Two Sides

Chapter 9 - My King

Everyone in the Kingdom knew. It was hard to keep a relationship secret, not that you had tried. Ezekiel assured you it was okay that people knew you were with him but still... they looked at you differently and you didn't know if it was a good or a bad change. Generally, you had the feeling that the people here liked you and that they respected you, especially thanks to Ezekiel, but you never knew.

The only thing you were scared of was the reaction of everyone else back home. If you'd go back to Alexandria at some point, you'd have to tell them that you'd leave again... and you didn't really want to tell them about the Kingdom as long as the Saviors were still a problem. But another explanation was hard to find. Abandoning them wasn't an option either, Abraham was a part of them, they were your connection to him and also they were still your family.

It was a difficult decision and your whole future was pretty uncertain. That made it hard for you to really know what to do and you also had no idea when you'd have to leave. You hoped that maybe Jesus would contact you when Rick chose to fight.

One early morning, a few days after the incident that lead to your fresh relationship, you were running into Morgan on your way to prepare a lesson and it was the first time you actually were alone with him in a long time. Not many people were up yet.

He smiled at you which he usually did, but this time it was more sincere. It didn't bother you anymore that he was here and that you were in contact with him, you had grown out of the it's-better-to-be-alone-attitude. Caring could be an advantage, Ezekiel had taught you that.

"Good morning, (Y/N)," Morgan greeted you when you approached. He was holding the fighting stick in his hand, by now that was something you had gotten used to but it was a nice contrast.

"Morning," you replied with a smile yourself.

"You seem to be a lot better," he remarked. "I'm glad about that."

"I am, too," you admitted. "Coming here was the right thing."

"Yea, you and Ezekiel..." he trailed off.

You rolled your eyes. "I know, I know... it's a risk..."

"No, I don't want to lecture you," he interrupted calmly. "I'm happy for you. He is a good man and you fit in here, you deserve a peaceful life. The Kingdom might give you that."

"Thanks," you replied sheepishly. He was most likely referring to Rick's strategy of violence.

However, the whole situation of actually being with something in this world was still new to you, but at least you had Morgan on your side. Still you decided not to tell him that you would most likely fight with Alexandria. You knew Morgan's opinion on this and an argument was the last thing you wanted.

In that moment you felt a hand on your shoulder. "The day is breaking and you two are already out and about. Good morning."

You turned to face Ezekiel who was smiling at the two of you. It was a bit of a déjà-vu to your first evening here where you had seen Morgan again on your way to meet the king. That evening, you'd had no idea what the conversation with Ezekiel would lead to, let alone that you would get together with him just weeks later.

Morgan nodded at Ezekiel in his usual polite manner and then discretely turned around to go his way. He was probably practicing with Benjamin or Henry again, the boys were keen on learning how to fight with Akido.

"Good morning, my king," you greeted Ezekiel when you were alone with him which caused him to grin. He took your hand and intertwined your fingers with his, then pressed a gentle kiss to your knuckles. He was holding his golden scepter in the other hand but other than that he was dressed rather casually. His calmness usually spread out to you. You liked that a lot.

"You were gone this morning," he stated, slight worry in his eyes. "I have been looking for you."

"Sorry, I couldn't sleep and went for a walk," you replied. Usually you slept well with him beside you but this morning you had been somewhat restless. "The gardens are wonderful in the early hours."

"They are," he agreed. "I would have come with you. Don't hesitate to wake me, love."

"Well, the king needs his sleep."

"The king needs his queen," he said smiling and tenderly kissed your hand again.

You blushed at his words, you didn't really see yourself as a queen but you loved to play this game with him. It was a way to grace your feelings with a mask of romance and fairytale, a special way of expressing what you meant to each other. When you were alone, you'd have really deep and honest conversations, but in public it was always a bit exciting because he never broke character.

"I'll wake you next time, my king." You smiled, then dropped the act when you made a step towards him. "I love you, Ezekiel."

"I love you, too," he answered, his eyes showing an affection that still got your heart beating faster, and then he finally kissed your lips. You gripped his hand a little tighter, it was a chaste kiss, but still a much needed one. "I wish you the nicest day, my love."

You smiled and felt his hand slip out of yours when he slowly walked away, his eyes still on yours. When he turned around you couldn't help but grin to yourself as you made your way to the lesson you would have to give in a few minutes. No matter how busy or how troubled he was, he'd always grant you those little moments of intimacy. You were sure they helped him as well, but to you they meant everything.

* * *

The rest of the day, you were pretty busy with lessons and helping Jim in the gardens. Days were like this now, Richard had told you that he wished a lot more people would learn how to fight and that's why you were giving more lessons lately – not just knife throwing but fighting in general. You didn't think much of it, it was useful to be able to defend oneself, but you didn't see why he pressed on this so much.

When you had sharpened the last knife of the day, you decided to look for Ezekiel. It wasn't that late yet, actually it was very nice outside still. So you took a longer walk through the Kingdom, a lot of people greeting you or smiling knowingly. The aftermath of getting together with their king.

You smiled to yourself. Maybe you could be a queen, after all.

It took you a while to get back into the heart of the Kingdom where you suspected Ezekiel to be. Just like this morning when you couldn't sleep, you had a weird feeling in your stomach now that you were here. Maybe it was nothing.

When you continued walking, you learned that it wasn't nothing, though. Instead of the person you had actually been looking for, you found yourself facing people you hadn't seen in what felt like ages. Instead of looking into Ezekiel's dark eyes, you were looking straight into Rick's light ones.