XII

XII

Reporting Day was just like an ordinary day, which flavored by a meeting with the Royal family, the entire accounting and budgeting department.

Everyone sat inside Board office, or, what the employees called it here, as Royal Office. It was a large gold and white conference hall. If my measurement served me right, this room was three times bigger than our office. A dozen of glass windows aligned on the west side, where the garden saw anytime. There were three doors on the east wall, two on both sides and one double-door in the middle.

In front of the great hall, there was a wide stage where a long table placed. Six chairs for each member of the immediate Royal Family, including Princess Emily–the future queen of England, I concluded.

All the employees related to the finance sat in rows of chairs that occupied almost half of the Royal Office. It amazed me that the number of workers in this kind of department was like this.

Katherine and I had our seat in the third row; next to us were the couple, Jackie and Felton, then the others who were working in our office. The couple, as what Katherine nicknamed them, was like snakes in human form. Their limbs entangled with each other, and their lips only separated occasionally. I wished someone would stop them. I was afraid they doing would result to higher activity in the middle of the meeting.

Katherine tapped my shoulder–I was busy watching Jackie and her lover in the corner of my eye. That was why I did not pay attention to what was happening around me–and pointed the door when I looked at her. Sophisticated ginger and blonde people entered the Board Office.

Almost all of them took their seat in the first two rows, the reason why we were not sitting there.

Katherine whispered, "They are the extended family." Pertain to the beautiful individuals, wearing designer dresses and suit, talking casually in more elegant British accent.

"They're needed in the meeting?" I stupidly asked.

"Of course," she scowled, "They remained part of the Royal family in first blood."

"First blood." I said the word just to make Katherine believed that I was so focused listening to her. The real thing was, I was truly distracted. Not because these people in front of me did intimidate me, but because I was shivering of the gaze given by the man on the stage.

"Yeah, see the man there," Katherine nodded in the right side. I looked to see more blonde people. Once she said, "That is Prince Leonard, brother of King Gregory," I understood who she was talking.

She discussed every member and what their relationships with the immediate Royal family were. Another brother, two sisters, sisters-in-law, and brothers-in-law of King Gregory, and the rest were the first cousins of the Royal siblings.

I lost the track of her words when my eyes accidentally passed the stage. I stuck there. He never let me escape the cage he had given to my eyes. He smiled a little that made my heart leaped from its original position.

The family, I was only seeing in the magazine, was now facing us. They sat straight in the luxurious chair, possibly made of gold and cotton. Every movement was calculated. This was the first for me to see Prince Alexander was like a statue, but his green eyes told me otherwise.

King Gregory was in the middle, in his right was Prince Nicholas, who was the young resemble of the King except for his clean cut red hair. Beside him was Princess Emily, who was sitting awkwardly, as if the Prince and she were not married couple. She had dark-brown hair, which framed her small and angelic face. I wondered if their child was here, I was still waiting for the time to see him.

In the left of King Gregory was Queen Beatrice, who got a posture that was shouting she was the queen, and she owned the land. Her rosy hair arranged magnificently above her head. Next to her was Prince Alexander who got the green eyes of his mother. His blond hair inherited from his Father. He was the only blond among his siblings. Princess Victoria, who was currently serious beside Prince Alexander, and Prince Nicholas were both auburn like their mother. The queen undoubtedly looked like her youngest child when she was at her age.

The meeting started as the King gave his opening remarks. He talked about what was this meeting was all about. But I was not fully listening. I was stuck with the man who kissed me yesterday. Since that scene in my cubicle, I never saw him and talked to him, because I tried my best to avoid him in any way.

After I finished the report the previous day, I gave it to Clarissa, so it was her responsibility to give it to His Highness. I did not know if I could speak to him without stuttering after our passionate moment. I was proud of myself to return his stare right now, because I thought I would not do it anymore.

The reporting passed like a blur. The first one to speak was the three representatives of the extended family. I learned that even though you were not part of the immediate family, you still had a charity helping to. They discussed the happenings for the whole month of September, then their budget request for the month of October.

