Strawberry Kisses

9. Liar, Liar, Lance is on Fire

Evie Pov

It had been a few days since I last spoke to Eloise. We shared a few words, but she was dragged off before she could even kiss me. I drove home, debating on so many reasons as to why she would react like that. 

On one hand yeah, your twin coming out with a tell all basically would fuck up any sexual mood you were in. Like, what could he have to say? What could he possibly do to get the public on his side?

The other hand, she did;t have to just ditch me like that. You ask someone to be your girlfriend, then you get ready to eat them out, and the next I'm alone in your dark room waiting for you to come back except you don't and I sleep alone. Then the next time I speak to you it's you telling me bye and to be safe driving home before Leah takes you away again. 

I was mad a few days ago; now, I was just annoyed. I get it, and I understand, but I could still feel some type of way about it, especially if I feel like my girlfriend was hiding something more than being cheated on from me. 

I met up with Olive the next night and told her everything. I spilled it all, and the result took us to Walmart at three in the morning to get hair dye, chips, and alcohol. She knew I didn't want to be mad, but a rant session like that isn't completed without bad ideas, and that night, we made many of them. So many that we were both sat in my living room with my parents sitting across from us looking concerned. 

"At least, honey blonde looks good on you, Evie." My mom smiles softly at me.

"The hair color is the least of our concerns." My dad crosses his arms and shakes his head at me. "Evie, I know you're dating a Princess right now, but before that, you represented me. You're a council mans daughter." He nudges my mom to back him up, and she rolls her eyes. 

My dad took his job seriously, and they were always looking for a reason to get on to him about something his kids did, if we ever did something. Right now things were calm, but people would give him weird looks because I'm dating Eloise. Even though my dad kept his job and opinions at work and never brought them home, some people felt like he could sway because of me. 

I could see that being a possibility if my dad wasn't my biggest hater. Don't get me wrong; he supports me when he can and loves me dearly. But he would never give up at time to make fun of me, make me lose a board game at family night, steal food from my plates, or blackmail me to break up with people I dated because he didn't like how they said thank you. If anything, they should be questioning how he got to be a councilmen to begin with.

"Right. Let's watch what we do from now on, girls." My mom shoves his arm away and turns her attention back to us. "So, are you girls coming with us to the interview? If not, there's food to heat up in the fridge and cold drinks for your hangover, and-"

She grabs the remote and turns the TV on to the channel or the interview. "You're all set now. I love you!"

After a few hours, many naps, and lots of water being drank, Olive and I were in front of the TV watching the interview. So far, the questions were regular. Nothing forth coming and nothing worth freaking out about like Eloise and Leah did. 

Lance appealed to the public very well. It seemed like his challenge of getting to know the country he was wanting to run was going in his favor. He answered each question with ease and was so easy to talk to. Questions were asked by young kids and older adults.

I watch as his parents stand off to the side smiling, laughing, and nodding along with the people in attendance. Eloise's siblings stood with them, but she was nowhere to be found. For the rest of the week, my texts were barely answered, and calls were not happening. I hadn't seen her since that morning, and it was coming up on a full week of being away from her. 

I missed her so much. 

"And last questions over there, yes?"

"Your Highness, first off, thank you for being here today." People clapped and Lance smiled wide, happy with being able to do this. "My question for you is this: as a royal, how do you handle your love life? I know you came out a few years ago dating Rina. Have you don anything you regret when it comes to your relationship with her?"

Lance nods as he seems to be gathering his thoughts to be able to respond to the woman. He sits up straighter in his chair, giving off the aura that whatever he was bout to say was going to be serious. Everyone else there felt the same thing as they all quiet down and only shuffling can be heard. 

"That's a great question. My love life has always been something I try to keep private, but I know that's not always possible. Yes, Rina and I have been together for a few years now, and I won't pretend that our journey has been perfect. I've made mistakes and hurt people I care about. But I think that's part of love sometimes—it challenges you to be better. When I met Rina, I wasn't in the best place, and I didn't always handle things the way I should have. If I could go back and do things differently, I would. But what matters is that I learned, grew, and became the kind of man who deserves the woman I love. I know some people might still hold my past against me, but at the end of the day, Rina and I have built something strong, something real. I hope that speaks louder than any mistakes I made before."

"I apologize, but I have another follow-up question to what was asked before." 

This time, it was a young boy who looked like he was in high school.

"Speaking of mistakes, Your Highness, how do you personally define betrayal? And do you believe people can truly be forgiven for it?"

Lance freezes for a good few minutes. I don't think he was expecting someone to ask a question questioning betrayal. 

"That's... an interesting question. I think betrayal is, at its core, a loss of trust. When someone betrays you, it's not just about what they did—it's about what it means for your relationship moving forward. Can you look at them the same way? Can you trust them again?

I believe forgiveness is possible. People make mistakes. People grow. Sometimes what looks like betrayal from the outside is actually... more complicated than that. We can't always control where life takes us or who we—who we end up caring about." 

He exhaled sharply, his usual confidence wavering just for a second.

"At the end of the day, I think if someone truly regrets their actions and works to make amends, they deserve the chance to move forward. I've had to ask for that chance myself. And I can only hope that, in time, the person I've hurt can see that I never intended to cause them pain." 

His voice is steady, but his jaw tightens slightly as he says it.

Before another question is asked, his assistant is wishing him off the stage and he's waving to the crowd with Rina on his arm. 

I see why Eloise and Leah were freaking out. Lance not only spun whatever truth to his cheating, but he did it in a way that if an article did come out about how he and Rina got together, the public would side with him quickly. 

He was saving face before, and if I knew anything, I'd say he was dropping the article himself. 

~~~~

short but very sneaky of lance wtf

and where tf is eloise?? whats going on wtf