Fall Into You

7

when your heart is feeling something that your mind is tired of,
that's painful

Another day, another fancy event that Nicollette didn't want to attend. She didn't care to go, but now that Tobias decided to visit her home, this only encouraged her mother to force her to go more than she had before.

She was forced into another fancy dress, Malia rushing to get her ready as quickly as possible. It was a struggle, as Nicollette's focus was on other things, but Malia hardly said a word as she worked with what was given.

"Hey, Malia?" Nicollette asked softly.

Malia looked up, pausing in her movements as she glanced at the other girl. Nicollette stared at her hands in her lap, biting the inside of her lip as she waited for the servant's response.

"Yes Miss Nicollette?" Malia finally asked, beginning to mess with the other girl's hair again.

"Have you-" Nicollette stopped, seeming to struggle to find her words. "Do you think all royals are the same?"

Malia glanced around nervously, seeming to be unsure of how to take the question. Nicollette was quick to notice this, however, and quickly spoke up again.

"You can speak to me, I'm not going to shout at you for having an opinion."

Malia smiled the tiniest smile, causing Nicollette to smile herself. She thought about what she wanted to say as she finished up Nicollette's hair, thinking of her words carefully.

"I think they're their own people." She mumbled.

"Yeah, I know that much," Nicollette responded. "I just mean- do you think they're all egotistical assholes that only care of themselves?"

"No," Malia was quick to answer. Nicollette searched her face to see if she had any hint of a lie on her features, but failed to find any. "F-from my experiences, anyway. Everyone has different encounters with people." She then added.

"But how do you know if they're just doing what they can to get your support?" Nicollette asked, picking at the sides of her nails.

Malia shrugged, "That's the thing about trust, isn't it?"

Nicollette didn't say anything. She didn't know Malia well enough to elaborate on what she was feeling, and she knew it wouldn't be a good idea to talk to her - let alone anyone - about this. Her feelings had just been confused, and so instead of letting the conversation continue she let Malia finish her look.

It wasn't long before Nicollette was ready. She did as she had done last time, being escorted by Malia to the giant room where the brunch was being held. Just as it was the week prior, right before Tobias had come to her house unannounced.

With her hands at her sides, she walked into the room with her head held high. After the events of last time, she knew she had to walk in there with confidence she didn't really have. She had to act as if everything was fine as if she wanted to be there.

People already filled the room. Her eyes skimmed through the crowd, seeing both familiar and unfamiliar faces. The first familiar face she saw was Maria - who was in a conversation with Alayna and Atlas.

Her eyes then landed on Ryker, who was flirting with a blonde girl she'd never met before. It was normal for Ryker to flirt with any woman who was of any type or royalty - specifically Princesses. This made Nicollette assume the blonde was a princess from a nearby kingdom, and it didn't take long for her attention to move elsewhere.

Nicollette fidgeted with the giant dress she wore. She continued to do her best to look confident, although she knew that if someone - such as Charles - were here, they'd notice how she truly felt in a second.