He Confessed Love To Me
RINA couldn’t believe her ears, she just couldn’t believe what this almighty Prince just told her.
He wants her? How possible is that?
“Very possible”, he said.
“Huh?” She looked at him. “You read minds?” She asked.
“I have got that gift”, he shrugged, bringing his hand down from her cheek.
Jeez, another surprise.
“But my Prince, I… I can’t…”, she paused and sighed.
He smiled.
“Take your time and talk, why the tension?”
She exhaled deeply.
“I am sorry Maharana, this isn’t going to work, it isn’t”.
He kept mute, saying nothing.
“I have to go”, she said and ran out of the garden.
He turned and watched her leave. He expected it anyway, she can’t just accept such things with haste, she was going to come around, sooner or later.
***
Rina ran all the way to her room, she didn’t go up to the dining hall again for dinner. How could she? With what just happened?
She locked up her door and flopped down on the bed, then let out the tears flow. She cried so hard.
How is it that she keeps helping out royals without knowing, how? And why has her creator decided to punish her this way? What has she done?
The tears flowing were so intense. She loves the Prince too, there was no doubt about that, but she never expected him to love her back, she never did.
This couldn’t just work, she just wanted to love the Prince from a distance, and then watch some other hawk take him away, it wouldn’t hurt that much, but to know he loved her back and wanted her, and knowing it’s impossible, was much more hurting.
Her stomach rumbled, reminding her she hadn’t eaten anything since the afternoon. She ignored it, she just couldn’t go up to the dining hall.
About thirty minutes later, there was a knock on her door and she came off the bed with a start.
Who the hell was that? She ignored the first knock, and it came again.
She got up.
“Who is it?” She asked, cleaning off her face with the edge of her bedsheet.
“It’s just a fellow maid, please open up”, the voice said and she calmed.
She walked up to the door still cleaning off the little tears on her face. She got to the door and yanked it open.
Oh gee, it was one of the maids and she was carrying a tray of food with her. Huh, Rina looked confused.
“Namaste”, the maid greeted.
“Namaste”, she replied putting her palms together.
“Are you alright Rina? Why didn’t you come over for dinner?” The maid asked.
She forced a smile.
“I am fine, just a bout of illness”, she said.
“Oh, and your eyes, they are red”.
Jeez, this maid loves questioning.
“Something entered my eyes, nothing much. So why are you here?”
“Oh sorry about the questioning, the Prince sent me to bring you your dinner”, she handed the tray to her.
“Oh, really?” She took it.
“Yeah, I have to go now. Good night”, and she turned.
“Thank you”, she replied and opened her door and walked in, then closed it.
She carried the tray to the bedside table and dropped it. Gee, why has the Prince sent someone, a fellow maid like her to get her food, why?
Argh, she flopped on the bed tiredly. Raghav really meant business, but this just… just couldn’t work, even if it seems it could.
She got up and took off her clothes, then dashed into the bathroom for a warm shower.
? Next Morning ?
Raghav sat on his piano playing low soft tunes. He has been awake for like an hour ago, and since then, he’s been on his piano.
Minutes later, one of his phones on the table buzzed, he peeked into it, it was Terry.
A small smile played on his face, as he picked up the phone.
“Beautiful morning Your Grace”, Terry was the first to greet.
“Hey man, been a while”, he sighed.
“Why won’t it? When you have virtually been spending all your time working with her”, he teased.
“Hold on? Working with who?” Raghav asked.
“Don’t pretend my Prince, Prisha has been feeding me all this while”, he laughed.
“Ouch, that girl needs to be spanked”, he splayed his right hand on his face, sighing.
“If anything happens to her, you have me to contend with your majesty”, he said, still laughing.
“How have you been Terry? How is New York? How are the estates?” He reeled out questions.
“Moving on fine, I recently sent some pictures of the new estate to your email, I don’t know if you have seen it”.
“Oh”, he hit his forehead with his right hand.
“I haven’t, too busy these days”, he said.
Terry laughed.
“Busy doing what? With all due respect my Prince, you have been busy with her right?”
Raghav groaned, what is wrong with this guy now?
“Seriously Terry, I’ve been busy, with her, yes. But she isn’t the reason for my not checking out my emails”, he explained.
“So Maharana, can I know?”
“Well, the hospital I told you about the last time we spoke…”.
“Oh oh, forgive my manners, I had actually forgotten”.
“So who or what made you forget? Her?” He chewed on his lower lip.
He laughed.
“Come on man, you know I have no ‘her’ “, he said.
“Oh, and that’s why you keep on mocking me over mine, because you have never known the feeling”, he rolled his eyes.
“Alright… Alright, I give up. I don’t have, fine, don’t insult me now”.
“Is that a loss of battle you portray?” Raghav asked.
“Whatever you choose to call it, I just give up. So how have you been?… And her?”
He smiled.
“I’m good, she is just the problem now, though I know she’s gonna come around”.
