I felt like I couldn’t breathe. There are too many people surrounding me. Grasping for air, I swiftly stumbled through an exit door, onto an outside patio. Taking a big deep breath, the smell of the forest hit me first, then the cigarette smoke and the tar from the freshly laid road. Resting on the balcony edge, I lightly play with the orchids that had been wrapped around the fence. It did feel good to be surrounded by nature again, especially the nature in Bluehaven. I can’t explain this feeling. Kali liked living in the city and we never had any plants in the houses we lived in. Sometimes it felt like she drew me away from the earth on purpose. The concrete always made my skin crawl.
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“Hello”
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I jump, accidentally pulling a leaf from the orchid with me. Poppy notices the tears in her brother’s eyes, as he tries to glue the broken leaf back on. She didn’t mean to frighten him, but she wanted a small moment to talk to him before all hell broke loose.
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“Sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. Are you alright? You seem to be crying.”
“Allergies.”
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A typical reason, of course, we are surrounded by nature. Poppy hands me her handkerchief and I take it, without looking her in the eyes. I knew as soon as we met eyes, I will break down entirely. I could see her bright smile though and it slowly dimmed when she sees my reporter's badge hanging out of my pant pocket. I don’t go anywhere without it these days. It made it easier to get into places I needed to get into.
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“You’re a reporter?”
“Yes, this is my hometown, a small story I wanted to celebrate with the world.”
“Hometown? Do you know Wyatt Yong then?”
“Yes, of course, he and I went to college together. I believe we may have even shared a dorm.”
“I see”
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The hurt was evident in Poppy’s eyes and I could feel the tears wanting to start rolling again.
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“My apologies I don’t believe I introduced myself. Poppy Carter.”
“Luke Paul, I know who you are. I have seen some of your films.”
“Of course you have.”
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The noise inside starts to rise again and I can tell the raffle is about to be pulled. Poppy pulls a raffle ticket out of his shirt pocket and placed it in my hands. Everything started to make sense now.
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“May luck be in your favour tonight.”
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Without saying another word, I watch Poppy filter back inside. Sighing I slip the ticket into my purse and find the boys. It seemed like I had missed a good portion of Eric’s speech and James was explaining to me how the raffle worked, he even tried to hand me a ticket.
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“It’s fine, I seem to have one already.”
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I wave the ticket and he gives me a goofy grin. I watch the stage as a showgirl, wheels the spinning barrel onto the stage. I manage to catch Erin’s eyes and give him a big grin. He stumbles through the next part of the speech before pushing his hand into the barrel, pulling out one ticket.
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“And the lucky number is 17389”
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For a casino, this moment in time seemed like the quietest it has ever been, as everyone tried to figure out who the winner is.
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“Do we have a ticket holder of 17389 in the crowd?”
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Pushing the need to run, I push my arm in the air and yelled.
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“I’m here.”
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The crowd parted for me as I made my way up to the stage. Erin held out his hand and helped me up. As soon as my skin touched his, I felt the electricity from our childhood, the rush I couldn’t understand, it was almost like magic. I grin at the clapping crowd, giving Juan a heavy wink.
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“This handsome winner is the luckiest gentleman of the night. Your name?”
“Luke.”
“Luke has won the deluxe VIP membership. One year free VIP with the Bluehaven casino. Let's give him a round of applause.”
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I could tell the crowd had started to murmur in between the clapping. I couldn’t tell if it was because of my badge or if everyone was slowly starting to recognise who I was.
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“Now, don’t throw out your cards, there will be another draw later on tonight. A chance to win ten thousand dollars. Please, party, gamble, drink and enjoy your night.”
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The crowd explodes again and Erin places a soft hand on my back, walking me back down from the stage. James, Jaun and Rico wait for me at the bottom of the stairs, large grins on their faces.
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“Well done boss.”
“We won’t be in bluehaven long, so take leave and give those two at home a call and let them take a break as well.”
“For real?”
“Of course. Now go before I make you work the night away.”
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All three of them salute and rush off in the directions of the tables.
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“You look happier than the last time I saw you. What took you so long to come home?”
“I’m sorry, it did take me a lot longer than I thought it would have. Are they still angry with me?”
“Kira yes, everyone else, seems to have forgotten why you left.”
“Do they know I’m here?”
“No. It was a struggle to even get Kira here in the first place.”
“My daughter?”
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The question I had been wanting to ask since I saw her at the airport today. All I want to do is walk in and take her home, take her back to the forests or even my concrete tower.
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“We will worry about that later, now we need to worry about the rest of the court accepting you back in.”
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His words stung a little. It wasn’t my doing to leave in the first place. So them accepting me back in should be no issues. Wait a minute, did he say court?
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“Court? Excuse me?”
“I was hoping you would remember a little bit more before we went in but just because you’re the prince, does not mean they will take you in.”
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