The Royal Invitation
Chapter 8
Alex’s POV:
I opened an eye slightly, peeking at the time illuminating on my phone screen. 5.46. I grabbed my phone from the bedside cabinet, swiping left before pushing it to my ear.
"Dude, I've called you five times!" Jack's loud and slightly pissed voice sounded through the phone. I sighed wearily, rolling onto my back as my head sunk into the pillows.
"Did you forget about the nine hour time difference?" I groaned, frowning at my disrupted sleep.
"That seems like more of a you problem, than a me problem," he retorted. "Now. Did you sort out plans for the tour?"
"I'll sort it soon."
I listened to his mumble of profanities on the other end, picking up on his comment of 'you said that last time'. I could almost picture him roll his eyes in annoyance.
"I said I'll sort it." I added bitterly.
"Fine. But we leave in a week, Alex. You're going to have to come up with something good and fast."
He ended the call before I could say anything back, clearly still annoyed by my lack of effort in the tour department. Sure touring with Blink-182 had been my dream since I was a teen, but it was terrible timing. I didn't want to betray the guys by turning down the offer, but I also didn't want to let Garry down by leaving him in his time of need. No matter what I did it was a win-loss situation.
I sat up in bed, glancing over at the faint pink glow emanating from the window. An early morning walk couldn't hurt.
After changing into jeans and a shirt, I slipped into my sneakers, throwing one of All Time Low's newest hoodies on before leaving the room. The corridors were deserted, as expected, with the exception of a few yawning guards about to end their night shift.
I slipped out the back entrance with the intention to head onto the field, though my attention was drawn elsewhere before I could make it too far past the patio doors.
"Alex, hey," a voice called out over the garden, soft yet weary. I looked around, eventually spotting the grinning blonde, waving at me from the top window. Aerowyn.
"Why are you up this early?" I asked, smiling back at her beaming grin.
"I could ask you the same thing!" She countered, glancing back into the room momentarily before turning back to me. "I was painting."
I chuckled softly, "of course you were."
"Wait there," she added, disappearing into the shadows of the library. I nodded, though knowing she couldn't see, before turning to watch the sun as it began to rise over the trees in the distance.
"Come on," her warm voice whispered beside me as she took my hand in her own, pulling me along with her through the garden. We passed through the hedges at the end of the patio, making our way out onto the field.
I didn't take me long to stop paying attention to where we were actually going, because I instead turned my gaze to her hand wrapped around my own. She bounced as she walked causing our hands to swing in time, rocking back and forth with each step we made.
I looked up in surprise as she came to a halt, dropping down on the freshly cut grass. I slumped down beside her, taking a look at our surroundings.
We were sat on a small hill just before the trees, the sunrise over the lake perfectly in view. The colours of orange and pink all merged into one as they reflected against the glistening blue water. It was one hell of a sight.
"Beautiful, isn't it." Aerowyn mumbled beside me, turning my attention back to her. Her lips were curled into a warm smile; her eyes fixated on the view.
"Yes it is." I whispered in reply.
We sat there for a while, just taking in the surroundings. With nothing but the chirps of the birds and the slow swaying of the trees in the wind, silence soon submerged us and we were left to appreciate the few moments away from chaos we had.
"Alex?" Aerowyn asked, sparing a single glance in my direction before turning back to the pond.
"Winny." I replied with a nod.
She giggled at the name. "You know the only other person who called me that was my Grandfather," she added with a small smile.
"I'm sorry, I didn't-"
"No, it's fine," she interrupted. "I like it."
She turned to face me again and we held eye contact for a moment as silence engulfed us.
"We should probably go and get ready for breakfast," she stated, standing up from the grass verge and brushing herself down. I glanced down at my empty hand, realising she had been holding it the entire time. "You coming?"
"Yeah," I spoke, standing up. With one last glance at the now fully risen sun, I began following Aerowyn back towards the castle.
Breakfast was exactly like it had been for the last week of my stay, only there was a change in the seating arrangements. Instead of me and Garry sitting together on the far side of the table, Garry and Aerowyn had switched places leaving me with the princess by my side. Not that I complaining. We basically had our own conversation, occasionally joining in with the group notices about the royal portrait. You see, since there was a new king ruling now, the family would have to take another family portrait, like the one I saw on my way to the library. It was some family tradition from the seventeenth century that they felt the need to keep alive.
"So, are we all set on the portrait arrangements?" The king spoke, drawing both Winny and I back into the conversation.
"Indeed. Everyone is still set on showing up, and the maids are on hand with the outfits to get everyone ready." Garry explained, glancing over his schedule before turning back to the king.
"And you all are feeling okay?" He asked, turning to his family. The three nodded, smiling back at the king. "Very well then. We will meet back here in two hours to greet our guests."
