The Royal Entanglement - Not A Fairytale

CH 12: WILL YOU MARRY ME?

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It was morning and Mary did not want to get out of her chambers. She did not have the courage to face Henry. Mary heard someone knock her chamber doors.
“Martha I am sick, I would like to rest for a while”, said Mary assuming it was her chamber maid.
“M-Mary, its me , Henry”, said Henry.
Mary rushed towards the door but she did not have the courage to open it. She spoke to him without opening the door.
“Shouldn’t you be at the proposal? I am sorry for what I told yesterday but I thought it would be fair if I told you before you proposed to Laura.”, said Mary.
“No, you don’t have to be sorry. It is not your fault, but I have never felt the same about you, and I am sorry Mary but my heart yearns for Laura” ,replied Henry from the other side.
“ You don’t have to apologize. I can only tell you one thing. I can never be Laura, but I want you to know that whatever I said was the truth and I hope you know that I realise that I will be by your side, at least as a friend, your friend.” ,said Mary.
“I hope you will find a guy who loves you the way you deserve to be loved”, said Henry.
“Laura is very a lucky woman, I wish you good luck”, said Mary.
“Thank you, will you be alright?”, said Henry .
“Yes”, said Mary.
Laura was walking through the corridors when one of Henry’s guards approached her.
“Lady Laura, your presence is requested with utmost urgency in the grand hall”, said the guard.
“Is everything alright?”, asked Laura.
“Everything is fine madam, Lord Balmont has arranged for a meeting in the grand hall and has requested your presence as soon as possible “, said the guard.
“Very well, I will be on my way, thank you”, said Laura.
Laura rushed towards the hall wondering why Lord Balmont had to arrange for such a meeting.
She entered the Grand hall expecting a huge crowd of nobles, but to her surprise, the hall was empty.
Just then bright red rose petals started to drop from above. At the other end of the hallway stood Henry .Laura and Henry moved towards the centre of the Grand hall and Henry got onto his knee.
“Lady Laura, your charm, your intellect, your beauty have captivated my heart. I have realised that my heart belongs to none but you. Lady Laura of House Rosario, I love you with all my heart. Will you marry me and make me the happiest man on earth?”, said Henry.
Laura was dumbfounded. Although she knew him since years, she never stopped to think about him as a marriage prospect. The whole world paused for Laura. She did not know how to react to his proposal. She knew that for now she had to think this through and that she needed some time.
“Lord Henry, I must say that I am deeply moved by your lovely proposal, but I do not think that I feel the same about you. I will have to reject your proposal and I apologize whole heartedly for it”, said Laura.
Laura felt lightheaded as she tried to comprehend what happened. At the moment she had to find a suitor before the end of the social season, but she wanted marry for love and she never knew whether she loved Henry. Henry was a good suitor for many Ladies in the court, but for Laura, his status or his wealth didn’t matter. She had to think what the proposal meant for both of them, for their friendship, for their alliance, for their families. Everything was overwhelming for Laura. She needed to clear her mind off all these thoughts racing inside her uncontrollably. She rushed to Mary’s chambers.