Lake House, Seattle, dinner time...
Henry: The room's atmosphere was building up in awkwardness, unsteady hearts and one little girl's belief which refused to die out.
"We should really try my lasagna." Amy desperately tried to break the ice, leading everyone to the dining room where a big and pompous entrance awaited and the wonderful homemade lasagna that was way better than Granny's fridge one.
"Ah, I almost forgot! Henry, you said you'd lead me to the swimming pool, and the garden, can we do it now?" Lucy asked, focusing on the mission I was yet unaware of.
"Luce, now it's time for us to eat, you'll go after we finish, okay, babe?" Jacinda asked, kneeling before her daughter.
"I'm not that hungry, right now..." The girl sighed.
"It's okay, the lasagna can wait a couple of minutes. I'll put it back in the oven, there's no problem at all." Amy said, relieving the room from building tension.
"Really?" Jacinda desperately tried to look super polite and I just nodded at her, promising it was alright. "It's okay, I did promise Lucy I'd show the pool, come on, let's see," I said, holding my fairytale daughter's hand and taking her outside.
All the others stayed inside, while I walked Lucy trough the amazing gardens filled with fountains, stuffed animals, toys and balls.
"This place is amazing."
"Yeah, Clara will have lots to play with, you can come here and play with her whenever you'd like. I'll pick you up, myself." I promised, trying to fall in the child's good graces, but Lucy's gaze looked more prominent, she was hiding something big.
"Henry, I'm sorry I was a bit rude, earlier, it's just...seeing you with Ivy and not with my mom makes me a little...upset." Okay, we were still hand in hand with the all fairytale nonsense she so desperately tried to prove to me it was real. Right now, I hated my ten year old self for punishing Emma to the same fate.
"Luce, your mom is a wonderful woman, she truly is a princess but I'm not her prince, sorry, kiddo. I'm sure she'll find someone wonderful and worthy of her, but as you can see, that's not me." I desperately tried for her to understand, holding those tiny hands, kneeling before the small girl's body.
"I know you don't believe me because I didn't show you proof, but now, I have it. I didn't bring you here for you to show me the swimming pool. Take a look at this." Lucy picked up a gigantic fairytale book I didn't see in a long time, entitled Once Upon a Time. Only...that wasn't the first version of my book, that was the second one, the story of us.
"See? It's the original storybook, in it, all the stories are just as they should be, the truth. You married Cinderella and had me, it's all here." The girl explained with a big hopeful smirk.
"Where did you get that?" My mind kept on wondering, that book was lost in the curse.
"It doesn't matter, what does is how I was right. See?" Lucy went through the pages, showing me the illustrations of the fairytale we were a part of until she got to the final page when the dark curse washed over the entire land.
"The clock struck eight-fifteen and that's when the book comes to an end, as for us, we found ourselves stranded here, far away from the dream-like life we had. Henry, the curse is real, me and my mom are your family and you just need to wake up and remember us, everything!" She put all her efforts explaining the story, her hands waved frenetically, brown eyes wondered mine, as I scanned through the pages just as she wanted to.
"Can't you see that this is all Drizella's wicked move to steal you from us? She built the curse to have a life with you, these are all lies! You are Prince Charming and tonight, once you and my mom kiss, the curse will break and everything will get back to normal." Lucy's strong belief cut my heart to pieces, especially because she thought I truly was numb and asleep, that my love for Drizella was based on magical nonsense, when in fact, it was more real than the affection I had towards Cinderella.
YOU ARE READING
After Henry (Once Upon a Time)
Romance"Happy endings aren't always what we think they will be, but that's exactly what makes them special." A book filled with hope and fairytales, Once Upon a Time, fell on Ivy Belfrey's lap, giving her hope that both heroes and villains can have a happ...
