Arranged Problems Ch. 12

I was lying on top of my bed, staring over at the achingly empty spot on the other side. It seemed that Zayev had been gone for longer than a week. I missed him so badly.

A young girl tapped on the open doorway. “Princess, dinner is ready for you.”

I sat up and rubbed my face. “Yes, thank you.” She rushed away and I let out a small smile. Would I end up with such a sweet little girl of my own?

My thoughts surprised me. I had never given consideration about having a child of my own someday. It just happened to other girls. I had only always dreamed of getting married to the love of my life someday. Now I was married, and who knew what would come out of it?

I moved off of my bed and toed into my slipper shoes before walking out of the room. Could I have a baby? I knew I would have to bring the subject up with Zayev first. Would he want that, too?

I muttered to myself as I moved quickly down the hall. Somebody stepped in front of me and I narrowly missed running into them.

“Oh, I’m so sorry!” I told the other girl. She turned to me with a familiar grin that spoke volumes of sticky honey. “Justine?” I had an urge in my mind that she had meant to move in front of me in the first place.

“Oh, no need to be sorry. I’m sure you didn’t mean to nearly trip over me.” There was an undertone of annoyance and violence in her words.

“Are you heading down for dinner as well?” I asked, wanting to try to be polite to her, as she wasn’t in return. “We could walk together if you are.”

She looked me up and down, distaste in her eyes, as if I were a bug in her cup of tea. “Might as well.” She walked by my side.

We were both silent, slightly awkward. Justine took a breath and seemed to hesitate before asking, “No need to intrude, but what is your love life with Zayev?”

I paused mid-step and gaped at her, my face burning. “Um…why do you want to know?”

She gave me the same look as before, the one that showed that she was disgusted with me for some reason. “I can see that you haven’t done anything a married couple would do. Good.”

“Good? Whatever do you mean by that?” I glared up at her.

She gave me a sneer and started down the hall a bit before stopping and looking over her shoulder. “You may be his wife, Estrella, but I am his lover. Still.” And with that, she continued down the hall, her hips twitching from side to side.

I was frozen, my eyes wide open by the words Justine had said. “L-Lover?” I whispered aloud and fell against the rock wall closest to me, sliding down its face so I was sitting on the floor, hunched over. “She…She can’t be!”

The words repeated over and over in my head. I couldn’t shake them off. The way she had said them…she was telling the truth.

Tears slid down my face as I leaned my head back. “Zayev…Please get back soon. I…I need you to…” I let out a shuddering breath as I stood back up and ran up the hall and stairs back into my room, lying on Zayev’s spot on the bed.

“I need you, Zayev.”

***

I was in a much better mood now. This was the way to get rid of the sniveling girl, if it was up to me. I had been racking my brain for anything or any way to get rid of her.

It was a perfect idea, just telling her the truth. From the look on her face when I told her about me and Zayev, I knew that it had been the right thing to say to get her to leave by herself. I couldn’t be found out that I had made her leave.

A hand wrapped around my throat and pushed me into the wall. I looked up and sneered at Ryo. “What do you want?”

“What did you tell Estrella?” He was furious, I could tell, his red hair shaking with anger. His true, emotional self was leaking through. I knew it so well by this point that it didn’t frighten me any longer.

I pried his fingers off my skin. “Oh, don’t get your knickers in a knot, Ryo. I didn’t tell her anything she shouldn’t already know.”

Ryo’s eyes flared and his other hand wrapped around my neck, squeezing. “You didn’t.”

“I did.” My grin was large even though I felt like scrabbling at the fingers that were choking me.

Ryo glared before he let go of me and took a step back. “Go enjoy your food, witch. You don’t deserve that much.” He muttered as he left in the opposite direction.

I raised my eyebrows. He was leaving to talk to Estrella? I rolled my eyes as I continued to walk to the dining room. Ryo shouldn’t be growing feelings for Zayev’s young wife. Zayev would get very angry.

“But maybe that’s a good thing…?”

***

I found Estrella crying in her room, her face buried in Zayev’s pillow. I winced as the sound of her sobbing reached my ears. So much for my job of protecting her while Zayev was gone. Why had Justine come early, anyways?

As if Estrella could sense that someone else was in the room, her sobs discontinued and there was a moment of silence before her head raised an inch off the pillow, wet with her tears.

“His scent…it’s almost gone now.” She sounded so sad; it broke my heart to hear it from such a sweet creature.

“He will be back in two days, Princess,” I told her quietly, not wanting to startle her. “Will you come down for dinner?”

She shook her head weakly, putting her face back in the pillow, wrapping her arms tight enough around it for them to tremble. “I’m not hungry.”

“What happened? I thought you were looking forward to eating it.”

There was a long silence and I was about to leave the room when she whispered, “It was…J-Justine.” She let out a little whimper and I could tell that she was on the verge of tears again.

“What about that—Justine?” I was about to call her a snake, but I didn’t want Estrella to judge me for my hatred.

“Is it true?”

“Is what true, Princess?”

She started to shake. I took a step closer to her. She turned her face to me and her eyes were clear, though a bit puffy around the edges.

“Justine…is she really Zayev’s…lover?” She squeaked out the word and my fingers pulled into fists. So the devil of a woman had told Estrella. I had feared the moment that Estrella found this out. I had been hoping that Zayev would have been around at the time, or even if she found out at a much later date.

After it wasn’t as important to have her here.

When I didn’t reply, Estrella’s eyes filled with tears, already dripping down her face. “It is true.”

I couldn’t hold back any longer. I knelt at the side of the bed and reached out a gentle finger to wipe her tears away. “Don’t cry, Estrella.” I cooed and she closed her eyes, as if craving the attention, the touch.

As soon as I had that thought, everything that she had been doing since Zayev had left fitted together. Whenever someone talked to her, the emptiness left her expression and she would glow with life. When she was alone, she looked almost invisible, a small smile reaching her face only at her own thoughts. Wandering about listlessly, needing to use her hands somehow. It all fitted in my mind.

She was lonely.

“Oh, Strella,” I whispered, using a pet name I had given her in my mind before. My arms reached around her to bring her into a hug. “Why didn’t you tell me you were lonely? I’m here to help you while the Prince is gone.”

She sniffled as she moved her hands from the pillow to wrap them around my neck. “I…d-didn’t w-want to bo-other you.” She chocked out. “I c-can’t ask yo-ou to st-stay with m-me all the t-time. You have o-other j-jobs to do ar-round here.”

I couldn’t help but to smile at her words. She was such a sweet girl. “You are my priority. I fyou really want me to be with you, I’ll be with you.”

“R-really?” She sounded surprised. “You don’t find me s-selfish?”

That was what she was worried about? I was ordered to obey her every wish directed at me, which I would have done even if I hadn’t been ordered, and she was worrying that she was selfish?

“Of course I don’t find you selfish.” Justine, on the other hand…

Her face was in front of mine as she beamed. “You’re a wonderful friend, Ryo. I’m glad that Zayev had you be the one to watch over me.”

I gave a slight smile in return. Friend? She thought me one already?

Why is it that that fills me up with joy, but I want more than that?