Princess Emily was the next one to speak. Her well-mannered deep intonation had all the confidence invented on Earth. Many women envied her because of the Cinderella story she had. Although she was not the first commoner marrying a crowned Prince, her own version was a fantasy to reality.

Princess Victoria, who always jolly turned into a disciplined woman when she spoke about the financial report of her charities. Her cautiousness was visible, especially when she frequently looked at her parents, who had both blank face. She had more than ten charities around the globe, not included the nonprofit organizations she was leading in the colonies.

This same went with Prince Alexander and then Prince Nicholas, but more number of charities and government institutions, like the military. The brothers spoke as if they did not care their effects to the people who listening to them. They made women froze in just one word and melt with just one gaze. I pondered what Queen Beatrice felt when she gave birth to children who would be so hot like them.

The Queen spoke first, before the King. They both used to speaking in front of many people, of course, they should be because they were the most powerful people in the land. This reporting broadcast nationwide; there were cameras and reporters at the back who asked different questions once the Royal family finished in their financial reports.

When the meeting was finally over, we stayed for a few minutes to let the Royal family exited first. I glanced to the stage to see if Prince Alexander was still there, but I felt saddened when I did not see his handsome face.

Once we stepped outside, someone clamped my arm and turned me around, "Miss," he said in a cold voice, "We need to talk."

I looked at him confused, wondering what made him another shade of different color. It was only yesterday when he playfully took an advantage of me by kissing me. Then, now, we need to talk as if I was a suspect in a murder case.

Katherine just nodded and left us. Prince Alexander pulled me toward a long hallway, which was familiar to me now, and we entered a door. Several rows of bookshelves welcomed us. The Public Library.

There were few people silently reading some books and were paid no attention to us who just arrived. His Highness took me in a booth, which covered with hard walls. No one could see us here from the outside. He locked the door, before he faced me.

"What's wrong with you?" I could not help to shut my mouth anymore. He looked worried and scared, like a child who stole a candy from a store.

"I'm sorry about yesterday," he suddenly said that made me curious in his change, "I should not kiss you." His last word is like a breath that I hardly understand it for a minute, and then I realized what he meant.

Even though I knew the answer and I knew it would hurt me, I still questioned, "Why?"

He was not interested with me. He regretted that he kissed me. It should be any girl except me. Possibly, I was the worst kisser ever, and he was laughing at my back and told his mistresses how horrible I was. I believed now that I was not pretty. Even the Prince threw up when he kissed me.

"You don't need to know...," he muttered.

"You tell me, why!" my eyes watered, but I fought back. I would not cry to his front ever again.

"Shirley," everything stopped, my world stopped from revolving when I heard he said my name for the very first time. My heart became immobile I thought I already died. It was also the first time I recognized my name so perfect and beautiful.

He looked away, flushed from embarrassment. I was laughing inside because the man, who has a second name of pervert, was like a melting ice cream. I did not have any idea why he was acting as if he was a meek animal when the truth he was an aggressive forest animal.

"I mean, Miss," I saw he swallowed the lump in his throat with difficulty, "Let's work together, you a normal personal accountant, and I am a normal person over you. We need to stop this growing uneasiness between us. We don't need a physical contact between you and me."

"You're the one who kissed me," I said directly, "Why you're telling me now these things? You should think before you did that to me yesterday!" I turned my back and started walking to the door of the booth, "I also don't want you. I told you not to touch me again, but you did kiss me. And, I feel miserable after that."

"That's what I'm telling you," he raised his tone, the reason I looked at him again. His gaze was the mixture of anger, frustrations and... hurt. I did not think so. He gripped my shoulder hardly, that I almost feel my bone dislocated, "You should stay away from me."

"You're hurting me," I shot back.

"Yes, I'm hurting you, and I will hurt you when you still let me near you," I knew behind those words that he was not talking about the physical hurt, it was more the emotional side. "You don't deserve someone like me."

"I don't understand you," I whispered and different feelings flooded inside my body.

"You will be thankful someday that you keep your distance from me." His grip loosened and he left.