Jalex oneshot stories

A daydream away - day one

The art above is not mine.

Once upon a time, there lived a young prince named...

"ALEX!" Queen Gaskarth yelled from out of young Alexander William Gaskarth's door. Alex huffed to himself, sat up and turned off his CD player before going over to the door and opening it to a not so queenly looking face. Alex looked his mum up and down, taking in every ounce of rage she was forcing upon him. "What have I told you about playing music in the castle? Do not turn it up too loud, do not listen to it openly and do not turn it up too loud!" Queen Gaskarth reiterated. Alex just nodded and hung his head. He'd heard this a thousand times and still nothing changed in his behaviour. He was beginning to wonder when his mum would change her tactics. "you are a prince Alex, you need to start acting like one. You are nearly twenty. You will be marrying soon and taking your father's place before you know it. How are you supposed to rule the kingdom like this?" She gestured to the inside of Alex's room. Quite frankly, Alex liked his room, it was cosy and friendly to him. He had band posters of all sorts stuck up on his walls and doors of his wardrobe. He had several guitar stands for both his electric and acoustic, a small amp on his bedside table that was no bigger than a medium sized speaker. He had various plectrums of all shapes, sizes and colours scattered across his side's. A TV stood in the corner of his room on top of a night stand. It all just felt like home to Alex. It felt like him.

Queen Gaskarth sighed. "Alex, you see, your father and I have been speaking. We have organised a small hotel that you can house yourself in for a week."

"You mean, I do not have to stay here?" Alex interrupted. Alex looked at his mum pleadingly, seeing the regret flash over her face before returning to normal.

"Yes, you will be staying outside of the castle."

"Sweet." Alex grinned. If his mum was going to punish him, what better way than doing it like this.

"Alex, this is no game." His mother warned. "We are sending you out so that you can get a feel for your subjects. So that you can see the kingdom you will be ruling over and hopefully that will give you an incentive to want to grow up a little. You will have to act like a normal person, and you will have to behave like one too. It is a dangerous world Alex. It is no joke." Alex nearly gulped at his mum's explanation of the outside world.

Alex wasn't really allowed outside. He got to go into the large gardens suited for him, but he never saw anyone. Alex had no idea what it would be like. Sometimes he could see the hustle and bustle of the streets below through his bedroom window if the weather was nice enough and those days, Alex would spend hours just watching. Alex just wanted to be normal. He didn't want this life of royalty, he just wanted normality. And to be fair, Alex didn't consider himself all that far from normal anyway. He was too far segregated from the rest of his family as it was. It really couldn't be that hard to spend a week out with the common people. Alex shivered at the term he just used. 'Common people' should be an insult, not an everyday term in the castle. It was offending even for Alex to think.

"But mum, I am like them. Sure my blood is not the same as theirs but in my heart, I know that I am not like you. I do not share any of the same qualities." Queen Gaskarth rubbed the bridge of her nose in thought.

"I suppose you are correct, so this is why it is important for us to make sure that you do this, it gives you the chance to really wake up and see what it is that your father deals with day in and out. And maybe, you'll meet a pretty, young girl to marry." Alex grimaced at the last part of his mother's declaration. He would rather not have to think about marriage yet. He had never had any interest in anyone.

"Maybe." He managed instead.

"Great!" His mum clapped her hands in delight. "you will be spending the rest of the day today as your first day and we will bring you back in another six days. Grab your things Alex, you are going on an adventure." And with that, queen Gaskarth was gone.

~*~

Alex sat down on the plush bed he had been given in the new hotel he was to stay in for the week. His butt sank into the mattress and it should have been comfortable. But prince Alex found no comfort in the extra padding. To him, it felt wrong. If he was going to be living like normal people, he wanted to live in the same conditions. He didn't want extra luxury. But Alex wasn't about to turn it down now that he had it. It just didn't feel right.

Alex leant his guitar up against the wall in the corner. It was the only thing queen Gaskarth allowed him to bring with him other than his most casual clothes. Alex wasn't sure what to do with his time. He had so much of it now. He checked the wallet his mum had given him to see several hundred dollar bills. "I suppose I could go out on the town." Alex questioned to himself. And it was decided.

Alex was going to leave and live for once in his life. He wasn't going to let some stupid four walled building keep him captive. He pulled his ankle high boots back on and pulled a flannel shirt over his lean body. The boots clapped along the oak flooring nicely. It was a different sound to the usual plodding of feet on carpet. Then again, King and Queen Gaskarth always demanded you take your shoes off upon entering the castle. Sometimes Alex just felt like another stranger to his family, like he didn't belong at all. And maybe, just maybe, Alex didn't want to belong. He liked being himself, and if that meant he had to sacrifice family, he'd do it. After all, maybe one day he'll find someone who'd accept him instead. Alex straightened his back like his mother had always taught him to do when walking, and exited the bedroom, before going downstairs towards the foyer. He greeted the bellhop with a small wave and smile before leaving the building altogether. A couple hundred dollar bills shoved into his back pocket. Little did poor prince Alex know, that keeping one hundred dollar bills in your back pocket, would not end well.

~*~

Alex had entered several shops now. He had bought many random and useless items, from candied apples to boiled sweets or packets of crisps. Alex didn't usually get this kind of stuff in the castle on the hill. He wasn't used to all the cuisine down here. But it tasted so much better.

Alex held the candy apple to his lips and took a small bite. It was hard to sink his teeth into but once he broke the toffee coating, his mouth was filled with a taste so divine, he couldn't resist a second bite. Alex moaned into the bite before getting stared at by a few passerby's. Alex didn't care for their whispers though, he was enjoying himself.

That's when he get clapped on the back a little too hard. Alex felt a lump of apple fall down his throat before he had finished eating it. He was lucky to have not choked. "Beat it prince. Nobody wants you here." Alex heard a boy sneer. Alex cowered slightly. "Stop pretending to be like us. You're just a fake. Go back to your princess castle on the hill." Alex knew it was meant to be mean, but quite frankly, the boys words were harsh but stupid. 

"I am like you, more than you would think." Alex managed. His voice smooth and silky compared to that of the ruffian's. Alex was much smaller than the opposing guy, in both height and build, but Alex was willing to test his limits.

"You can wear our clothes, you can pull on our boots, you can eat our food, but you will always be royal stuck up scum." And with that the boy shoved Alex once more and walked away. Alex's apple fell to the dirt covered ground and so did the rest of his groceries he had gathered together.

He decided then from that moment onwards, he hated boys.