In The Shadow of Royalty

Chapter One

  I cling to the buses hand rail as I brush the front of my pleated pink school skirt down, my insides cringing at the sight of the matching blazer wrapped around my torso. I thought that I was done with this, with the uniforms. Thought for sure that the last day of middle school was my liberation of the uniform that marked me as different when I got off the bus from school. The way the rest of the kids on my street marked me as other. I was too good to attend school with them, so I must be too good to play with them. Not being at a Prince institution made High school a dream, not because I was popular, but for once I blended into society around me. No one laughed at my worn-out sneakers or if the shirts I wore were designer. I fit there.

As much as I hated remembering the uniform, I would never forget the sacrifices my parents made to allow me to attend the Prince education system. They worked their elementary school education jobs at the prince schools and were barely able to afford the tuition, even with the slight discount they were given. When my Mother died when I was twelve my father had to take up a part-time position at a gas station to allow me to keep attending. The Prince education tuition was hard to swing from pre-school through Middle school but was unattainable from high school onward. The High School and college was unimaginably exclusive, no financial aid was accepted and no scholarship had ever been offered. Either you had the status wealth awarded to you to attend the school or you didn't. And My family? Well, they just didn't; not even close. I was fine with that, Fuck the Prince and their poorphobia.

The Bus jerked to a stop. Tossing me into the lap of one of the strangers sitting there.

"Sorry." I quickly began to stand Trying to collect myself.

"Don't apologize you can sit back down if you would like?" My stomach turned, I lose control of my rage it forcing my body to follow. "Keep your filth-" I stopped mid-sentence realizing I recognize the pink haired boy sitting below me. "Hey, there Tatesie! Long time." Jimin stood quickly loose pink curls jumping with him.

"So you assault people on buses now?"

His nose squished up playfully, "Hey if anything you assaulted me Tatesie." He reaches out and pinches my cheek. I couldn't help but smile as I slapped his hand away.

"This isn't really your scene." I gestured to the public bus around me filled with people who I could tell were wondering what two students clad in Prince pink and blue were doing lowering themselves to take the bus.

"Hey I like to relate to the commoners," He takes a deep sigh, "keeps me grounded."

"Right, I'm sure they love being referred to as commoners" I could tell a few people had overheard him and were rolling their eyes at the gorgeous lightly tanned boy. "Now what really brings you here?"

"Mom sent me to grab you for orientation and first class." 

" Your Mom?" I racked my brain for answers until I finally landed on one. "Dean Park is your mom"

The Dean was the one who reached out to me after. After my dad's death, the Prince Foundation wanted to sponsor my education at Prince College after my parent's loyal service all of these years. My heart had nearly stopped when she spoke with me. I wasn't to tell anyone it was the Prince Foundation, on paper it was the Park family sponsoring me. I had already been offered spots in all of my top schools, but this was an offer no one could refuse one that no one had ever been given. Her parents had always felt that Prince Education was the best. So She had accepted. For them. "I didn't realize."

"You forget about me already Tatesie? it's only been four years." His smile was still bright, but I couldn't ignore the slight glimmer of pain that he let show. Among the many students she met at Prince, Jimin was one of the only good ones. They were friends if you had to call them something. He was friends with everyone, so Charlee never took it too seriously.

Of course not, she pushed him slightly. " Thanks for coming to get me, but I could have met you there."

" I wouldn't put you through that."

"Put me through what?" He sucked his lip nervously. "Spill it Park!" she nudged him again.

"Well words got out, about you." he looked at the ceiling brain working to best break whatever news he had to her. He met her gaze.

"And?" I ask quizzically.

" Well, I wouldn't say the masses are in the clouds about having someone of your." He slightly gestures up and down my body. "Caliber?" He seems confused about how best to define the issue. "Things might take a bit to cool down Tatesie, but it will be okay I promise people aren't as bad as they used to be."

The dread in my stomach about returning to Prince only grew. Who else from my past was waiting to meet me when I get there?