The Heart of King Travis

Confusion

My feelings for Noah deteriorated in a matter of minutes. I'd thought of him as a friend and hoped for something more, but there was nothing. I hadn't truly known many people in my life, and I hadn't ever had the butterflies for anyone but Noah. However, even I knew he was not someone I wanted to be associated with ever again. He thought I was worthless, so he lost his worth to me.

I opened my door to go back to my room but he grabbed my arm with the same quickness he had used to block the hit of my lamp. "If you ever find it in your best senses to apologize, I want you to meet me in the entry room of the palace after dinner tonight," he whispered in my ear. With that, he walked away as if nothing had happened. He didn't even look back at me as my mouth gaped open. Within a few seconds, he was out of my view and into my mind. His attitude was much worse than I'd originally anticipated, and it made me sick. He just left me there on a sort of mental cliffhanger and it was obvious he wanted me to meet him. I wouldn't.

With a small sigh of exasperation, I went back into my room and put the lamp base back under its shade. There were no noises except for the faint hustle of maids going from room to room, and I think that was what lulled me into a deep slumber. It happened before I could even resist, pulling me under its blanket of warmth and letting my heavy eyes come to a close. I was no longer wrapped up in the restraints of reality as the invisible ties began to come off my feet.

The air became lighter as I felt it gather under me. I was rising slowly, very slowly. My tired eyes wearily opened and I realized with a sudden burst of excitement that I was in the sky far above the castle. The wind was reduced to a gentle breeze and my body became extremely relaxed. Nothing was carrying me into the sky; I was carrying myself. A smile slowly crept onto my face as my negative thought bubbles were thrown away. One after one, the breeze carried them away. Except for one.

As I floated in the eternal comfort and stability of my dream, another person flew up to the space right in front of me. His mouth was closed in a sort of half smile and his red hair was perfectly in place. It was Noah. As I could see him, he wore a long white robe, sort of similar to the nuns I'd seen in church. His pressing weight was the only one I needed off my shoulders before I could be completely carefree. I tried to avert my eyes to the castle below, but he appeared right under me as I made my attempt. Frustrated, I glanced above. He appeared there as well.

He wouldn't disappear unless I took control of the situation. I looked in front of me once more and he was there. With an ease in my glide, I floated over to him and planted a faint kiss on his lips. If I accepted him, I would be whole. That thought consumed my head, and I stayed in the same place. I wanted to go higher, but I couldn't.

The perfect feeling of flight didn't get a chance to reach me before I woke from my thought-provoking dream. A familiar face stared down at me as I opened my eyes to face reality. Avery Morgan. With a little yelp, I scurried backwards and fell off the other side of my bed. A maid was standing by the door with a confused look, but maybe she would still help me. "Please! Help! He's a murderer!" I yelled, trying to get her attention. She just raised an eyebrow and stared at me as if I were insane. Avery clapped a large hand over my mouth and waved his arm at the maid, signaling her to leave. She scurried away as quickly as possible.

"Your room will not be cleaned today because of your unladylike behavior," Avery snarled as he took his hand off my mouth. I disregarded his last statement as I stared at him with eyes as wide as a starving villager. "Why...why did you kill her?" I stuttered, trying to make sense of what he did. He looked at me in shock for a moment before calming down and nodding to himself. He took a few steps back to allow me to stand up, and I did so with a hesitant step. It soon became obvious he wasn't going to hurt me.