Finding A Prince

Chapter 18

Kiera felt like as though she was sleeping on rocks throughout the entire night. The bed she was lying on was nothing like the one back in the castle. She used to sleep on a bed that felt like clouds in her room but here, she got a bed that felt like it was made of tar. Honestly, it served as a much better bed than the beach but Kiera had been exhausted there so she managed to fall asleep. Here, no matter how tired she was, she still laid wide awake, trying to figure out exactly when sleep would come to her.

By the time morning arrived, Kiera was sporting dark circles under her eyes, a result of not sleeping the entire night. Christina's eyes widened when she saw her and her mouth fell open.

"What happened to you, Pri– Kiera? You look as though someone punched you in both of your eyes!" she exclaimed, making Kiera bolt to the nearest mirror to check if her lady-in-waiting was actually telling the truth.

She grimaced as she looked as herself. Christina was right, she looked absolutely horrible. 

"Christy, I just couldn't sleep. I mean, remember the bed I had in the palace? It was so soft, it felt like I was sleeping on a bed made of clouds. No other bed could compare to it. And now, I can't sleep on the bed here. It feels like rocks. I want to go back to the castle and sleep on that bed," Kiera complained, making Christina roll her eyes at her before her eyes widened and she shook her head.

Bad Christy, you aren't supposed to roll your eyes at the princess, she told herself.

Of course! You can't roll your eyes at the princess but you can plot her murder, her inner voice shot back.

Christina shook her head. Her mind was being stupid again. She looked back at Kiera who was pulling her hair in different directions, her eyes fighting sleep.

"You sound spoiled," a voice said from behind them and Christina looked back in surprise.

She let out a relieved sigh as she realised it was Derek –Kiera had told her that Derek already knew everything so he was the only person they could trust in the house– who was looking at Kiera as he spoke.

Christina internally scoffed as she remembered catching his longing looks sent to an oblivious Kiera throughout the previous day. Derek was so focused on Kiera that it made Christina wonder if he even noticed her. Of course, he didn't! It would be a huge surprise if he actually did.

"Spoiled? Well, of course. As a princess, I have been healthily pampered by all those around me," Kiera said haughtily.

Christina scowled. Why was she proud of that? It wasn't an achievement, it was a sign how arrogant she was. Derek didn't seem to notice that, smiling as he shook his head at her.

A voice inside Christina scolded her. Kiera was her princess, the person who she was most closest to. How could she be jealous of her and badmouth her so much in her mind?

Christina stared at the ground. It must be because she was getting frustrated at how Kiera seemed to be drifting away from her since they had arrived in this unknown realm, or maybe because they were too far from home, or because Derek seemed to show her princess more attention than she got.

It was a known fact that Christina was much prettier than Kiera. Everyone in Atlantis knew that. However, Kiera was a princess while Christina was nothing. Nobody actually showed interest in someone if they had nothing to their name except beauty. On the other hand, everyone tried to capture the lady with a powerful title behind her name for themselves, even if that lady looked like a fat cow.