Diana leaned back in her chair with a sigh. So far, the vacation has been surprisingly quiet for their common circumstances. Charles was probably right, and his friends might bring something good after all, even if you saw them as intruders on their private journey. Which was actually still her alleged second honeymoon, but she didn't feel much of it.
It still felt like any other journey between them along with the distance she hated but she knew they both needed that distance without fully escalating in front of the boys and now here she was with Charles, her boys and the intruders sitting together at the dining table for lunch while they planned the routes to come together.
She was probably looking at the food like it was her enemy. She didn't feel like eating the food, even though it looked very good.
"Do you like it?" She asked her boys softly, who quickly nodded enthusiastically.
"It is very good." William answers her with a smile and a slight hope that she ate some of it. Diana sighed smiling and ate something small to calm him down.
"So..." Charles began slowly "anyone want to go shopping with Diana later?" Charles offered to his friends and Diana gave her husband a skeptical look, what was he up to?- He knew she didn't get along well with his friends.
His friends didn't like her either. Tolerated at best, even if she strongly doubted it herself. They let her feel that often on small occasions. They no doubt still thought of her as the naïve stupid nineteen year old who wanted a Prince Charming, wanted someone who really loved her. Though she couldn't have been further from reality. It had become quite the opposite and his friends knew that and treated them as such.
This also made the silence very clear they uttered while Diana imperceptibly glanced back and forth between Charles' friends.
"I want to go shopping with Mommy!" suddenly came Williams' voice, for which she was very grateful.
"Me too!" it came enthusiastically from Harry and Diana gave her a barely noticeable smile of thanks while she herself stared listlessly at her plate, the last thing she wanted was to continue eating at the table and became grateful when it was getting late and it was time for the boys to sleep.
"I think Will and Harry are slowly pulling back. It's getting late." Diana apologized to everyone and looked briefly at Charles before she gave him a careful kiss on the cheek and murmured a soft good night before she went with the boys to their cabins.
For a brief moment it seemed to her that she could see guilt in Charles, but she was never good at sorting out his feelings. She knew nothing about his emotions and had never had the opportunity to learn them, but maybe the guilt was just her imagination and it wasn't even aimed at her. Sighing, she lay down in his bed with Harry and watched William climb into his own as well.
"Thank you for standing up for me like that. It was very brave of you both." she murmured quietly grateful for the support of the two "So you can choose something. Either I'll read you a bedtime story or..." she pulled out the Gameboy with a grin from which she knew the boys loved him and laughed softly when Harry excitedly said super Mario and gave him a gentle kiss on the forehead.
"don't tell your father." she warned quietly knowing that Charles would get angry that she would give the boys something childish and kissed William gently on the forehead. "Don't take too long."
"are you going back upstairs?" William asked his mother worried.
"No way. I'm going to read some Classics now and go to bed early. Goodnight, I love you" and smiled slightly as the same words came from the boys and she got ready for bed and started reading some magazines although she couldn't really concentrate on it.
