Forced Royal

Epilogue (Part 1)

Epilogue (Part 1)

September (4 months later...)

Charlie enters from the bathroom and he notices me smiling nonstop at the letter in my hands. He can't help but raise a curious eyebrow, "Is that another letter from Jasper?"

"Yea, Miles gave it to me yesterday when he visited." I lean back into the fluffy bed and my body slowly sinks into the mattress. "He said he hasn't stopped thinking about me and that he has kept his promise. I'm kind of shocked, honestly. I never expected him to keep the promise for this long..." My smile fades, but I don't have time to feel sad anymore. "Too bad I couldn't keep mine..." Quickly, I peel the sadness away and stay happy.

I have realized, over these months, that I should just be happy with what I have now. I am finally beginning to accept what has come upon me. Charlie and I have helped each other cope tremendously, and our internal storm is calming. We are emerging from the rain and looking towards the sunlight. Every once in a while, our raw feelings return, but it has been joyful and cheery recently. We have become close friends, but we don't see each other as lovers just really close friends.

It feels somewhat refreshing not having to fight and resist. We aren't struggling and we are finally looking ahead...

"Well, I got Robin to check up on Bethany and Emerald yesterday. He said that Emerald is doing fine, and Bethany is feeling a bit under-the-weather." Charles tells me.

Emerald and Bethany haven't come out of the dungeon since the wedding, and Charlie and I have made sure they are safe. If we could, we would get them out of that jail, but our power as prince and princess doesn't give us that authority -- only the king and queen.

"Is Bethany all right?"

"Yea, he just said she had a cold of some sort." Charlie shrugs as he adjusts his pale blue button-up shirt that the servants laid out for him for breakfast.

"Ah... anyways," My smile increases, "are you thrilled for your twenty-first birthday ball tonight?"

"Yep. Twenty-one today. WOOP WOOP!"

"You have been around Robin way too much," I joke.

"Hey, he is a fun guy. Plus, someone told me he bought me a superhero cape for my birthday. Priceless." Charlie winks.

Rolling my eyes, I say, "Well, he is one of a kind and special."

"I swear, that dude can make anyone laugh." Charles chuckles.

"I know!"

Sasha pops in for a few seconds, but she doesn't speak. All she does is place a flowing light blue dress, matching Charles's shirt, on a nearby chair for me to wear and scurries out. As I get up, fetching my dress, and go behind a divider, Charlie starts talking about how excited he is about his birthday today. He rattles on and on about how everything is going to go later on today like a child.

I strip off my nightclothes and change into the dress that rests at my ankles. Also, I slip on a pair of matching flats that have appeared in our room.

Now, the only thing the servants do is give us our clothes and clean up our room. We get to fix ourselves up without them helping and doing it all.

As I move into the bathroom, Charlie follows, continuing with his rambling. Quickly, I apply some makeup and do my hair in waves.

"I wonder what kind of cake there will be..." Charles keeps on. Man, he can talk, I think.

As I finish up, someone knocks on our door. When Charles answers it, a smile grows on my face as the goofy red-head comes in. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU! HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR, CHARLES! HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!" Robin makes his voice squeaky and off-tune to make it even sound crazier.