“Wait, you confessed your love for her?”
“I had to Terry, I couldn’t hold myself any longer”, he sighed.
“I see. So what happened?”
“As expected, she said it isn’t gonna be possible”.
“Because of…”.
“I don’t really know, maybe because she is just a maid or something… I don’t know, I don’t just. But one thing I know for sure, she’s gonna come around”.
“Or maybe because of what people might say, like the other members of the royals may not accept it”.
“Come on man, this is me and not them. I don’t bloody give a damn what they say”, he raised his voice a pitch higher.
Terry sighed over the phone.
“You really love this girl my Prince, I have never seen you in such a state”, he said.
He nodded as if he could see him.
“I do”, he shortly replied.
“Well, I hope everything works out well. How about the hospital?”
“It’s moving on smoothly, everything is going on just fine. Few more finishing touches and my first hospital would come to life”.
“Not your first my Prince, it’s actually your second. You already have one down here remember?” He reminded him.
“I know. I mean it’s the first in my kingdom, for my people. I’m going to employ a lot of qualified workers, such that one can stay for weeks without virtually doing any work, because a lot more is carrying out the duty”.
“Hmm, my Prince. Wouldn’t that be tedious on your own part, I mean based on the payment?”
He shook his head.
“It never would. You know, I’m trying to abate this suffering of lack and want totally from my kingdom, it’s causing a lotta damage”, he splayed his right hand on his forehead.
“Hmm, you really have plans for your people”.
“I do. Once this hospital is been fully erected and starts functioning, I will begin expatiating, having branches scattered all over Shimla kingdom, and even possible, to the neighboring kingdoms, you know this gonna make the young minds and youths really study, because they all would be wanting to be employed and paid well”.
“Ahh, you are really brains my Prince, you got a point there, I’m solidly behind this”, he pledged.
Raghav smiled, punching on the keys of the piano.
“I know you would”.
“Well, it’s great news. The hospital over here is also booming, last week some young doctors who really wanted to further went back to school, all funds and bills on the hospital…”.
“Like I said”, he interrupted.
“Like you said my Prince, we are really making profits and making lives”.
He nodded, that was exactly what he wanted.
“That is what I want”, he said.
“It’s all good, and we give thanks to the almighty. Well my Prince, there is a little problem”.
“What is it?”
“It’s Bella”.
He groaned and got up, then walked up to the dressing table. This was virtually the last thing he wanted to hear from Terry… about Bella.
“What about her?” He began playing with the combs on the dressing table.
“You really need to watch your back my Prince, gathered she has sent some investigating team down there to watch you”.
“Huh?” His right eye twitched.
“Is she watching over me or something?” He asked.
“I guess so Maharana, you just have to be careful, tighten your security”, he said.
Trash that, who was Bella anyway, that he should begin being conscious of his security? He made a face.
“She is nobody Terry, I know what to do when that one comes up”, he said.
“I trust you. She also would be coming down to India soon, I know probably, for you”.
Like seriously? What the hell was wrong with Bella? What is she tryna prove? What?
“It’s nothing Terry, I know how to handle her likes… and put them in their place”, he licked his lips.
“Alright man, just wanted to do my own part, inform you”.
“And I’m grateful, I really need to attend to things now”, he looked around the room.
“Have a nice day Your Grace”, and he ended the call.
“You too”, he said, but the call had already ended.
He dropped the phone on the dressing table and walked over to the bar section.
Why would Bella ever think she was gonna have him? Like they were really going to be together? She should go to the blazes… far into the flames.
He selected out a bottle of Hennessy and popped it open, then poured himself some wine into a glass tumbler.
He then walked over to the dining and sat on one of the dining seats, then began sipping wine.
*
*
*
Rina was already dressed for work that morning, set to leave when her phone rang.
Gosh, she looked at the wall clock and shrugged her shoulders. She still had some time to spare, stating the fact that her job that morning wasn’t really much.
She made for the phone and hoped it wasn’t her mom, like they just finished talking so…
She picked up the phone from her dressing table and peeked into it, it was Zaina, she smiled.
“Hello palace girl”, Zaina’s voice spoke into the phone.
She sighed and sat down, facing her dressing mirror.
“Morning baby Z, how was your night?”
“My night was splendid, and yours?”
She sighed.
“Ouch…”, she mouthed.
“Huh? What is it?”, Zaina asked, she could detect the hesitation in her voice.
“Well Zaina, if I tell you this you never would believe… never”, she said.
“What please? Tell me”, she insisted.
“Hold on? Aren’t you going to school today?” She glanced at the wall clock again, “the time is far spent”, she said.
“I know your plan Rina, you want to skip this right?”Contentt bel0ngs to N0ve/lDrâ/ma.O(r)g!
Rina bursted into laughter.
“No… no, I am only concerned about you”.
“Thank you Mrs concern, please tell me what I want to hear, school can wait”, she said.
Rina laughed, she knows her friend too well, she doesn’t give up easily.
