Fake Princess
CHAPTER 32
Long pause again, the entire civilization could have risen and died buried in the ground again during that pause. Then Devan said, with the typical rigid manners of nobles.
“ Then I will go . Sorry to bother you. Goodbye, Amelia.”
Right now I was actually crying, a big grain of tears dripping from my face as I gritted my teeth hard until my jaw hurt. If I opened my mouth, I would have roared, so I didn't say anything. A moment later, I heard the sound of a horse galloping away from Treb as fast as its rider could command.
And then I turned around. There, on a stump that I sometimes sat on while stirring the dipping liquid, lay an ancient scroll of cloth tied to a blue ribbon. With trembling fingers, I pulled the knot loose and gently tidied the cloth to look at a map of the palace grounds. What was Devan careful about bringing him here without being discovered?
I groaned, I realized, a shrill voice that sounded like the sound of an animal in pain. I dropped the map; the map was stuck on the stump, the ribbon underneath it slid down weakly. Then I sat down on the ground, my knees pressed against my chest and my arms hugged him.
I deliberately hurt Devan, cut our friendship to the root with my words, I still did.
I bowed my forehead and leaned it on my knees, my sobbing getting louder. I'll never see Devan again. I've kicked out my only true friend, my best friend in the whole world.
“ Please,” my whisper. “ Please, come back.”
There's no one there who can hear me.
It's dusk, and Aunt Vania hasn't come home yet. I know, I should've looked up to see if I could do something to save the dips, or come in and start preparing dinner. For a moment I stared at the water-filled barrel, then left without touching it. After thinking about it again, I returned to take the Map of King Ardan.
Once inside, I went straight into the bedroom, opened the coffin, and placed the King Ardan Map on the top pile, so as not to stack my things.
The box has no key. I worried for a moment, but then decided in Treb that no one realized how valuable the map was, so I slowly covered the coffin.
There was still water left in the bowl beside my bed; this morning I used it to wash my face. I dipped my hands in it, splashed the water on my face and half-heartedly rubbed my arms, but only a few dips managed to break. I took off the dirty dress and put it on the end of the bed, then put on my other dress.
I realized I was like a man in a state of disobedience, moving to and fro as quickly as possible so as not to have to think about my actions. In fact, the only thing I allowed to enter my mind was; jose. I'm gonna go find Jose. He should be home tonight, and I'll go look for him.
Now Jose's my friend, my only friend, the friend I was supposed to go to for peace. Don't mind my heart seemingly calling out another name in a slow, painful beat, don't mind that I know, deep down, seeing Jose will never heal my own suffering. I ignored those thoughts and, when I finally felt my appearance was quite decent, I left the house, and started walking down the street to the Jose family's shop.
Seriate