Even though the prince had addressed informally, that didn’t an that I had the right to speak with him informally as well. I beca increasingly aware that I was alone in a room with the prince and that could lead to a troubleso situation, a scandal, and other issues that would require to justify my actions or my lack of it.
“We should head back, Your Highness. I was actually on my way back to the ballroom,” I suggested while trying to sound polite.
“Why should we head back? Isn’t it boring there?” he asked bluntly.
It is...but...
“Of course not, Your Highness. It’s your birthday celebration so I think that you should head back...” I said before smiling brightly at him.
“You looked so bored before while you were inside. I honestly thought that you wished to be sowhere else entirely,” the prince said before he smiled charmingly at .
I smiled back when I realized that he had just called out for that sour look that I had on my face during his party. This was probably why I still had a long way to go to keep up with my sister. Unlike , Diana had managed to look well entertained and cheerful all throughout the prince’s birthday party. I would have kept up my act too or tried to enjoy myself even if it was just a little more had I known that the prince had been watching or that he would end up calling out for it.
What do I say to him now?
“Don’t worry. Even I think that the party is boring. If you don’t want to go back there, should we find sothing more interesting to do?” he asked invitingly.
I stared at him blankly without hiding my surprise at his sudden invitation. It would be beyond rude to turn down a direct invitation from the prince; however, I didn’t think that we were close enough for him to extend such a friendly invitation to . I let out a loud sigh as I crossed my arms defensively over my chest and stared at him.
“What exactly do you have in mind, Your Highness?” I asked as I lifted a brow at him.
“Maybe for once the rumors are true...” the prince said teasingly before he smiled at .
“I am sorry but I cannot seem to follow...” I said as I wondered where he was going to take this.
It turned out that heading out to take a break from the party turned out to be a huge mistake. Sohow, it led to a very precarious situation with that invisible figure that I believed had been following around. Worst of all, my actions led to this difficult situation of dealing with the prince in private.
“I figured that you would be fun to be around and I’m starting to get the feeling that I’m not wrong,” he said as he continued staring at .
I could hear and feel the excitent in his voice. The prince stared openly at as if he was looking at a very exotic creature locked up in a clear glass cage in a zoo. I wondered what kinds of rumors he had seen or heard about to give him such an intense curiosity and interest. Regardless, I was certain that the prince must have heard only the bad and scandalous rumors about because that was the nature of all the rumors that were out there. No one enjoys rumors or news about the good or celebrating anyone else because there wasn’t much that they could say or weigh in on that. Precisely because of that, the rumors that spread like wildfire were the most scandalous ones.
“Contrary to what you may have heard, I don’t think that I’m ‘fun’ to be around,” I replied as I stared back at him.
“I’m sorry if I’ve offended you. I’m not saying that I believe that any of those rumors about you are necessarily true,” he said kindly.
At that point, I no longer cared what he did or didn’t believe about . All I wanted was to return to Diana’s side so that I could revert back to my role as an useless decoration while I stood and did my best to smile at my sister’s side until the party ca to an end or it was the appropriate ti for us to leave.
“You’re too kind, Your Highness. My sister must be waiting for so I should return. Please enjoy your evening and I wish you a very happy birthday,” I said as sweetly and politely as possible.
Let go already...
“You do have a point. Even though the party is so boring, if you insist on returning then I have no choice but to return as well. Then, please let escort you back to the party,” the prince suggested before beaming a bright charming smile my way.
I smiled while narrowing my eyes at him to show my dissatisfaction. It wasn’t like this man doesn’t understand what I want but he wasn’t willing to go along with it. I didn’t even want to imagine everyone’s reactions or the things that they would have to say if the prince and I entered the ballroom together after both disappearing for a while from the party. The prince must be well aware of the implications of us returning together as well and yet he was still suggesting it.
“I believe we should return separately. Actually, you should leave ample ti between my return and yours so that we don’t spark unnecessary rumors. If you are not considerate of my reputation, then at least, you should be considerate of yours. Please do as I ask, Your Highness,” I tried my best to convince him.
I even curtsied as politely as possible as the dress that I had on would allow to show him that I was sincerely pleading with him to stop causing any more unnecessary trouble.
“I can’t do that. Either we return to the party together or we don’t return at all. I’ll leave the choice up to you, Dahlia,” the prince said calmly.
–To be continued...
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