Nothing Good Ever Lasts

Chapter 2

I shook my head wildly when he told me that. "Rule? Rule? What do you mean rule? I can't rule! You're telling me I have to take the throne now? Why? What happened? What problem are you talking about?" I spit out fast, and I don't think he caught any of it.

"I know, I know, it's crazy, but apparently there's a law that says the person who's going to take over the throne has to get married by the age of twenty." He explained, but I was shaking my head the whole time. "Calia, I'm not married, and ironically, you are."

"Well then get married." I said like an order, although it really wasn't. I was just so freaking furious. "What the hell, Aaron? We're not twenty yet!"

"I know, but do you really think that I'm going to find a girl and then marry her in seven months?" He asked me, and I went speechless, thinking of what to say. "People know I'm royalty, so of course any girl will marry me. But I want one that likes me for me, not for my family and bloodline. I want someone who would love me for me, not for the royal status."

I started hovering, ready to follow him to our parents. "You're right. We need to have a family talk." My clenched teeth showed my anger as I flew fast and furiously up to the second floor, finding my parents wherever they may be. I followed Aaron until we stopped outside the balcony garden where they were sitting down on a stone bench surrounded by sparkling blue tulips. I shoved the doors open the glass making a sickening sound as I rushed over to them. "What the hell, guys!" I exclaimed as they stood up quickly. "You can't do this to me! What about my family I don't want to put through the difficult royal life? Do you even care about me?"

"Calia, this law is throughout all the worlds. We can't change something that's in every world!" My Dad yelled and I knew this argument would last a while. I stood my ground, ready to fight for what I knew was right.

"Then you find someone for Aaron. I can't be Queen, I don't want to put my family through that. I don't want my family to end up like what you did." I cried softly, pointing to my parents. "I don't know how you guys did that, but I wouldn't be able to live without my family."

They both eyed me, sighing right after. "That was the worst mistake of our life, but we can't change the past." Mom said softly, matching my tone. "You know we love you, I love you, but what's done is done. You think if I could go back and change the past, I wouldn't? No, I would, in a heartbeat. And I'm pretty sure your father would too. He didn't want to lose you all those years ago, but it was almost two decades ago, so I don't know what to tell you." She paced the floor softly, rubbing her hand up the balcony railing and looking over the world. "But you won't end up like us. We were young and stupid and didn't know what we were doing. Now you'll have the chance to fix it, to fix Tanyela, and to fix us." She turned around and her purple eyes stared right into mine. "We're getting old, Calia. We can't do this forever. Wouldn't you want the world to be safe and to know that you'll fix everything?"

I shook my head, backing up and rejecting everything she just told me. "But I want Aaron to do that. He'll fix everything the way it's supposed to be, way better than I ever could. He just needs to find someone special first, but I don't care how long that takes, you can't make me become Queen. I refuse to do it." I walked swiftly to her, dodging the foliage around me. "Cylak and I already decided we weren't going to do this."

Mom and I both faced out, looking down on the world below. "But by the way it's looking now, you're going to have to." Her voice was down to a whisper, and tears were coming to my eyes. "Don't you see, Calia? Not everything can be about you. It's about what the world needs, and right now, they need you."

I turned to Aaron, ready to just flat out ignore my mother. "Aaron, what worlds are there? Find a princess who has the same problem as you and marry her."