Right By Your Side.

Chapter 1: The Adjustment

*Bryce's View*

It's like the more I try not to think about it, the more upset I get when I think about it but thinking about it.. also makes me equally upset. The one thing I didn't want to happen, happened. I know taking on another kingdom would be tiring work, hell.. I knew it would strain our connection but never in a million years would I have guessed that it would be three months with no word from my husband.. Not a call, a text.. We promised to spend every night together even if we couldn't spend the days together & it seems like all of the promises turned to shit.

*sigh* .. let me rewind it for you, so you can understand how we got here. My husband & I are the Emperor-Empress of the Fire kingdom. We were appointed by the Fire elders before us as the ones to carry the torch because we are the strongest in our kingdom. Zach & I have known each other since children, playing little jokes on each other. He was actually pretty rude to me growing up which is what started us doing jokes & pranks on each other - he thought I was just this quiet little sweet girl. He didn't know mama has a wild side too! haha. By the time we were 19, he professed his love for me which caught me completely off guard because I thought he just saw me as "one of the boys" & before we knew it, we were married. I won't lie, I was in love with him too, but again I thought he only saw me as one of the boys so I wasn't going to set myself up to be rejected haha no ma'am, but deep down I always wanted to make him mine.

At 25, the elders of our Kingdom were passing of natural causes & they demanded us specifically to take over. Zach & I have always had a reputation coming from individual families. The kingdom knew of us before we even knew we were fated for greatness. Him, being the pillar of his family in our kingdom. He was raised to be the strength, The provider, as I was raised to be a leader. The backbone of my family, raised to be the voice of women in our Kingdom. The woman who can run with the best of them. People always said he & I were destined to do great things, so when the elders gave us blessing to take over the Kingdom, we did just that! 

As of a few months ago, the counterparts of the other surrounding kingdoms fell sick & died an untimely death. The Emperor of the Earth kingdom, asking my husband to kindly assist until the Empress of Earth can find another to help her & The Empress of Air asking me to fulfill her duty until the Emperor of Air can also find another. This has never been done in the history of all kingdoms, Zach & I are the youngest in all kingdoms, & we are the youngest to ever be appointed in charge but there's no doubt that this task is one we can handle.

The night we talk it over, I admit to him that I don't think I can handle being so at distance with one another.. that, even though Air Empress is my bestfriend & I love her, I would rightfully decline if this was an obligation that came between my lover & I.. Zach ensures me that I wouldn't have to worry about that & that he would make sure we both did what was needed for us to still maintain a healthy relationship with the needed desire & passion that we both need. Feel reassured, I agree to take on the task just as he agreed to also take on his task.

"It's just until they find other counterparts, then we back to our regular life"

Yet here we are... Three months in. No word, no hear from. Every night I leave our kingdom window open, and every morning I awake without a sight of my lover. I knew I would have to wait for him, but this is starting to feel like being left at the altar. I understand the strain of responsibility this has had, but I can't stop myself from still being angry about it. An unadulterated bitterness leaving stains on my tongue, and on my heart. I do very well at pushing all this to the back of my mind when it's time.

A fresh day, I wake up & shake it off. Choosing to focus on business & not on my emotional matters. What does a typical day look like in the life of the Air-Fire Kingdom empress you ask?

After usual hygiene things, I go out through my Kingdom early morning & I check on my people. Asking questions, playing with the children, helping with fire wood to keep things burning.. after that, before heading to the Air kingdom, I put my guards in charge of the important things like managing fires  from the newbies (new people coming into their fire gift), keeping an eye out for my empire, helping the people in the land deliver fire wood to the families in our kingdom who need it & things in that nature.

Then I head out to the Air kingdom to help them. I have such an admiration for the Air people, such a rational people. Logical, and they really prioritize communication which is foreign to me because as Fire people, we value the action more than the articulation of said thing. I start by taking notes of what the people need & desire. Checking the air quality throughout each home as well as throughout the entire kingdom, checking all the signs & correct spelling.. This is the Kingdom in which we get all the important news, so I also make sure all the radios, news stations, gossip blogs & televisions are up & working before heading off to the Air Emperor to see if there is anything he needs which is usually just double checking behind him to ensure he's done everything. Air Kingdom obviously has a lot of THINK energy, so sometimes, Air emperor has so much on his mind that he will forget the small things, and that's where I come in.

It makes me miss my bff even more, because we would always talk about how our men are exact epitomes of their kingdom. Her husband, always thinking. Always sharing thoughts, dialogue, opinions. They could talk for hours on end, his mind always running from thought, to thought, to thought hahah, sometimes so much that he would forget to eat being so focused on handling his priorities. My husband, being here one moment & gone the next. Never a dull moment, he is passionate, fiery. Impulsive, I have to remind him to calm down & take two seconds or else he will let his fire & excitement burn far too brightly, causing potential damage. Or at least that's how he used to be.

Assisting Air emperor makes me miss these talks with my bestie.. Makes me miss having these moments to come together & share a conversation, share a laugh, but I vowed to do this for her in honor of her so I will do all I can to honor that. I do the little things I remember her saying she would do, like making sure I ask him if he's eaten or if he's taken time for resting through all the mental activity he has going on. It makes me feel like I'm doing her justice by making sure her lover is taking care of himself, the way she would make sure he is taking care of himself. If I'm not taking care of the kingdoms, then I'm usually out taking care of different parts of the world.

A wild fire in Cali, an electric fire down in the gulfs of Florida. A burning building triggered by a gas stove, you name it. I'm usually first on the scene. You'd think I'd at least see my husband during these times, but no. I sense him sometimes, but I never see him physically. Not like I used to.. And when the day comes to an end, it's all I can seem to think about. His absence. The neglect. As the new emperor of Earth kingdom, I know he possibly is always near.. In a near by tree, sentimental flower, in the soul underneath my feet but that wasn't the arrangement.

The deal was to find our way back to one another by night, so we can handle business  by day.. I don't know when he gave up on our agreement.. I don't even know if we still even have an agreement anymore. More importantly, I don't even know if I even still have a husband anymore. It's like one night.. he just never came home. Our house was no longer a home.. Our empire for two was reduced to one, and the fire we sustained as big & bright, without him, was now meek and dull. However I can't let those thoughts get to me, or I'll lose my temper putting everyone in my kingdom at risk. I spend my nights weeping, and put my brave face back on in the morning. I'll just bottle everything up before it gets the best of me.

After all. Bad bitches can't afford to let anyone see them sweat. I make people sweat, I don't do the sweating! psh.