I can't say I do without you

Fiddle

The call abruptly came to a stop. It doesn't make me feel better; instead, it makes me feel worse. Those phrases of the prince... make me anxious as well.

It's 12:30 a.m., yet King Augustus and Prince Augustus have still not returned to the palace. I think I won't be able to sleep. To fall asleep, I went down to the library cause reading helps me sleep faster. I'm not sure which of these books I'll read first. Fortunately, there are labels on every bookcase, so I had no trouble choosing an intriguing book. I was excited to see what was in these books, particularly the one about their family history, but when I saw how thick it was, I felt lazy to read it all of a sudden. What I did instead of reading was wander around the library out of sheer boredom. I spotted something at the far end of the library, a door that was blocked by a bookcase. It has a vibrant hue. It is visible to anybody. There was a warning sign on the wall showing it was off-limits, but I went anyway. My feet moved slowly towards this door. It's as though it's luring me in.

Gemma, what are you doing? Don't you see the warning sign? There might be something awful that may occur if you keep doing this. I looked around the empty library. But no one is around. Maybe it's okay if I sneak a glance, just one, and then return to the room. I went forward, well I'd like to say walked, but it was more waddled towards the door and twisted the shiny brass doorknob. This place was tiny at first walked. In fact, my bathroom was more prominent than in this room. But it's not just a little; once you look at it, it seems like a forest. Flowers, plants grew on the walls and the floor. Not only that, all the instruments accumulated here are also covered with the plants, as if they had become the root of every plant, left to rot and unused. It appears to have been stored in the room for a long time; it is now a breeding place for plants.

I moved closer to the piano, felt it all over, and then pressed its key. A powerful sound resonates as a result of the soundboard vibrating the air. The tone was still pleasing, so why did they leave it here? There's a box beneath the piano, an unusual crate. I knelt to have a better look at it. Unlike the others, this box is devoid of plants, yet it is densely packed with dust. I blew the dust away before I could pull it off. After getting rid of the dust, I saw something dangling from the box. Something is written on a piece of paper.

"CC?" Why is it so familiar? It's as though I've seen it somewhere before. As I opened the box, it shocked me to see a violin, not just any violin, but it was highly similar to Mama's violin, which she had kept hidden for a long time. I can't possibly be mistaken. The form of her violin tells me it's hers. I'm quite sure it's hers.

"Mama? Why's your violin different from others?"

Mama caressed my cheek and smiled at me. "Cause this fiddle has a unique sound and esteemed history, a well-known violin maker created it; this type of fiddle is unique in the world. You won't find anything like this in any place else because this violin was custom-made for me. Take a look..."

Mama pointed at the inscription on the back of the violin.

"Do you see this initial? This is proof that I own the violin. No one can lay claim to it."

"CC"

"Does this belong to you, Mama?" I flipped the violin over to see the engraving on the back.

After I heard the door open, I unintentionally let go of the violin I was holding. "What on earth are you doing here?"

"P-prince Augustus?"

"How did you find out about this place? Are you blind? Don't you see it's off-limits? This is the second time I've caught you messing with something that isn't yours. Have they not taught you proper manners?" Prince took my arm and dragged me out of the room. He frowned and sneered. "You took advantage of our absence to steal. HOW PATHETIC!"

"I apologize. I admit I entered, though there's a sign indicating that this chamber is off-limits. As I previously stated, I am not a thief. I have no intention of stealing from the palace. However, that violin... it doesn't belong here. The right place for this violin is at home. "

"You deny being a thief, yet you claim ownership of something that is not yours."

"Because it isn't really yours! That violin was designed mainly for my mother."

"How can you be sure it's your mother's fiddle?"

"I'm certain."

"You're using it as an excuse to get away."

"No!" I said aloud.

"Come along with me. I'll inform your king of what you've done. Let's see whether he still stands up for you. I'm sure he'll be upset with what you did."

He yanked me out of the library despite my repeated pleas. I'm fed up with his behavior, so I shoved him inadvertently. "Can you stop being aggressive even for a second? I'm sick of your attitude. Do you think I wanted to be here? I just have no choice. If it weren't for what happened to us, I wouldn't be able to bear to do this to you."

"You... STUPID NEGIE!" he smacked me, which surprised me immensely. "What a piece of crap! You haven't been carried away by what I did, have you?" he snorted. "I will not stop doing this to you as long as you are here in the palace." Prince Augustus returned to me in the same way that I had done to him. He pushed me as well. My body was weaker than his, so when he shoved me, I fell on the floor.

"I feel sorry for you. Someone unhappy feels terrible, and you are that person, Prince Augustus. Just looking at you made me feel sad."

"What did you say?" he said, grabbing the collar of my dress and pulling me up. "You have the audacity to ridicule me!"

"No, but that's the truth."

"DUMB NEGIE!" He put his fingers around my neck forcefully.

"You'll be miserable for the rest of your life if your ego prevails," I replied, hardly breathing since he kept choking me. I could feel him clench his other fist. I could hear him silently scream.

Blood poured from his nose all of a sudden. "Wait, prince, a-are you okay? The blood... It's leaking from your nose."

Prince Augustus let go of my hand and strolled away from me as if nothing had happened, allowing the blood to trickle down his nose. What did I do? Why did I say such heinous things to him? "Prince Augustus, I'm sorry; I shouldn't have uttered such harsh words." I repeatedly bent my head down.

I followed him into his room. I was ready to walk in when he slammed the door shut. "Prince, are you all right? Please accept my apologies for what I said. I didn't mean to say those words. I was just upset at the time, so I shouted those things."

"Go away!"

"But your nose is bleeding," I said after a brief pause. "Wait for me. I'll go grab some ice." I dashed to the kitchen for a bucket of ice, stuffed it into the ice bag, and dashed back upstairs. "Prince?" I repeatedly knocked on his door. "I brought the ice bag for you? Could you please let me in?"

The prince unlocked the door. He was wiping his nose with a cloth. He snatched the ice bag from my grasp and drove me away from the door. "Are you satisfied? Now, leave me alone!"

"I am scared."

"P-Prince?"

Your words frightened me... Did something happen to you the night before? Why are you so upset again?