“Alright, try to remember the guy I told you about at the tourist site, the one I said he was in a hoodie”.
“At the tourist site… at the tourist site, oh, yes I remember, what about that?”
“Well…”, she sighed, “he is Prince Raghav”, she said.
“What!” She shouted into the phone, that Rina had to take the phone off her ears.
“The Prince? The guy you helped out with water?” She reeled out questions.
“Yeah, I found out just yesterday”, she said.
“My gee, what do you mean to tell me? So Vidya has lost it then”, she said, laughing.
Rina rolled her eyes.
“Oh please, I am not talking about Vidya”.
“Alright my lady, fine. So how did you get to know?”
“He… he told me himself last night”.
“Huh? My geeee, Rina!” She exclaimed.
“And one more thing…”.
“What? My ears are itching to hear”, she interrupted.
“He confessed love to me yesterday”.
“Holy moly! I just died and came back to life, what did you just say? That my Prince loves my Rina? Awwn, how sweet”, she kept gushing over the phone.
“It’s not something sweet, Zaina. Okay it might sound sweet, but it isn’t”, she said.
“Huh? What do you mean? This is what every girl is dying for”.
“Good you said so, I am not every girl”, she rolled her eyes.
“What exactly is your fear, Rina?”
“A lot. I’m just a maid, a pauper, from a low class family, a high school dropout. What about the other members of the royals? What are they gonna say? The King? His Queen? Then we move down to Vidya, his intended bride, please… I am virtually not ready for all this”.
Zaina sighed.
“Do you love him Rin?” She asked.
Aw, gosh! She so much do, but that isn’t the bottom line.
“I do, but you see…”.
“Oh my gee, you do?” Zaina interrupted.
“Yeah I have always loved him, but you see, I wasn’t expecting him to love me back, I mean I never expected him to notice me, I was just loving him like every other girl would… dote on the prince… like that”.
“There is something more Rina, don’t pretend, don’t fight it”, she said.
Rina sighed, she was absolutely right. The earlier she told herself the truth, the better.
“Yeah, you are right. I mean, he… he is really a fine handsome gentleman. Last night when he caressed my cheeks, I felt like I wanted more of his touch”, she closed her eyes.
“Awwn, I feel like crying. Rina you are going to do yourself a great harm if you don’t own up, stop saying it isn’t gonna be possible, because you know it very much can, you know”.
She sighed and opened her eyes.
“So, what are you insinuating then?”
“Accept the Prince Rin, accept him. I knew my dream was really going to come true someday”, she giggled.
“What dream?” She asked, confused.
“The one I said I witnessed you got married to a royal Prince, the identity of the Prince wasn’t clear but it was you who was the bride. I see the dream coming to reality”, she said.
“Oh”, she mouthed, remembering the day she had told her in school many months ago.
“Did you tell mom about this?”
“No please, I don’t think it’s really necessary”.
“Ugh, it’s your choice anyway. I better leave you now, I’m running late”.
“I thought you said school can wait”, she hissed.
“Well it can’t wait anymore, I have gotten the gist. Lest I forget, we will be graduating out of high school next week”.
“Oh really? Congratulations baby Z”, a big smile played on her face.
“Thank you Rin, I have to get along. When next I call, we will talk about college for me, what I would like to study for the future”, she said.
“Awwn, you are really growing. Alright, have a nice day”.
“You too baby”, and she ended the call.
“Ahhhh”, Rina sighed and dropped the phone on the table. What stress. She got up and walked out of the room.
How was she gonna face the Prince now if she eventually bumps into him? Jeez, this was a task.
She got out of her room and began taking the hallway leading to the dining hall. She needed to take breakfast so she wouldn’t collapse when working.
She had already walked past the kitchen and was heading for the dining hall when she bumped into him. Huh? Like she predicted.
He was wearing his royal robes, dressed exactly as a Prince that he is, and looking breathtaking as always. Aww, this was what they call prince charming.
This was exactly the second time she was seeing him dressed as a Prince.
“Good morning Maharana”, she genuflected and made to walk pass, he held her back.
She freezed on the spot instantly. What does he want now? She is only trying her best to avoid him.
“Are we now enemies, Rina?” He asked.
“Huh? I mean no, no my Prince, we aren’t”, she stuttered.
“Then why are you walking past me?”
“My Prince I greeted”, her gaze lowered to the ground.
Raghav stood for some seconds watching her and saying nothing, he glanced at his wristwatch, he was almost late for where he was headed to that morning, and he needed to see Prisha before leaving.
If he kept on standing and watching this lady, he sure was gonna be late, so he walked away, saying nothing to her.
Huh? He just walked out, without saying anything to her? Like he just walked out?
She turned to see him retreating into the distance, she couldn’t stand this as she felt like she was heartbroken or something, she just felt bad.
Little drops of tears began dropping from her eyes, she tried fighting it, but she couldn’t and she let it out.