns the place talking about selfishness" I ranted.
Anna didn't stop what she was doing as she listened to my pointless tirade. She was used to this. Because I had no one to talk to save for Grace who had the emotional capacity of a clothespin and Verity who was just too young to understand sometimes,I usually went to Anna with all my problems. No matter how irrelevant they were.
"He does own the place"
"It's an idiom Anna."
"Actually it's not because you said he-"
"Yeah ok."
"What did you even do out there?" Anna asked
I looked at her sheepishly as I folded a floral scarf.
"There's this shitty club called le fièvre noire," I started.
"You didn't."
"I wish I hadn't. Dorian got me in for like 5 minutes and we got caught by the paparazzi"
"If i could just-" She said as she raised her hand as if she were about to slap me but stopped herself.
She raised an eyebrow and replied with a cheeky smile.
"Beaumont?"
"No"I rolled my eyes sarcastically.
"You know he reminds of your father when he was that age," she said nostalgically.
I almost chocked on oxygen particles.
"They're not even the same fucking race!" I chortled.
"No like his character you know.." Anna used to be major fan girl.I didn't even know they had those back then.
"Gross. How can you even have a small crush on dad he's so boring," I looked at her in mock disgust.
"Wanna know something" She whispered with a twinkle in her eye "it's not small"
She left the room with the empty wicker laundry basket. I followed after her to the door and without thinking yelled out,
"Anna you better not be having an affair with my-"
Anna's face went red when she saw my father poke his head through his office.
"My-Mychael, your husband" I improvised weakly.
I sighed in relief the same time Anna did.
"You're married, Anna?" my dad questioned. As if he cared. I mean it was Anna so I guess he was obligated to show concern towards her wellbeing.
Anna managed to let out a sentence with her flustered face.
"Uh um... no, your majesty it's a um...an inside joke Noelle and I have"
"I'll leave you to it then" he acknowledged with a polite smile to Anna and completely ignored my existence.
Once the door closed behind him Anna turned around and attempted to glare at me. She couldn't pull it off with her kind round face.
"Nice save," she said sarcastically.
"Tell Mychael I said hi."
She went away to the kitchen mumbling about how 'despicable' and 'uncivil' I was.
I was chuckling to myself when I stepped on a stuffed toy giraffe . It let out a squeak and I thought about what it was doing at the other end of the room. I was reminded of the miniature argument I had with my father just minutes ago. Long since forgotten all because of the presence of Anna.
I don't know what I would do without her. She wasn't coming to LV this year because she said she had some family business to take care of. But even that couldn't get rid of the giddy feeling I had in my stomach when I thought of who was waiting for me back in L'autre Ville.
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