I can't say I do without you

His smile

"Gemma." Prince Emmanuel handed me a can of soft drinks. "That's all the vendors at your school have, just put up with it,"

I nodded. "Thank you, Prince Emmanuel," he said, then he sat down next to me. "What are you doing here, Prince Emmanuel?" I asked.

"I found out Borstal had practice against Windsor. I thought of going, but it looks like I'm late." he paused. "Gemma, don't cover for him if Cynfael hurt you. He should..."

I shook my head. "Prince Augustus didn't hurt me. He had nothing to do with my crying earlier. Please, Prince Emmanuel, don't be mad at him. I don't want to be the cause of your fight."

Prince Emmanuel suddenly placed his hand on my head and smiled. "All right,"

While waiting for the prince to come out, I told Prince Emmanuel how Borstal's game was earlier, especially how competitive Prince Augustus was to win, even though that was just a practice game. "Too bad you didn't see how good the prince was in the practice game earlier. He was the only one who scored for his team," I said proudly. "Borstal won because of him."

Prince Emmanuel sighed in disappointment. "Mr. Osiris gave me the wrong time," he said.

"Don't worry. Prince Augustus has another practice game coming up." I gave him a pat on the back.

Once we heard Prince Augustus coming out of his room, we both stood. "How come you're here?" Prince Augustus asked.

"Supporting you." Prince Emmanuel shrugged his shoulders. "But I didn't make it to your game, though. Because Mr. Osiris gave me the wrong time."

"Good for you." Prince Augustus slid his hands into his slacks' pockets. "I'm tired, and I'm heading home." Prince Augustus said.

Prince Emmanuel placed his hand on Prince Augustus's shoulder. "Nah, let's eat! Let us celebrate your victory against Windsor. I found a new restaurant nearby." The two princes took the lead, and I followed. I stood next to them, watching them over the back. "Let's eat outside; I'm sure you're hungry."

"I DON'T WANT TO!" Prince Augustus replied quickly.

"Come on, bro!"

Prince Augustus used to be enraged, but now that he's with Prince Emmanuel, he's calm. Even Prince Emmanuel teases him. Seeing them like this makes me remember my older brother Samuel, who used to do the same thing as Prince Augustus. It was annoying when my Kuya Samuel was forcing me to go somewhere I didn't like.

"Hey, Gemma!" Prince Emmanuel was waving his hand in the air. "Are you not coming with us?"

"Coming!" I walked over to join them.

"LET'S EAT!" Prince Emmanuel exclaimed with excitement.

Prince Augustus cannot refuse Prince Emmanuel's wishes, forcing him and me to eat at a newly opened restaurant near Borstal. "I really hate you." Prince Augustus said with a furrowed eyebrow.

"So am I." Prince Emmanuel spoke while his mouth was full. "Eat up, guys, don't miss out on this delicious meal," he said.

"All right." I took the spoon from the table. "Thank you, God," I said before popping the food into my mouth.

"Seriously?" Prince Augustus burst out laughing.

"What?" I asked.

Prince Emmanuel then told a story about Prince Augustus during dinner. I laughed heartily at his stories that I didn't notice; my laugh was a little loud. Because Prince Emmanuel had reserved the entire restaurant, we are the only ones here. I cast a sidelong glance at Prince Augustus while Prince Emmanuel told his story. His smile makes me at ease for a second.

Prince Augustus yawned. "BORING," he said as he rose from his seat at the table. "Stay if you want, but I'm leaving."

Like the prince, I also got out of my chair. "Gemma, where are you going?" Prince Emmanuel asked.

"Home, like the prince," I replied.

"Let Cynfael go home alone. You are under no obligation to accompany him anywhere." Prince Emmanuel said.

"But..."

"Emmanuel, he's my maid. Negie should accompany me wherever I go," Prince Augustus stated. I was shocked by what he had just said and stared at him in disbelief. That's the first time I've heard Prince Augustus say that. "Amiyah is available if you really need someone to talk to." Prince Augustus pointed outside the restaurant.

We looked in the direction the prince had indicated, where Amiyah stood, waving her hand in the air. "OH SHIT!" Prince Emmanuel rose and dashed to the back of the restaurant. "We're not done, Cynfael! I will break all the bones in your body!"

I chuckled silently.

Amiyah walked inside after opening the door. "Thank you for the information, kid." She gives Prince Augustus a wink and pat on the back.

"Just don't murder him." Prince Augustus joked.

"I can't make any promises." Amiyah flashed a sly grin.

Amiyah chased Prince Emmanuel, and when Prince Augustus walked out of the restaurant, I followed him. "Excuse me, prince? What about Prince Emmanuel? Are we not going to help him?" I asked worriedly.

"I know Emmanuel; he will not let Amiyah catch him." He replied. "But if you're worried, you can follow him."

I stopped for a moment but realized Prince Augustus was right. Amiyah can't catch Prince Emmanuel. "You're right," I said to myself.

When I return to the palace, I go right to my bedroom. I'm safe for today. King Lucien left with Mr. Osiris, and I can still come up with an excuse for him. As I sat on my bed, I noticed a new envelope from King Lucien.

AS I PROMISE,

KING LUCIEN

I opened the envelope and took what was inside. King gave me a photo that is similar to the first one he gave me. Blythe and Allerick look to be in their classes in the first photo. It saddened me to see the following picture, which showed Mama alone at home, and the last one, them with Kuya Samuel. I can see how excited they were. It was as if our life had returned to normal.

As I lay on the ground, I clasped the photo, took a deep breath, and slowly closed my eyes, unaware that I had fallen asleep while hugging the photos. There's a loud knock on the door, which wakes me up. The loud knock did not stop. I got out of bed to open the door. "Is that you, Prince Emmanuel?"

"At last, you opened the door."

"Are there any other things I can do for you?" I asked.

"Nothing." Prince Emmanuel shook his head. "But I'll give you something." He handed me a box of macaroons. "That is in exchange for the macaroons that were thrown away earlier."

"You don't have to replace those macaroons, Prince. You are not the one who throws it," I said.

"Take that if you don't want me to get angry at you." He pinched both of my cheeks. "Please don't call me Prince Emmanuel; just call me Kuya prince, okay? ENJOY!" He let go of my cheek and walked back to his room.

I placed the box of macaroons on the bed, but I didn't open it; instead, I just stared at it. Why did Prince Augustus replace the macaroons at all? Who is going to eat this? I'm not too fond of macaroons. I just made those macaroons for Prince Augustus. If I give them to him again, he might throw them away, claiming they're poisonous.

I let out a sigh. "If Blythe were here, she would eat all of these macaroons."