We Were Born To Lose

"Did you hear?" A teenage girl asked her friend. My master had sent me out to do some shopping since I only had two clients that day.
"What?" The other girl replied.
"The Prince is going to be passing through here tomorrow!" She exclaimed.
"Really? That's amazing! He's so attractive" She swooned.
"I know, imagine if he sees one of us and takes us to the castle with him." She dreamed, I smiled and rolled my eyes and took a few tomatoes in hand. After seeing that they were ripe, I placed it in my basket. I paid the man and walked around till I found another booth. I made sure to keep my head down though. About half the men in the village knew what I was and they'd wink at me but to everyone else, I was just ordinary scum, barely worth anything more than a pig so it was only natural that I didn't have any friends or anyone who was even remotely nice to me. When I had spent all the money, I had three tomatoes, four loves of bread, and a bunch of carrots. I stepped back into the house and put away the food and reported back to my master.
"Now clean the outside of the house. Stack the woodpile neatly, sweep the doorstep, wash the windows, polish the door handle, and repair the fence.” He ordered in a gruff voice.
Once I had done all those exhausting tasks I was ready to pass out then and there. My limbs weighed a ton and I just wanted to walk around with my eyes closed but of course, I couldn't do that. I had to cook dinner. I decided on making something easy with the ingredients I'd gotten at the market earlier. I made a beef stew and I watched it very carefully to make sure it didn’t burn. If it did, I’d get a terrible beating. After it was finished, master checked all my work and after seeing that it was good, he gave me permission to eat after he had finished. He ate almost all of it and only left me a couple spoonfuls but I reminded myself that I’d gotten a worse meal. I went to bed immediately after washing the dishes and fell into a dreamless sleep.



"UP!" The familiar voice screamed. Unlike any other day, today I had no clients. I made and ate breakfast, then walked outside to enjoy my day off. I swam in my lake until it was noon then redressed. I walked back to the village and took my place on the streets with everyone else while waiting for the prince to pass though. The sun was very hot and it was so stuffy pressed up against everyone else that I thought I would pass out but finally, the carriage was in sight. I couldn't see inside but I could tell that the curtain was down. It had three guards in the front and five in the back. It was absolutely magnificent. It was white with gold and the seats were red velvet. I was dying for just a glimpse of the prince. I just wanted to see him, and I was about to when my master kicked me to the ground.
"YOU SHIT, YOU DIDN'T WASH DISHES!" Then he continued dealing extremely painful kicks to my ribs. I couldn't hear or see anything, I was too dissolved in a world of pain. It was dark and cold, despite the warm weather. Then I heard his voice,
"Stop." He hadn't spoken loudly but it was enough to make everyone stop talking and moving. My eyes were still squeezed tight in pain but the kicks had stopped. I reluctantly opened my eyes and looked up but the sun was so bright it was preventing me from seeing his face. "Young man, does this happen on a regular bases?"
I tried to talk but nothing but a strangled croak came out so I just nodded.
"I know take you into custody of Prince Alexander William Gaskarth. Try to stand." He said, superiority ringing in his voice. My body didn't want to move but I had a compelling feeling that forced me to obey. It was like I had no other choice because every fiber of my being wanted to obey him. I got to my feet painfully but was hunched over due to the pain in my side. Now I had get a better look at him. He was extremely attractive, one of the most beautiful men I’d ever seen. He had beautiful brown hair and his deep brown eyes were hard but I could detect a hint of sympathy in them as I looked into his unblinking, focused eye contact. "Do you know who I am?" He asked, his voice softer but still authoritative.
"I-I don't get out m-much. I don't even know w-what the prince looks like." I stuttered. His expression stayed the same but I could've sworn I saw the corners of his lips twitch.
"Well now you do." He murmured. My eyes went wide and my heart stopped beating.
That's the prince.
I got frightened after that.

I didn't bow.

Is he going to hurt me?

What if he throws me in jail?

I went to bow but a small cry escaped my lips.
"Don't bow, you'll hurt yourself." He said, rushing to my left side. He took my arm and wrapped it around him and let me use him as a support system and he helped me to his carriage.
"Is there anything you own that you wish to take with you?" He asked.
"What?" I asked.

He's not taking me with him...Is he?

"You're coming with me. Is there anything you need?" He repeated himself. I could feel him growing impatient so I shook my head. There was nothing...Nothing I wanted anyway. "Okay, get in."
The ride was silent. I didn't dare speak a word so I just looked down at my feet and tried to shrink away from him as much as possible.
"How badly are you hurt?" His voice rang. Once again, he wasn't a very loud speaker but his voice caused you to stop whatever you were doing and just listen. I didn't respond, partly because I was almost to scared to move whatsoever, never mind speak but also because I was afraid I'd say something wrong. "I asked you a question." He said, his tone growing sharp.
"M'okay." I almost whispered.
"Lift up your shirt, let me see." He ordered. My gaze went straight up to him. Thoughts of him taking advantage of me while in here filled my mind and I felt my eyes begin to tear up. He must've noticed because his cold demeanor shifted and he seemed more gentle now. "It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you. Let me see."
I looked at him for a while, studying him. I didn’t trust him but lifted up my shirt anyway. The Prince's eyebrows furrowed and he ran his finger down my ribs making me hiss and clench my teeth.
"They look like they've been bruised, nothing too bad and you're far too skinny. Once we get to the castle I'm sending you to the court physician and we'll get your ribs bandaged, then I'll make sure you get something to eat okay?" He said with a small smile. I nodded in response. I had a little more confidence now so instead of staring down at my feet, I looked up and watched the world pass out of the window.

Notes

Title cred: Truce by Twenty One Pilots

Truce is one of my favorite songs at the moment. I absolutely love it and I highly recommend listening to it.

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