LOST

Chapter 8- Games

Celestine

"W-what?" I finally managed after a moment of silence.

The women all agreed to play the game with ravenous looks in their eyes. I gulped. Prince Odin didn't look any better. Crown Prince Aiden's face was a mask of indifference. It angered me that he wasn't speaking. I snapped. I wish I hadn't.

"Fine. We shall play a game of truth or dare," I said haughtily.

Aiden's eyes flared with an emotion that I couldn't place and then went back to their cold state. Prince Odin became paler. He ran his fingers through his hair and nodded, probably accepting the fact that I had switched sides in a matter of seconds. One of the women gave me a thankful look. I smiled timidly. These women wanted to play the game. I shook my head myself.

 How bad could it be?

"I'll go get the wine," Aiden offered. I wanted to frown as he left. Back at the palace with my friends, we never had drinks while playing this game. Gods all know how things ended up if we drank before playing.

"We don't drink before playing truth or dare in Satian," I told Odin. Odin sighed.

"That's because you are sane," he chuckled. "This game is one for insane people."

He earned a dirty look from the women for that. He smiled apologetically at them and turned to look at me again.

"Can you please explain how you play the game?" I asked.

"We pass the bottle of wine. Suppose I finish my turn and you sit next to me, I pass the bottle of wine to you. You drink the wine and ask anyone in the group whether they'd take truth or dare. Once they pick an option, you ask them a question if they chose truth or you give them a dare if they chose likewise," he explained.

"But won't we be drunk after a few rounds?" I asked. "That won't be good, would it?"

"You got that right. I usually avoid playing this game because of the consequences I wake up to in the morning," he sighed heavily. "You shouldn't have agreed to play."

"No. It's alright. After all, how bad can it be?" I said hopefully. He gave me a sad smile.

"My only worry is showing up to the Erini as a drunk prisoner. A prisoner is bad enough," I said.

"Oh, even if you get drunk tonight, you will be perfectly fine at the Erini. We have a three-day-long journey ahead of us," he assured. "It's funny. I came here to get to know you and I ended up ruining your night."

"Hey!  You didn't ruin anything. I've been rotting in the Kythian prison for almost a month now, and throughout all that time, I've been alone. You brought me company which is the greatest gift you could've given me," I explained. His eyes softened.

"The greatest gift I could've given you is your freedom," he said. My heart stopped. "I could've helped you escape. I still can but I shouldn't. I can't be the one to betray my country."

I held his gaze. His eyes bore into mine. The heat and intensity of his gaze melted my insides. He slowly lifted his fingers and lightly brushed my cheekbone. I felt his warm breath caressing my face.

"You don't deserve this, Celestine," he whispered.

 I recalled Aiden's words. Hadn't he said the exact opposite? I realized just how different these two could be. I was still very mesmerized when the door to my cabin flung open. Aiden sauntered inside, holding three bottles of royal wine.

He froze for a second as his eyes took in his brother's hand on my cheek. His gaze hardened for a second before turning into its usual form. He slammed the door shut with his foot with more force than needed.  As he sat on the bed and opened a bottle. He took a long swig and passed it on to a woman at his side.