Little Royal

Little Prince

Wille woke up the next morning from the sunlight hitting his face. He has a headache and doesn't remember much from last night, but when he notices Prins in his arms and Simon next to him, everything comes back at once. The fuzzy feeling was back, "Why now?" It hasn't been there for years, not since he turned 13. The feeling first started showing up when Wille started going to public school, always hearing people whisper about him got too much for him and his mind decided that he needed a safe space to reatreat to. At first it was just a feeling, but it got stronger and eventually he stopped fighting it. He started reading children's books, cuddling his old stuffed animals and watching cartoons, not having anyone to play with, he just entertained himself.
Eventually, Erik found out after walking in on him sucking his thumb and watching cartoons. Wille panicked and started crying, afraid of Erik judging or even hating him, but Erik just sat next to him and hugged him. After talking about it, Erik understood why Wille acted this way and thought it was a good coping mechanism, seeing the responsibilities they had to carry as members of the royal family. He did research on the subject, Age Regression is what people call it, and eventually started buying his little brother toys, keeping him company and even playing with him. Erik loved his little brother more than anything and would always support him, even if it meant treating him like a younger age.
Willes most priced possession is Prins, the frog stuffed animal Erik gifted him, his name meaning prince, a sign of the bond between the two brothers.
Eventually, Wille got more confident in himself, or simply decided he didn't want to act this way anymore, instead turning his insecurities into anger. Erik always stayed by his side and even encouraged him to regress again, Wille refused, but their bond remained just as strong.
Erik's death was such a shock for Wille, that the old coping mechanism resurfaced, now needing it more than ever, as his sole protector was gone.
Simon had only seen a part of his most vulnerable side, and he could just pretend that it was the drugs or the alcohol, but Simon meant so much to him, he didn't want to lie to him, no matter how scared he was of his reaction. For the moment, Wille decided to not say anything, but to also not lie to Simme, if confronted.
Wille could feel Simon waking up next to him and the anxiety started to come back. He took a deep breath and got ready to face Simon.
"Good Morning Wille", he heard Simon say behind him, feeling the boys hand on his back. "Morning", he mumbled back, still anxious. "Are you feeling any better?", Simme asked, still concerned. "Yeah I'm okay, thank you for your help yesterday.", he fidgeted and slowly put Prins back on the bed. "I didn't know you still slept with stuffed animals", Simon said, his voice not judging, but filled with curiosity. Wille blushed heavily, his heart beating faster, resisting the urge to press Prins against his chest again, instead biting his thumbnail. "Hey, I'm not judging you for it, I just never saw it in your room before.", he gently pulled Willes hand from his mouth. "Him, his name is Prins. He's a gift from Erik, so he's very important to me.", he decided to put Prins back on his lap after all, slowly caressing the stuffed animal.
"A Prince, just like you and Erik, I understand how important he must be to you.", Simon said, voice gentle and caring. Wille blushed at being called a Prince by Simon, if anyone else called him that, he got annoyed, but Simme made him feel special and safe. Thinking back to how Simon praised him and ruffled his hair yesterday, the fuzzy feeling started coming back, Wille still being tired and in an emotionally vulnerable state. Pressing Prins closer to him, he hums quietly. "Do you wanna talk about what happened yesterday?", Wille stiffened, not sure about what to do. "Mhm", he replied, looking down to his fidgeting hands. "You don't have to if you don't want to, I'm just glad you feel better now", Simon's voice was honest, but Wille could still hear the disappointment. "No, I wanna", he said quietly, "just dunno how to... ", he broke off, realising that his voice sounded higher again. Simon looked at him curiously, also having noticed the change in his voice.
Taking a deep breath to try his best to focus, Wille started out: "When I was younger and I first got to school, I was overwhelmed by people talking about me, so my body started to create a space that I could escape to. I started feeling younger, careless, without worries. I acted like a little kid, and when Erik found out, he played with me and took care of me. Eventually I stopped, but now that he's gone, I-", a sob interrupted his speech, tears streaming down his face, the shock still too big. "He always protected me and now I'm on my own, I dunno what to do, I-", his voice started to get quieter, and he let the fuzzy feeling take over, hoping it would protect him from his feelings and Simon's reaction to his confession.

Simon just looked at him in shock, not having realized all this time how much Wille was hurting and how vulnerable the boy actually was. Tears welled up in his eyes too, he wanted to make Wille feel better, to take his pain away and to protect him from anything. He extends out his arms to Wille and pulls him to his chest, caressing his back, humming a soft melody, trying his best to calm the crying boy. "I will always be there for you Wille, no matter what, and I love every part of you, no matter how strange it might be." Wille only held on to Simme tighter, the fuzziness only getting stronger from those words. Humming contently, he cuddles Prins and falls asleep in Simmes arms once more.