PeaceMaker

The room was quiet as everyone still had difficulty accepting what had happened during the dance. They watched the door of the exit slam close and the sound echoing through the room. Though it had only been a small thud, it rang in their head, resonating a lot more than it needed to.

The air was tense and the people were just as tense. There was this feeling of emptiness when she left. Not because she left, but rather because they didn't know the reason why she left. They tried their hardest to wrap their heads around the act that she might have just gotten kicked out by the king. 

They looked up at him and the thoughts of that were immediately diminished. There on the throne was a smiling, happy king, obviously still happy from Lusinda's performance. 

They all continued their conversations, chittering amongst them about how the performance had been so gripping, praising someone who wasn't even worth their praises. 'How foolish,' Theodore thought to himself as he looked down at the court. 'Is a pretty face all you see?'

Quite frankly it was. It was the only thing they could see. 

The audience wasn't given time to talk to any of the participants, most barely know the family histories of the people that performed. 

That included Lusinda and everyone else who had performed. 

'Could they not see?' Theodore thought to himself as he remembered Lusinda's presence in the room. 'Could they not see how she looked up at me? Those vicious eyes always prying in on my conversations, mood, life, and now my marriage?'

He looked at the audience as they continued to talk about her dance. 

'Can they not see her seductiveness? How she looked into my eyes like she was planning to steal me away from someone I sincerely love. How she picked a song that I knew, a song that I loved, and ruined it with her dance' Theodore thought, his jaw clenching slightly. 'Her dance… even her dance… how dare she use that dance again?'

He was a bit conflicted. Not of Lusinda. There was no way he was going to be confused at her. She was as clean as air to him as he was to her. There was nothing she could do to cross his boundary now, she couldn't make him feel uncomfortable. Although she ruined two of his favorite things with that dance, he would never take his time to drop to her level and start grabbing at the air for reasons to clap back to low insults or tense words.

Theodore looked away from the audience and down to Adria, his eyes staring at the way they curled down, nearly touching the ground. A smile grew on his face. 'That's much better,' he thought to himself as he continued to stare at her.

Lusinda was someone that could get under his skin. She was beautiful, she was a talentful lady, and an amazing princess. Her smile was something so precious, the world could shatter at one glance at it, and with high status to match, she was the complete combination of a perfect princess. 

Yet… she wasn't Adria. Her hair wasn't brown, her eyes weren't the prettiest, seductive yet charming shade of blue, her face didn't look like it was sculpted by the creator himself and she certainly was not one of great character and class. She may have been born a gift, but she wasn't his gift any longer. 

She had that chance. She lost it… no, she threw it away. 

She had looked him in the eye with those hazel eyes and turned around, walking away when he needed her the most. She never looked back, not even once on her way out of the castle. She didn't look back again at the dress, back at the banquet in his hand, and not even at him when he broke into tears from her decision to leave him. 

Theodore continued to stare at Adria, the smile on his face growing bigger and bigger. He flinched when he saw her move, and suck in his breath as she turned around, her blue eyes making their way up the throne to lock with his emerald gaze.

His face heated up immediately when he noticed a wrinkle under her eye and her eyebrows raise ever so subtly. She was smiling. 

Theodore clenched his jaw again. He was growing more impatient. He couldn't wait for much longer, his patience stretching and thinning every time he glanced at her and she smiled as soon as they made eye contact. His heart was racing every time her blue eyes would sparkle when they locked contact with his, he would chuckle every time he heard even the slightest chuckle from her and would be placed completely off guard when she made any sudden movements towards him. 

He was so smitten by her. 

She smiled again, this time her head cocking to the side. She was reminding him to pay attention to the celebration but all he saw was her being cute. 

He was getting impatient every moment he spent with her making it much harder for him to keep his composure. His heart fluttered when she turned back to face the audience, her long waves of deep brown hair moving with her as she turned around.

He could see the ring of promise on her finger. He could see the ornament he gave her. He could see all the fabric he gave her that she turned into the outfit she was wearing at the moment. His eyes looked away from her guiltily, he knew he was staring at her. He knew it so much but his eyes would still shift to her. 

His hand ran through his blonde long waves, loose strands falling access his face. He was impatient. That fabric he bought her, that ornament on her head, those shoes, that mask. He wanted to take them off. 

There was only so long his patience was going to last him. He wasn't sure it would be long enough to wait till the wedding. He wanted her now. 

"Look away from her and occupy yourself with the expressions in the audience," THe king whispered, turning to Theodore with a sympathizing emotion on his face. "You'll still be able to see her but at least this time your eyes wouldn't be wrapped around her every feature."

Theodore turned to face his dad, a surprised expression on his face. 

The king smiled. "I can relate with you from my younger days. It was hard to keep composure too, especially when the prettiest woman in the range of 2 kingdoms was sitting just a few feet in front of me, with my ring on her finger."

"It's your fault for keeping the waiting period" Theodore pouted. 

The king chuckled, "There's a reason why it's there you know," he began, "impulsiveness shows a man that is not ready to give his heart to a woman. It shows a prince, a king, that is not ready to handle matters that need that much patience too. He looked into his son's eyes and smiled. "Besides, you need to give her a sense of reassurance. That you're not rushing into the marriage just to have your first tonight together. Show her she's worth waiting for."

Theodore glanced at his father, a sigh escaping his lips. "Why do you always have to sound so educated,"

"Woww," The king's eyebrows flew up, copying the expression of hurt. "I am the king you know and your father! If I am not educated on those things, who do you think is going to raise you properly to the king you will become? Your wet maid?"

Dominic leaned onto Theodore, reaching over him to his father, his hand up and curled into a fist. "Nice one father," he giggled, fist-bumping his father. 

Theodore rolled his eyes and gently pushed Dominic off him into his seat. "Pfft, what do you know?"

Dominic pouted, his rosy cheeks growing pink from annoyance. "I know everything!"

Theodore gazed at his brother for a moment before breaking into light laughter. His hand raised to his hair and ruffled it. "Do you think I should wait?" he asked Dominic. 

"Of course!" Dominic replied, his bright eyes widening in happiness. He loved it when he was asked a grown-up question. "If it's a rule that dad kept or made, then it's there for a reason for it!" 

"Really now?" Theodore cocked his head to the right. 

"Mhm!" Dominic nodded his cute head furiously.

Theodore stared at his brother for a moment before his eyes sparkle and ruffle Dominic's head again. "How cute," he muttered. 

"Hey! Dad said I'm handsome, not cute," Dominic pouted. "He said it when big sis called me cute too! Why're you doing it to me?"

"Because you're cute?" Theodore shrugged, further adding to Dominic's anger. He peered down at his little brother and smiled. "Wanna do me a small favor?" 

Dominic's pout came to stop and he looked up to Theodore with hopeful eyes. He liked it even more when he was asked to do grown-up things like a favor. "What is it, big brother?" 

"Check if you can wait when it's your turn.," Theodore smiled, "in the future, when you get your own wife, I want you to see if you can wait like me for the wedding, ok?"

Dominic grinned. "Of course I will! I'm not like brother who's impatient."

Regina let out a little chuckle at her little brother's smart comment. 

"Hey! Don't laugh at that, you're the one who taught him all those snarky comments," Theodore huffed. "Now he doesn't even respect his older brother and only you and dad."

"A cute one like him should never get too close to a wolf," Regina shrugged. "I feel scared for sister Adria. You're not even going to let her out of your sight that day.

Theodore grinned. "Of course not."

"Sigh… her poor back," Regina shook her head solemnly.