The Aldean Chronicles: Hidden

"Happy birthday, sweetheart." My mother hugs me tightly. "I'm so happy for you. Look at you, sixteen years old."

I smile. I had just come down for breakfast and met them in the kitchen. I came home yesterday afternoon, I'm leaving tomorrow morning. I'm just here for my birthday. I'll be spending more time here over the summer.

"Thanks, mom." I kiss her cheek. "Dad." I hug him. "I missed your pancakes."

"You won't miss it so much if you visited more." He quips. Mom gives him a look. "Sorry, it's just been months since we've seen you."

"I know, school has been hectic. And my duties soul-draining."

My mom giggles. "Your royal duties, I will never get over that." She wipes her hands on a towel. "So what do you want to do today?"

"Absolutely nothing, I want to sleep."

"No, you get one day with us. It's not going to be sent with you in isolation, come on, let's go for a drive."

I eat my breakfast and dress for the day in old sweatpants and a sweatshirt. As we're driving, my phone goes off, my pictures have been posted on my page. I took them yesterday morning at the manor and palace.

"My pictures." I showed my dad in the front seat.

"Oh, let me see." My mom takes her eyes off the road for a second. "It's not fair, I can't see."

My dad hums. "Looks like something a forty-year-old woman would wear." He comments. "This one's nice though, where is this?"

I roll my eyes and take my phone back from him. "It's at a fountain at the palace, big tourist destination. Especially during summer."

"Palace." My mom sighs. "I'm glad you're living some idealistic fairytale life."

"More or less, it has its fun moments. But it's a lot of work, I am not getting enough sleep, I have to smile for a thousand pictures a day and be nice to people even when they're being the worst."

"Still sounds worth it."

"Maybe, anyways the pledge is in two weeks and nobody has said anything to me about it. It's starting to get infuriating, I just wish I knew what to do."

"Well what do you want to do, do you want to take it now or wait till next year? Or possibly never." My dad asks.

"I don't know." My chest feels tighter. "I just don't want to offend anyone."

I fall back to the seat and take a deep breath. "Your mother and I feel like you're under too much pressure there. Maybe you can stay with us for a few more days."

"I can't, Milton's match starts just after the pledge. Lasts till the 25th of July, I'm both anxious and excited about it. Excited because it sounds promising, anxious because it's probably going to be violent. Especially now that adults are competing."

Mom winces. "Sounds gruesome. And you have to watch all this?"

"Not really, I'm supposed to be there on the first and last days and am scheduled for days between."

"Illyria is so extra, so medieval. Are you sure we use the same calendar?" Dad laughs.

I ignore him. "What about that boy you're seeing, Tristan?" Mom changes the subject.

"He's fine, I haven't seen him in a while though. But we're planning on meeting up when I get back."

"That sounds fun. Look at you, your first boyfriend." Mom teases. I beg her to stop. Why didn't I tell them we put our relationship on pause?

"Are you sure you don't want to stay a few more days?" Dad asks.

"No, I have to get back. I have a bunch of stuff to do before the games." We drive for a few more hours before going home. They throw a little party and don't invite anyone. To be fair, there isn't anyone to invite. We have dinner and cake and spend the night watching all the blockbusters I missed. It is a very good birthday.

I leave early the next morning dressed in another pair of sweat clothes. The driver drops me off at the manor, I'm staring down at my phone as I walk in. I hear strange noises in the living room and decide to see who's home.

The lights are off and before I know it, someone puts them on and everyone yells. "Surprise."

I take in the scene in front of me. The room is beautifully decorated with balloons and streamers. My family is standing there, Kat with a cake in her hand.

"What is this," I'm so confused.

"A party, for your sixteenth," Tristan answers from the back. "Happy birthday."

"But why?" I cannot wrap my mind around this.

"Told you all this was stupid." Lilian is sitting on a couch sipping wine.

"Isn't this a tradition on earth, surprise parties? Don't you people love them." Kat asks.

"Honestly, never been a fan. But I love that you did this for me, it's beautiful."

"And now gifts, open mine first." Grey hands me a tiny sliver gift bag.

I open it and spot a bracelet. It's a thin gold chain with a tiny key at its end. "Thanks, Grey, I love it."

"Check below the wrapping, you'll see a little blue book. The key opens it, it's a diary."

"Even better, thank you."

Lilian is next. "Cassandra I got you these." They're plain diamond earrings. "I saw them at the shop and thought you'll like them."

I thank her, better than nothing. Next is Kat. "Here." She hands me a black velvet box. I see a very familiar necklace in it.

"Is this," I ask and she nods. "I can't believe you're giving me this." It's the necklace we saw in the portrait in Tarwick Castle. "I love this so much, thanks Kat."

I hug her, she laughs. "I never wear it anyways, you should have it."

Next is Tristan. "I have two for you. This is the first." He hands me a jewelry box. "It's more from my parents than me."

I open it and see a pretty necklace inside. "It's gorgeous, I love it."

"And I'll give you the other one later." He promises. My heart leaps, I wonder what he got me.

Seb rubs his hands together. "Saved the best for last. This one is from me and your aunt."

I feel a chill run down my spine. "I'm a little scared but okay."

He picks up a red box from his side and places it on the center table. He opens it to reveal a diamond and sapphire tiara. I gasp audibly. "That is the most expensive thing I've ever seen. You're just giving it to me."

