A Crown Divided By Loyalty

8

The reflection in the mirror said it all: a mess. And even a week later, it wasn't getting better. Carolina had hoped that she could cover the breakup by being 'sick' all week, but it turned out to be worse.

She wasn't allowed to speak about having a broken heart. She had to sit in front of her family and act like everything was okay. She cried all night but had to get up and act normal with everyone else. Now, she had to pick up the pieces by herself. She had to carry on doing normal day-to-day things while she wanted to cry with pain and maybe even scream to let out the pain. But she couldn't. Being heartbroken or making a mistake by having a relationship was a taboo subject. It was not allowed.

Hiding the relationship with her family was the worst thing she could do. But this was perhaps the toughest moment she was going through: acting like nothing was wrong while she was an emotional wreck. And yes, telling them about it was an option, but she was so scared of their reaction. Her family had the right to know about it, but the decision to break up so she didn't have to lie to her family anymore didn't do right either.

She was too far into the lie she created to think it would save her selfishly.

Carolina practised her smile one more time, blending the tears into her face with a tissue. She created this mess herself, so now she had to face the consequences. For the past week, she could avoid everyone, but she had to face them one day.

She left the bathroom and walked to one of the meeting rooms in the palace. It was time for their yearly evaluation, which included the results of the survey of the kingdom's people and those of some other kingdoms worldwide. When she stood in front of the door, her fingers wrapped around the handle. She could hear the laughter.

"Oh, fuck," she mumbled and sniffed, on the edge of breaking down into tears again. "Alright."

She took a deep breath and opened the door. All eyes shot to her, and everybody greeted her. She closed the door behind her and showed a thin-lipped smile.

"Caro, darling," her father said and got up. "How are you doing?"

"Feeling better?" Her mother got up as well. The parents hugged their daughter.

Carolina shrugged. "I'm alright," he said, sitting on the free chair across from her grandfather and between her brother and sister.

"What did you have?" Vivienne asked worriedly. "You look rather... exhausted."

Carolina's eyes shot up to her grandfather's eyes, who wasn't reacting to the situation. A face of steel. She swallowed and cleared her throat. "The flu," she shortly replied.

"Oh, no... Glad you feel better now."

"Hmm-hmm."

Since it was a private meeting between family members, no staff were allowed in the room.

Her father cleared his throat to get everybody's attention. "Let's get started, shall we?" He looked at the papers and slightly frowned. "I'm still getting used to Axel's way of working. Vincent was way more efficient," he mumbled.

Her heart skipped a beat. See, I ruined it for everyone. Carolina looked down, at the cup of tea her mother just served her. Her fingers tightened around the warm teacup, her knuckles turning white. Her father's words echoed in her mind, each syllable a sharp reminder of the void Vincent's departure had left; not just in her heart, but in the palace itself.

Sensing the tension in the room, her mother placed a comforting hand on Carolina's shoulder as she sat down. "Axel is new," she said softly, trying to smooth over the comment. "Vincent did his best to teach him the tricks. He'll learn the ropes soon enough."