I've always dreamed of being a lawyer. If I was going to go for this relationship I'd have to give it all up. Let it all go to waste. Am I willing to do that? Do I love this man enough to start a new life?
"Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome, Prince Harry"
It was finally time for the opening ceremony of the Invictus games. We had already been spending a few days in Florida, making the final preparations and meeting the competitors. Harry walked out on the big stage, a big smile on his face and the entire audience got up to cheer and take pictures. I was sitting alongside a family I had gotten to know over the days, wearing a long salmon dress and my hair was up in a bun.
"Hello Orlando" He greeted the crowd.
"I cannot tell you how proud and excited I am to open the second Invictus games here in America!" there were a few more cheers. "I'm a long way from London tonight but when I look out and I see so many familiar faces, servicemen and women, their friends and their families, and all the people who have got them here. I feel like I'm at home."
"I spend 10 years in the British army and I was deployed to Afghanistan twice. I served alongside soldiers from all over the world. I saw the sacrifices you and your families made to serve your nations. I learned about the importance of teamwork and cameraderie in a way that only military service can teach you."
"And when I travelled back from the battlefield, on a plane carrying the body of a Danish soldier and three young brits, fighting for their lives, I began to understand the real permanent cost of war. I joined the army because for a long time, I just wanted to be one of the guys. But what I learned through serving was that the extraordinary privileges of being a prince gave me the extraordinary opportunity to help my military family." He then spotted me in the crowd, waving lightly, he couldn't help but burst out into a big smile.
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"And that's why I had to create the Invictus games." He told the crowd, his eyes still not leaving mine. "To build a platform for all those who have served. To prove to the world what they have to offer. Over the next four days, you will see things that in years past just wouldn't have been possible. You will see people who by rights, should have died on the battlefield, but instead, they are going for gold on the track or in the pool."
"Mark my words. You will be inspired. You will be moved and I promise, you will be entertained."
"It is not just physical injuries that our Invictus competitors have overcome, every single one of them will have confronted tremendous emotional and mental challenges. When we give a standing ovation to the competitor with the missing limbs, let's also cheer our hearts out for the man who overcame anxiety so severe he couldn't even leave his house. Let's cheer for the woman who fought through post traumatic stress and celebrate the soldier who was brave enough to seek help for his depression."
"Over the next four days you will get to know these amazing competitors. They weren't to tough to admit that they struggle with mental health. They weren't to tough to get help that they needed."
"To end, can I just say Thank YOU, to all of you guys. You are fierce competitors. You are role models that any parent would be proud to have their children follow. You've made me a better person and you're about to inspire the world and I'm proud to call you my friends."
"So, let's put on a hell of a show in memory of all our fallen comrades, who didn't make it. WE ARE INVICTUS." And then the audience exploded. Everybody got up, everybody was feeling so inspired by this speech, I saw a few people wiping away tears of happiness but also some in memory of the ones they had lost.
He walked off the stage, making room for the First Lady of the United States. He casually walked up to me, grabbing my hand and leading us backstage again.
"You did so well." I hugging him closely when we were behind the curtains again. He smiled down at me.
"Thank you. They seemed to really like the speech."
"Of course they did. I told you so." Harry had been writing and editing this speech for days now with a special team that had travelled alongside him and every night he still couldn't be happy with the end-result. We had sat down the night before and talked a bit more about his experience of being in the army. And that's what I told him to put in, the more personal parts, which he loved. And he was finally happy.
"Thanks again." He grabbed my hand again and squeezed it lightly. I noticed he was looking down slightly, like he was looking at my lips and I couldn't help but smile again. I pulled him in again and whispered in his ear.
"You know you want to." I pulled back slightly, looking straight into his eyes.
"Damn right I do." He said, finally crashing his lips into mine. I let go of his hands and got hold of his lapels, pulling him closer, he had wrapped his arms around my waist by now. It only lasted for a few seconds but to us they felt like minutes in heaven. When he finally pulled away a small crowd had gathered and they couldn't stop staring. He simply cleared his throat which made them all wake up and move on to the things they were suppose to be doing.
"That was nice." He kissed my cheek again.
"It really was." I smiled, looking down. "I'm going back to the hotel, it's been a long day. Enjoy your night, okay?" He nodded and I let go of his hand, walking up to Carl, his head of security and told him about my plans. He nodded and told me he'd arrange a car to drive me back.
I walked out of the venue feeling kind of weird. I had wanted Harry to kiss me for a couple of days now. We had had the most amazing time in Toronto and now here in Florida, but I had also gotten to know the public Harry, the one that always was aware of cameras or paparazzi. The one that was always thinking about how the world saw him. Now that the kiss finally happened I couldn't help but feel lost. Like I was doing something I was not ready to do. Was I ready to commit to this wonderful but extremely busy man? Was I ready to let go of my privacy?
I got in the car that Carl arranged and drove back to the hotel. I had a lot of thinking to do.
