Violoncello: Love, Adore, and Cherish (A Gay Cinderella Sequel)

Cello: A Beautiful Day

Violoncello Laurent awoke to the sounds of Gabriel's soft snoring in his ear. The huge man had completely covered Cello's body with his arms. He smiled to himself as he still couldn't believe where he was. He was in Castle De Luca. In Prince Gabriel De Luca II's bedchamber. In Prince Gabriel De Luca II's bed. In Prince Gabriel De Luca II's arms. He had to constantly pinch himself to make sure that he wasn't dreaming. Then he also had to remind himself that if he was dreaming, he shouldn't try to wake himself up.

The grip Gabriel had on his body loosened as the other man began to stir and wake up. Gabriel yawned loudly as he stretched his body across the bed, one arm still underneath Cello. He turned back over towards Cello and gave him a soft kiss on the temple of his head.

"How'd you sleep, mi amor?" Gabriel asked him, his voice much huskier than normal due to sleep.

"Like a rock," Cello answered and giggled. He began to shift his body away from Gabriel to get out of bed when Gabriel immediately grabbed him, pulling him back into his chest.

"Ten more minutes, love," Gabriel whispered to him as he sighed contentedly.

"Five minutes," Cello told him.

"Twenty minutes."

"You can't go higher than your first offer!" Cello pouted.

"When you're able to get out of my arms, then you can leave," Gabriel stated. Cello tried squirming his way out of Gabriel's embrace, but the man had an iron grip on his body. Cello groaned in frustration.

"Seven minutes," Cello compromised.

"Seven minutes," Gabriel agreed as both men took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Cello loved how protected he felt in that moment and Gabriel loved that he had someone to protect. Cello's presence brought a sense of calm around the castle. It was as if everyone who worked without and within the castle grounds breathed a collective sigh of relief now that the Prince was finally getting married. They didn't care that his future bride ended up being a future groom, they were just happy that they didn't have to prepare for more of the Queen's soirees. Now they had to prepare for a Royal Wedding, a once in a lifetime event. Twice in a lifetime if you were lucky.

Gabriel finally released his hold on Cello although he would have preferred they stayed in bed all day. The wedding was coming up and there was a lot that still needed doing. As much as he loved his mother, he couldn't imagine what she'd get up to if left to her own devices. The ceremony would last a whole week if she got her way. He wanted something simple when he imagined his wedding, with close family and friends. They had the rest of their lives to parade in front of the rest of the kingdom.

Gabriel never asked what Cello wanted in a wedding. Prince Gabriel spent his entire life on display in front of thousands of women as his parents tried to auction him off to anyone who could get close enough to him. He already knew exactly what his parents had planned for his wedding when he got to this point, down to the smallest detail. Actually, that was bit harsh of Gabriel to think like that about his parents. They were the most loving, supportive parents he knew and he also knew that they were only doing what was best for the throne.

Their lineage would cease to exist if Gabriel never found someone to marry. Their laws were set in stone that if any prince or princess were not to wed by their 35th year, the current king and/or queen must choose another for the throne. If both of his parents had been deceased and Gabriel still was not married by his 35th birthday then the country had to decide on another. It was one of their most archaic laws written and he vowed to change it as soon as he became king. How does a marriage make someone a good ruler? What if one of his progeny didn't want to marry? Then that would be their choice. No law should dictate a ruler's worth based on something as simple or as complicated as marriage. There were a few changes that he'd make as he soon as he became king.

"What are you thinking about?" Cello asked Gabriel. He notice the man staring off into the distance and figured he was lost in his thoughts.

"Just how happy you make me," Gabriel answered. "And how happy you're going to make me for the rest of our lives."

"Oh," Cello simply said. It was all he could say. This was his very first intimate relationship with another person, not to mention another man. He was thirty years old and wasn't sure what to do with his hands half the time. He would normally let Gabriel take the lead on their relationship and he'd follow along. Not that Cello wasn't happy letting Gabriel lead, he wondered if Gabriel wanted him to lead sometimes. He also wasn't sure how he made Gabriel happy or how he was going to keep him happy. He began to get overwhelmed.

"We should probably head out and make sure my mother hasn't bought those elephants I told her not to get," Gabriel groggily got out of bed and headed to their connected washroom. The maids would have filled the water basin with warm water by now. He bent down slightly to kiss Cello on his cheek as he walked past him, his blue eyes filled with love.

Now Cello was lost in his own thoughts, his dark brown eyes were filled with worry instead. He began to believe that he brought nothing to his relationship with Gabriel. Cello was a simple farmer. His parents were gone and he was abused. His melanated body held scars that had healed, but the scars in his heart were still deep. He believed the only thing he was good at was keeping a home tidy and fed, but he couldn't do that because that was what the Royal Butlers and Royal Maids were for. What could Cello bring to the table? What could Cello do for Gabriel? His hands began to shake and sweat. He gripped his father's ring that dangled around his neck. What if... what if Gabriel falls out of love with him?