The Princess- A selection story

Chapter 16- Maxon

I had done everything in my power to help Marlee and Carter. When I visited them, they begged to take eachother's beatings. It's impossible to fight being in love. I would've taken them and a thousand more for Adeline, and I hold on to the hope she'd have done it for me.

She was true to her word, and better, as she did indeed send for Marlee and Carter, and brought them both to Spain. There, they could heal and enjoy their lives casteless. I can't help but think removing the castes would benefit Illea too.

I feel pressured to end this stupid selection, but I don't think Adeline is quite ready. Will she ever be ready? I must not cling to that thought, instead consider the other 4 girls. I can't see myself having a life with any of them though.

I see my mother on a corridor, and she embraces me tightly. "How are you?" She whispers, taking my hand. "Not great." I mumble truthfully, and she nods in agreement. "Have you seen Adeline?" I sigh "Yeah, she wasn't too happy with me." Mother chuckles lightly. "Was she hard on on you?" I grin "of course." Mother smiles at me "You two... fighting like a married couple already." I look at the floor "That would be the idea." Mother takes my chin in her hand. "Then fight for her."

We stare at eachother in silence before disrupted by two guards "Your majesties, you must come with us. Rebels are on the perimeter, some inside the palace. Come, we must lead you to safety." Mother grabs my hand and we follow the guard to the safe room.

Father arrives soon after, and mother embraces him. That's love. I can see it on her face when she's with him. And the elite soon follow. Unsurprisingly, Celeste comes first. Then Kriss and Elise. Natalie is missing. And Adeline. Where's Adeline? I try and cover the fear evident in my eyes, and mother leaves father's side to place a comforting arm around me. "She'll be fine." She whispers in my ear. As she returns to Father, I can do nothing more than hope she's right.

Minutes feel like hours, and then the door opens. Adeline runs in, carrying Natalie in her arms, who looks in a state of severe shock and pain. Adeline splutters, desperately trying to breathe, as she puts Natalie down in a bed. I notice the guard who came in with her, and she sits him down on the floor. She grabs a first aid kit from a shelf, and gets to work. Her voice is hoarse, but she musters her strength as she walks first over to Natalie. "It's okay Natalie, you're safe. Now, your cut isn't deep, but I'll clean it just to be safe. This may sting a little." Natalie winces as Adeline treats her, but it's soon over because Adeline is very efficient. She moves on to the guard, silently cleaning his wound, before taking a bandage and wrapping his leg tightly. Satisfied she'd done a good job, she sits on a remaining bed with the kit by her side. Nobody says anything, as she cleans and bandages her own arm, then disinfects a cut on her neck, placing pressure to stop the bleeding. She sits in silence, placing an ice pack on her knuckle and not moving an inch.

"What happened?" I ask. Adeline doesn't respond, and Natalie is hysterical, so I look at the guard. He clears his throat and says "Lady Adeline saved all of our lives. I was ordered to collect Lady Natalie and bring her to safety, but as we were running we came across three rebels. I fought them, but they had us both pushed back into a corner, a gun to my head and a knife to lady Natalie's throat. Lady Adeline was running past alone and saw us. She punched the rebel holding Lady Natalie and wrestled with him for the knife. The rebel holding me was distracted so I managed to grab his gun and shoot both of the rebels. My leg got injured in that process, so Lady Adeline insisted on carrying Lady Natalie the rest of the way, as she was in a state of distress. To get to the safe room, we had to run through an explosion. I told Lady Adeline to take Lady Natalie and go to safety, so she ran through. But she... came back for me after helping Lady Natalie through. Then she took us all to the safe room, and she promised she'd treat my injuries."

I gasp and look at Adeline, who still hasn't said anything. She shifts the position of the ice pack on her knuckle and sighs. "It was no big deal. Anyone would've done the same." I meet her eyes and hope she can see what I'm thinking.

No Adeline, no they would not.

I've seen her injuries, the blood, the coughing. And the way that she'd come running back with another girl, someone she'd tried to protect in her arms...this all showed me that I'd been so foolish, so blind...I should've seen it before...

She hadn't merely been friendly; she would risk herself for others. This wasn't her trying to get ahead, she genuinely cared. She genuinely wanted to help people; she wanted the people she cared for to be safe...

I swallow as I notice the severity of the wound on Adeline's neck. It looked like a knife mark. Taking a breath, I ask "Adeline, how did you get that cut on your neck?" She looks up, right into my eyes "I distracted the rebel from Natalie, but then he put the knife at my throat instead. I wrestled in his grasp, trying to get the knife, and get myself in a position where the guard could shoot him without hitting me. He just so happened to get an opportunity to cut me. Im lucky, about 2cm to the left and I'd have died."

The room is silent. i was speechless...this is how close she'd come to dying? If the injuries had been moved even a bit, she would've died...? This made me feel sick, made my stomach turn...the thought of how close I had come to losing her made my heart feel so uneasy.

And yet, all she could do was smile weakly, as if it wasn't as big of a deal as it had really been.

Natalie breaks the silence "she saved me. She could've saved herself." Her voice is shaken, weak, and scared. Adeline immediately gets up from her bed, and sits at the end of Natalie's, placing her hand on top of Natalie's trembling one to console her.

Once it was deemed safe, I took Adeline, Natalie and the guard to the hospital wing. The doctors look at them, analysing the severity of the situation. They took one look at Adeline when they saw her and her injuries...they had a look of concern. A brief expression of sympathy washed over a doctor's face...and he said something under her breath. "Oh dear..."

Adeline purses her lips "I. Am. Fine." The doctors sigh, and take her onto a hospital bed. The guard and Natalie were also taken, but they were only there for a short amount of time as their injuries weren't as severe. The cut on Adeline's neck was deep, but they also had to check that there was no bullet fragments in her arm from where it nicked her.

"How are you doing?" I whisper, sitting down on her bed. "Fine. But, for the record, the movies lie. Punching people hurts." I hold back laughter, as she genuinely looks weak. "You're... really brave. You know that right?" She shakes her head, and I just take her hand. "Relax, rest and heal. Please." I beg her. "Would you wait for me?... to be ready?" She whispers, staring into my eyes. "Always." I promise.

She looks up at me, and I lean into her, slowly brining my lips down to hers. When they touch, I feel something I've never felt before. Her lips are soft, sweet and warm, and so so beautiful. When I pull away, I'm smiling, and to my relief, she is too. She wanted me to wait for her to be ready for this... she's going to fight for me, and she wants to know I'll fight back.