The Tsar's Wife

Gift

Well we have reached chapter 40! I'm doing a special sweet moment in honor!

  Daylight filtered through Olive's small window above her bed, the light making her hair seem a bloody golden color instead of its usual fire red, and woke her up softly. Her eyes squinted before she opened them completely, scanning her room for no reason at all. She sat up slowly, her hair tickling her neck as she yawned and stretched in attempt to wake herself up a bit more. After her eyes adjusted to the light gleaming around her, she stole a glance at the pocket watch Miss Peregrine had given her beside her bed, and gave a frown when it read ten til eleven. Tatiana usually came in and helped her with her hair and corsets and whatnot around eight every morning, it was so unlike Tatiana to be late for anything.

Olive tried to run her fingers through her hair, though she couldn't because of all the tangles blocking her fingers. She looked over to her dresser across the room where brush lay, and though it was a few steps away from the bed, she still didn't want to get up just yet, loving the warm feeling of her bed. She knew she should get up, get dressed and attempt her hair by herself, but she couldn't in all honesty bring herself to do it. She was in the blue nightgown Olga had given her back when they were trying on dresses for the Imperial Ball a year ago. She remembered how Alexei had walked into the room and saw her, and how starstruck he seemed to be while he stared at her.

The though of him made her eyes trail to the picture on her nightstand of Alexei. He looked so happy sitting on the Imperial family's yacht, the Standard, smiling so wide his tooth gap was showing proudly. Olive had learned to love that picture even more since she discovered the one Alexei had in his room of her, which made her feel warm  inside just by thinking of it. She slowly reached over to the picture in its frame, and picked it up carefully, as if it were the most delicate thing in the world and would shatter if she so much as breathed on it. The photo was in black and white, and Olive saw a small tear in the corner, probably from Maria ripping it out of an old photo album. She smiled at it, running her hand over the smooth glass carefully.

  A knock at the door made her jump, almost dropping the photo onto the floor. She took a deep breath to calm herself, her hand rising up to her chest as her heart beat rapidly. She wanted to mentally scold herself for being startled so easily, Alexei always teased her for that. "Come in!" She called, expecting Tatiana to be waiting on the other side to help her with her hair and dressing, though she was surprised to see Alexei, opening the door and hesitantly peeking inside her room, glancing around almost too quickly to notice, then resting his eyes on Olive. "Did I wake you, love?" He asked softly,giving her an apologetic smile.

Olive was a bit curious as to why he stopped by her room, then realized she had slept in and he was here to wake her up, she guessed. "No, I was awake." She said, wishing she had got up and gotten dressed and at least attempted to brush through her hair so she didn't look a ragged as she suspected she did. Alexei nodded, stepping just the smallest bit into the room, but she still couldn't see anything but his shoulder and part of his leg. "You can come in." She said, gesturing around the room with a shy smile. She realized he wouldn't step into her room without being invited in, being as polite as he was. He walked in hesitantly, leaving the door cracked but not completely shut as he walked over to her bed, sitting on the edge of it slowly.

"I'm sorry to intrude like this, there are some things I needed to give you." Alexei said,flashing her a small, yet warm smile. Olive tilted her head to the side, clicking her tongue against the roof of her mouth. "What do you mean?" She asked, confused. What in the world could he need to give her that that required him to come all the way to her room? Alexei chuckled, shaking his head. "I can't explain it without giving it away, its supposed to be a surprise." He said, and Olive felt even more confused now, more than ever. She had her legs hidden under the laced sheets of her bed while she sat up, and she shifted a bit, trying to hide her curiosity and confusion as best she could, but she knew it was pasted on her face like a smile.