Through the hallways Evangeline and Silas walked, Evangeline held tightly on to his arm, mumbling to herself.
"Just who does he think he is, walking around here like he owns the place…"
Silas looked down at her, trying to contain his laughter.
"He thinks he just rules the land and can do whatever he wants… What a creep," She griped.
"He does own the land Lady Evangeline," Silas chuckled.
She looked up at him, meeting his eyes.
"What-"
"He rules over the land," Silas snickered, "He owns all of Parola, all 100 miles of it."
"And so what, big deal? Parola isn't all that exciting anyways," She sniffed, rolling her eyes, "It's nothing compared to the Brightly Kingdom, where my Cade is from."
"Your Cade," Silas repeated, letting out a soft sigh, "You seem really fond of a man whom you've never seen before. Any reason why?"
"Because I am fond of him," She breathed, relaxing her shoulders, "My Cade, he's something so special to me and I don't have to see him to know that I'm in love with him."
"Oh, and what do you love about him," He prodded.
"Well, Cade is one of those people who has a really big heart. He's someone who has so much love but nowhere to put it… I remember before we even spoke to each other he bought me paintbrushes just so I could continue in my hobby. He's also really funny, he can always make me laugh even without trying. He listens to me and whenever we speak we always find something to talk about and there's something about his voice that's really soothing. Every time he speaks I feel safe. He's also very protective, he doesn't know this but I remember the night of the rainstorm at our spot… He protected me from my father and cradled me in his arms until sunrise. He kept me safe and warm the entire night, protecting me from the rain despite him getting soaking wet. It was the first time we ever touched, and when I truly realized I loved him… I wish I could've actually seen what he looked like but my vision was blurry… The only thing I could make out was that he has dark hair and is tall. Even without knowing his name, even without seeing his face, he's the only one who has my heart. The only one who makes my heart skip a beat," She spilled, rubbing the side of her head against his arm, "I'm waiting for the day where he will hold me again and we finally share our first kiss."
Silas looked away, putting the back of his hand against his mask.
'She's so deeply in love with me… Evangeline, how would you feel if you knew I was your beloved Cade… Could you still feel the same way… Would you love me as deeply as I love you…'
"I wish he was here with me," She breathed, "I want to be with him."
Silas looked back at her, seeing her cuddling against his arm.
'I know I'm Cade but she doesn't know that and seeing her, cuddled so closely to me… I'm getting jealous of myself… I'm going crazy… This is ridiculous but I can't help myself…'
"I wonder what Cade would think if he saw you cuddled up against my arm," He ribbed, flicking the top of her head.
"Ow," She whined, letting go of his arm, "He wouldn't say anything, because he's not unreasonable like you."
"I'm unreasonable? You're the one cuddling up against the arm of another man," He huffed.
"Yeah a man who's supposed to be protecting me," She rebutted, pointing her finger into his chest, "You Reuben are my personal guard, my knight, someone who's supposed to be protecting me from danger. Me holding on to your arm is nothing more than a formality."
"Formality? I've never known a noble to be this close to their personal guard," He ribbed, smirking at her.
She turned away from him, placing her hands on her hips.
"Listen Rueben I hold on to you because I liked you, you were very nice…"
"Were," He chimed in with an interruption.
"Yes, were," She snarked, waving him away, "You've been helping me, and for that I found you kind and quite a gentleman, but if you can't decipher simple formalities and a growing friendship from romantic feelings then I will have no choice but to find another guard."
"Find another guard, you can't just find another guard," He protested.
She turned around to face him, pointing her finger at him.
"Oh can't I," She challenged, crossing her arms.
"No you can't," He affirmed, "You can't change your personal guard."
"Watch me," She smirked, sticking her tongue out at him.
"You are not getting a new guard."
"You can't tell me what to do Rueben," She stated, pointing at him, "As far as you know I'm a princess and that out ranks you by a lot."
"Getting married to His Royal Highness would actually make you Grand Duchess, not a princess," He snarked.
"Well that makes me even higher of a ranking since Grand Duchesses out rank princesses, so thanks for proving me point," She sassed, turning away from him.
He grabbed her arm, turning her to face him.
"Lady Evangeline, must you be so stubborn?"
She looked into his eyes as she pulled her arm away from him.
"Hands off caveman," She snarked, "I have to go find myself another guard, because we no longer have anything to do with each other."
"Oh yeah, says who."
"Says me," She proclaimed, "I'm going to find someone else to protect me and you can go do whatever you normally do."
"I don't take orders from pipsweaks," He ribbed, "My orders come from His Royal Highness. As long as he has ordered me to take care of you, your care and safety will always be my business."
"Who are you calling a pipsweak-"
"You," He smirked, "As tiny as you are and as big as I am, to me you're a pipsweak."
She crossed her arms, stomping her foot.
"Just you wait Reuben, I'm going to talk to His Royal Highness and as soon as I do you'll be off the job," She huffed.
He stepped closer to her, leaning in towards her ear.
"We'll just see what he has to say," He whispered.
She took a step back, pointing at him, the hairs on her arm standing up.
"You, you," She stammered.
"I-I what?"
She took another step back looking into his challenging gaze, her body trembling.
"Just you wait Reuben, when I get my new guard, he's going to be a million times stronger than you and won't tease me at all…"
He placed his hand over his mask, giving a light chuckle.
"I look forward to seeing the candidate you find worthy of your care."
She turned away from him, feeling her heart pounding against her chest, and stormed off, as he watched her disappear in the distance.