Confessions of an Ordinary ME

Chapter 5

"So are you local?" I asked as we were walking the sidewalks of peaceful Barcelona.

"Yeah, but I grew up in France. I'm staying for a while." 

"Spring break?"

"Uhum - so tell me, did you run away?"

"How can you tell?" 

"Well, your duffel looked like its been packed for a while. Do you need a place to crash?" 

"I do, I'll get a room downtown I guess."

"No need. Come stay with me. How long you staying by the way?" 

I admit it, she is kind of nice - or maybe, its a little weird though. How do I put this - I guess I just feel protective of... I don't know. Maybe I can really use a friend now. I badly need shower and I need clothes - fresh, clean clothes! In the end I agreed then she called someone and a man suddenly asked for my duffel. 

"It's okay Hope, he's my chauffeur." I grasped in disbelief.  Who is this girl exactly?

"You have a ---?"

"I'll explain later." She teasingly pulled me in the car and we laughed. 

As we drove around Barcelona, the vibrant color of the City left me in awe. The fresh Mediterranean breeze blew my long curly, ginger hair. Sun-kissed. In a few minutes we stopped in front of a luxurious looking villa just outside the heart of Barcelona. 

"Welcome to mi casa!" Gabbie said with an enthusiastic voice and a heart-pounding tone. 

"Bienvenida a villa Denali, casa dela princesa Denali." The chauffer opened the door for me. I looked at the house from the flooring to the roof. Its one huge luxurious house. 

"Wait I understand that. Villa Denali? Denali? Igor Denali???" Its all coming back to me now. 

"House of the princess? You're Gabriella Denali?! The heir to the throne of Madrid?!" 

"I see you didn't recognized me Aislinn." I covered her mouth from saying anything further. It so happened that Gabriella is my childhood best friend. We used to play a lot at our front lawn. She also happened to be my first cousin! My father's sister is her mother. My aunt Lilibeth was married off to the heir of Madrid, a Monarch city of Spain. Aunt Lilibeth used to visit An Tra a lot with Gabriella back when she was still young. They stopped visiting when her mother got ill and passed on later that year. It all happened so fast, we couldn't visit because that was when Faith was also ill. 

We went straight to her room to get to catch up and talk about everything! I was so shocked that its her, what a small world it is. But wait - how can I assure that my father didn't ask Uncle Igor for help to find me and actually sent his daughter. How can I assure that they are not an accomplice of my father's wrong-doing? I held back. 

"So tell me Aislinn... Why didn't you visit when my mom died?" 

"You didn't know? Faith was ill, the same time when your mother died. We couldn't live the castle, she was too weak." 

"Was? - Are you saying she's..." 

"Yeah, its been 5 years." 

"I'm sorry, I didn't know. I don't think my father also knew." 

"I'm sorry too. My father was devastated to hear that his lovely sister passed on and couldn't even visit as his child was also ill. He may have his shortcomings to his younger sister, but he was a loving and caring father to Faith up until her last day." 

We both sighed. I miss Faith, there's not a day that I don't. 

"Why did you run away?" 

"Father is marrying me off to the prince of somewhat in Scotland." 

"Seriously?! Thank God my father got rid of traditions. The Monarch in Madrid is not that of a big deal anymore. The princess suddenly turned into an ordinary girl of the street of Barcelona." 

"Lucky you! I'm sick of protocols, of maids running behind me, I'm tired of having lunch in a long table where I can't even hear my own father, I hate corsets and old gowns, I hate getting my hair done!" 

"Isn't your father worried?" 

"Speaking of that, Gabbie, tell me honestly. Did my father sent you here to find me?" 

"Pssh. I live here, and plus, we don't have any means of communication with your father when mom died. Father was upset that he didn't even visited. I guess he also didn't know." 

"Okay, That's a relief." 

"Why is that? Something happened?"  

"Nothing really, there's just this guy in Italy who happened to be one of my father's accomplice to sabotage my... never mind. Its a long story." I suddenly had a hunch that she does know something. She knew it was me all along, and she also knew I ran away. There's something fishy. I glared at her. 

"Fine. I know something. A little."  Gabriella confessed. "Three days ago I heard my father speaking with someone on the phone about someone missing. When he hanged-up, he called all his guards, including Manuelo, my chauffeur. after they spoke, I followed Manuelo and forced him to tell me what was going on. Apparently, there's a princess who ran away and the caller - who I believe is your father, suspected that she'd go to nearby countries. Manuelo was deployed to come here, I had a hunch that it could be Faith or you, so I tagged along. We've been monitoring all entry and train stations for two days. Until I met you today. I was shocked to see you though. You used to be the good one and Faith was the rebel." 

I felt a lot comfortable. Gabriella suddenly felt warm, like she used to. Her mother was a mother-figure to us when our mother died of giving birth. She has the same aura and vibe as her mother. 

"So I guess I'm a fugitive." We laughed hard. 

"Speaking of that! You're all over the news!" 

"What?! Father associated with the media?!" 

"Yeah! we have to change your entire look to get away." 

"Wait... You're helping me?" 

"Yea sure, for all time sake. Now let's bleach your hair!" 

I never imagined - again, that everything would fall into place. Its nice to have someone by your side, I really do miss Faith. I used to do everything with her. She was my best friend, she would always help me brush my hair, she would always tuck me in at night when I long for a mother. She was always there for me. 

But now, having Gabriella around felt a lot the same. She reminds me a lot of Faith. 

After a little makeover, Gabriella took me to see Barcelona at its best - at night. We had dinner, and she took me to a street where musicians gather to perform. Kinda like an open mic but in the street. We took our first photo together - my first memory of Spain.