The Royal Contract

“I am sorry. I thought nobody was out here.” She was about to turn around when Evan stopped her.

“Hey, Eida, do you want to talk?” Evan called and asked, facing her as he placed his empty cup on the table.

She turned around again and moved toward the balcony’s railing, staring at the view on the horizon. Everything around her seemed to be moving as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

Yet, her world seemed to have gone on a non-stop downward spiral. Until now, she had no idea how she would work on making her life seem normal again.

“What is it, Evan?” She finally asked, turning around to face him again.

She might have a clue of what was going on in his mind. His face was like an open book. She could easily read his expression.

.....

He also stared at her face before he shifted his attention to the view before them.

His hands held on to the metal railings that prevented them from falling to the pavement below. It seemed to tighten the more he thought of what he would like to say.

“How are you doing? And the baby?” His voice was full of concern. She was unsure what to think of his action since they barely talked much. Although he had helped her these past few days, she still did not know him much.

She did hear that he was a friend of Lance, but unfortunately, she did not know about Lance’s life other than the Royal family. Lance was strict concerning his privacy, sharing nothing much about his friends.

“I am good.” She trod carefully with her answer. Still, she could not tell if she should trust him or not. “I think my baby is also doing fine.”

Instinctively, her hands moved towards her belly, allowing her palms to caress the baby bump that was still flat at the moment. But soon, she had read that it would appear and gradually grow.

“I am happy to hear that.” Evan’s eyes also followed her hand gesture, but this time, he smiled. “I am terrified of babies. I don’t know if I should even have one.” Evan disclosed as he continued to watch her with fascination in his eyes.

“What is going on with you and my friend?” She finally could not help it. She had noticed the attraction between the two of them. Even if she had not caught them kissing, she still could tell that there was chemistry between the two.

“We are just fooling around.” He casually admitted, but his face seemed to be telling her otherwise.

Her friend, Amelia, was not the type of girl that would casually enjoy an affair. She was not like her. She always put her heart first before anything else.

She believed that was why her friend was affected so much by that kiss. She must be attractive to this man, more than she could handle.

Her love for Lance blinded her from the possibility that there might be someone else for her. She never considered that maybe Lance was not the one for her.

“Are you sure about that?” She doubted every word he said.

She heard about his lifestyle. Just like her, he did not like commitment. At least what she used to be, but somehow, Lance changed that.

She wondered if Amelia could change him too. But it was not a risk she would like her friend to take. Sometimes, it did not simply work that way.

As much as she wished for a happy ending for this two, she doubted that starting a relationship in this scenario would be good, just looked at what happened to her and Lance.

“What do you mean?” Evan asked, his eyes narrowing at her as if questioning her words. “If you think kissing Amelia meant more than just me wanting to have sex, then you are wrong.”

Ding, ding, ding!

She could tell she hit a nerve.

He was a classic denial king, someone afraid to admit that he also caught the love bug. He was no different from her when she realized she was in love with Lance.

“I am not saying anything about you.” She raised her hands in the air, not wanting to push him too hard. “But my friend is not like me. She doesn’t know how to play the field.”

She could see that his eyes were in deep thought as he kept silent. She could tell that he did not need to hear that from her because he knew who Amelia was, and that was what was eating at him.

“I know.” His admission. How he released the air in his lungs told her he had thought about that a lot. “She is not like the others.”

She could see that confessing something like that would not be easy for a man like him. She appreciated that he did not try to hide who he was from her friend and hurt her.

But what they both decided to do with their growing attraction for each other was all up to them. The two were both consulting adults who were both aware of their circumstances.

“I know.” She answered him, knowing how special her friend was. Any man would be lucky to have her. Lance would have been fortunate if the two of them had ended up together.

Then, she turned around, ready to look for her friend again. But before she could completely step inside the apartment, Evan stopped her again.

“He is now awake and looking for you.” He cooly said. She had to turn around upon hearing his news, making her heart skip a beat from happiness, knowing he would be ok. “Do you wish to see him?”

His back faced her as he continued to gaze at the horizon that was starting to form some clouds. She could tell that they might be some rain later on.

Lance was awake, and she was happy about it. But.

Just like the looming rain, her world turned gray again as darkness started to swallow her world. Eida finally answered before leaving Evan to stand alone outside. “No!”