"Well no." He corrects. "It's part of the crown jewels. This just means that you're allowed to borrow it for important milestones."

"Still, that looks so heavy. How many diamonds is that?"

"176." He answers.

My head spins. "I don't think I can ever wear that, it's too much... everything"

"I think it's gorgeous," Kat says, moving closer to it. Seb snaps the lid shut almost taking off her fingers in the process. "Well, what's the point of bringing it out if nobody can wear it."

Fair question. The party doesn't last long, everyone has work to do. We cut the cake and share a few drinks before calling it quits.

I carry my jewelry to my room, Lilian takes the necklace Kat gave me to the safe. I keep the rest of the jewelry in my personal safe. I have never gotten so much jewelry before, especially expensive ones.

She and Seb leave the house for a dinner meeting while Kat goes back home. Soon it's just Tristan and I alone in the living room. "Do you want to go out to the pool?" He asks.

I nod. We go there and sit on the lounge chairs. I face him with a hesitant smile on my face. "Happy birthday." He says and leans over to kiss me.

"Is that the gift?" I ask, feigning disappointment even though I'll be very happy if that's it.

He shakes his head. "No, I have something else." He pulls out a thin silver chain with a heart pendant in the middle. On it is the word Beatrice engraved in italics.

"You know my middle name."

"I figured you weren't a fan of Kaili." He laughs lightly. "You've been struggling these past few months. Just wanted to get you this." I don't say anything. "And it's stupid, isn't it?"

I pull him into a tight hug. "Thank you." He helps me hook the chain on my wrist, I twist it around in the setting sun.

"I'm glad, I thought it was going to be a terrible gift." He exhales and rests his back on the lounge chair. "So what now?"

"What are you talking about?"

"We put our relationship on pause till your birthday. Now we're here, no more excuses." He turns to me. "What happens now?"

I stand up from my chair and go over to his. I lay down next to him, he places his arm under my neck. "Now what," I repeat his question.

He turns to me with a smile and takes my lips with his. I place my hands on his chiseled chest and he grips my waist.

He stops abruptly. "We're outside." He protests.

"Who cares, there's no one here." I kiss him but he pulls away.

He sits up and I move closer so my head is on his chest. He plays with my hair while I draw patterns on his stomach. "This place is so quiet." He whispers. "I like staying here with you."

"Me too." I kiss his chest and he laughs.

"What's on your mind?"

"You."

I feel him laughing. "Not now, in general. What's been on your mind?"

I sigh deeply. "The pledge is in two weeks. I'm scared."

He takes my right hand and caresses it. "Sorry."

"Thanks."

"I wish I knew what to say to make you feel better." He draws my hands to his lips and kisses it.

"You can keep doing that." I smile. He kisses it repeatedly and I laugh. "It tickles."

He drops my hand and is quiet for a long time. "If you had an opportunity to leave all this, go back to Earth. Will you take it?"

I don't even think about the answer. "No."

He doesn't say anything. I look back up at him, he smiles down at me and says. "I'm happy to hear that." He kisses me again.

***

I'm busy all week. My Thursday afternoon event was canceled and I decide to spend my free time with Tristan.

I call him, he asks me to come over. I walk the short distance to his house and he buzzes me through the gate. The house has three stories and is made of stone.

"My great grandfather built it in the late 1800s." He says, opening the door. "Would you like a tour?"

He explains different rooms as we pass them, he also tells me what was altered and in what year.

"Looks fascinating," I say as we go upstairs. He takes me around the second floor and I try my best to pay attention. Once we're on the third floor, I ask. "Quick question, does this tour end in your bedroom?"

He suppresses his smile. "Maybe." We walk for a few more seconds before standing in front of a door. He opens it and allows me to walk in.

I do so and take the room in. There's a big bed pushed up against the wall and a big old ornate desk not far from it. On the other side is a fireplace and a settee. There are two doors beside each other. I'm guessing one leads to a bathroom while the other leads to a closet.

"I like your room," I say quietly. "It's clean."

He smiles. He picks up a remote from the desk and presses a button. A tv I didn't notice before comes alive.

I take a seat carefully at the edge of the bed. "A tv, what year was that added?"

He laughs at my weak joke. "A few months ago." He presses another button and a popular tv show appears on the screen.

"The good wife. Did Grey tell you I like it?"

"He did actually." He walks over to the bed and stands awkwardly beside it. He eventually sits down, keeping a wide distance between us.

I inch closer to the top and rest my back on the headboard. He does the same and is soon only half a foot from me. I focus my eyes on the tv, I don't dare look at him. I have never been this nervous before.

He increases the volume and I force myself to get into the show. It's really hard when he's so close to me. "This is fun," I say.

He sighs. "Yeah." He's quiet again. We go through one episode, neither of us has said anything. "Do you want anything? I can run to the kitchen and get snacks."

I shake my head. "I'm fine." I decide to do something and shift closer to him. Soon our thighs are touching. He doesn't move away. He eventually takes my hand in his.

That makes me laugh. "I'm really nervous," I admit.

"I am too."

"Why, haven't you done this before?"

"Well yes, I'm still nervous." He holds my fingers tighter and brings them closer to his face. "I'm really happy you're here."

I smile. "Thank you for saying that." I rest my head on his shoulders, he runs his hands up and down my arm. Soon he kisses my head.

"Are you sure about this?" He asks.

My heart threatens to burst out of my chest "Yes."