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"You are a secret of love
In front of people don't look at me, don't sigh
Don't call me even if you love me
In front of people I'm not your friend, I'm not your lover
Today I tell you, what a terrible punishment."
𝐀𝐫𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚
𝟖 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒔 𝒂𝒈𝒐
I sit on the edge of my hospital bed, legs hanging down, feet barely brushing the floor. The room is quiet except for the soft beeping of the machines around me and the muffled sound of voices in the hallway. It’s my last night here, and I’m trying not to think too much about it, trying to focus on the little things. Things like my escape plan.
I’ve been drawing it in my notebook for the past hour, the pages filled with tiny diagrams and notes, all detailing how I’m going to bring Ian home with me tomorrow. I don’t care that Mom says I can’t—there’s no way I’m leaving him here. He’s my friend, the one who’s been with me for as long as I can remember. He’s the only one who truly understands me, who’s always there when I need him. Well, him and the Prince boy too. But he's more difficult to kidnap, he has bodyguards around him at every moment. But I'll find a way.
I trace my pencil along the edges of the page, making sure everything is just right. Ian is going to hide in my bag, and I’ll carry him out with me, just like that. Simple. No one will notice. It’s a good plan. But I know there’s always a chance it could go wrong. Mom’s too careful sometimes. She’ll probably check my bag again like she always does, but maybe she won’t. I can only hope.
I hear the footsteps in the hallway before I see him. Soft, hesitant, like he’s not sure if he should come in. But I know it’s him. I always know. The prince boy.
He’s serious, but also shy. He never says much, but when he does, it always makes me feel like he’s saying something important. Something no one else would think of. He’s different from the other kids I know. He wears clothes that make him look like he’s from a storybook, like he stepped out of a world far away, full of knights and castles and maybe even dragons. He’s got this quiet, mysterious way about him that makes you want to know more.
When he walks into my room, his eyes find mine immediately, and I feel this little knot in my stomach. He looks like he’s been thinking a lot, like he has something heavy on his mind. I can see it in the way he moves, the way his shoulders are hunched, like he’s trying to make himself smaller.