The group was soon dispersed and I found myself with a new schedule for the day. Garry had set me in charge of Augustus and Aerowyn, which is how I found myself standing outside of Aerowyn's room, just like a day a few days prior. Augustus was across from me, already dressed in his finest attire.
"So my sister seems to like you," he spoke, his eyes creeping over my outfit choice before returning to my face. It was pretty obvious he was judging me, but I already knew I was irregular in a royal castle. I mean, I’m a singer in a pop-punk band.
"Yeah, I guess she does," I smiled, holding back the temptation to smirk.
He opened his mouth to say something else, only to be cut off by Aerowyn sauntering out into the corridor. She spun around, flaunting her outfit to the both of us.
Her dress was floor length–a faded blue with crystals embroidered along the neckline. With her hair curled and pulled back into a clip, she wore a tiara embellished in the royal jewels. Not to mention her smile was as genial as ever.
"Well don't you look dashing, Gus-Gus", she spoke, throwing an arm over Augustus' shoulder before pulling him into a one-armed hug. He rolled his eyes, shuffling beneath her grip.
"You're going to ruin my outfit, Aerowyn," he accused, to which she let go, holding both hands to her mouth, feigning shock. I chuckled lightly at the two of them, turning away to check the schedule for the rest of the day.
Within an hour Augustus and Aerowyn were with their parents, greeting their family as they arrived, whilst I helped Garry co-ordinate the last of the photoshoot arrangements. Before long, the royal family were being ushered into the room, all dressed in their royal colours.
I shuffled back against the wall, staying out of the way whilst Garry helped the photographer sort the family into their places. I watched Aerowyn as she found her place, lifting one of her youngest cousins into arms. She tickled the little girl causing her to giggle aloud. I smiled, admiring the exchange between Winny and the girl. It was no wonder she was loved so much around here.
She glanced over at me, a beaming grin enhancing her soft-pink lips. With one nod, she turned away to face the photographer. In that second, my heart fluttered.
I opened an eye slightly, peeking at the time illuminating on my phone screen. 5.46. I grabbed my phone from the bedside cabinet, swiping left before pushing it to my ear.
"Dude, I've called you five times!" Jack's loud and slightly pissed voice sounded through the phone. I sighed wearily, rolling onto my back as my head sunk into the pillows.
"Did you forget about the nine hour time difference?" I groaned, frowning at my disrupted sleep.
"That seems like more of a you problem, than a me problem," he retorted. "Now. Did you sort out plans for the tour?"
"I'll sort it soon."
I listened to his mumble of profanities on the other end, picking up on his comment of 'you said that last time'. I could almost picture him roll his eyes in annoyance.
"I said I'll sort it." I added bitterly.
"Fine. But we leave in a week, Alex. You're going to have to come up with something good and fast."
He ended the call before I could say anything back, clearly still annoyed by my lack of effort in the tour department. Sure touring with Blink-182 had been my dream since I was a teen, but it was terrible timing. I didn't want to betray the guys by turning down the offer, but I also didn't want to let Garry down by leaving him in his time of need. No matter what I did it was a win-loss situation.
I sat up in bed, glancing over at the faint pink glow emanating from the window. An early morning walk couldn't hurt.
After changing into jeans and a shirt, I slipped into my sneakers, throwing one of All Time Low's newest hoodies on before leaving the room. The corridors were deserted, as expected, with the exception of a few yawning guards about to end their night shift.
I slipped out the back entrance with the intention to head onto the field, though my attention was drawn elsewhere before I could make it too far past the patio doors.
"Alex, hey," a voice called out over the garden, soft yet weary. I looked around, eventually spotting the grinning blonde, waving at me from the top window. Aerowyn.
"Why are you up this early?" I asked, smiling back at her beaming grin.
"I could ask you the same thing!" She countered, glancing back into the room momentarily before turning back to me. "I was painting."
I chuckled softly, "of course you were."
"Wait there," she added, disappearing into the shadows of the library. I nodded, though knowing she couldn't see, before turning to watch the sun as it began to rise over the trees in the distance.
"Come on," her warm voice whispered beside me as she took my hand in her own, pulling me along with her through the garden. We passed through the hedges at the end of the patio, making our way out onto the field.
I didn't take me long to stop paying attention to where we were actually going, because I instead turned my gaze to her hand wrapped around my own. She bounced as she walked causing our hands to swing in time, rocking back and forth with each step we made.
I looked up in surprise as she came to a halt, dropping down on the freshly cut grass. I slumped down beside her, taking a look at our surroundings.
We were sat on a small hill just before the trees, the sunrise over the lake perfectly in view. The colours of orange and pink all merged into one as they reflected against the glistening blue water. It was one hell of a sight.
"Beautiful, isn't it." Aerowyn mumbled beside me, turning my attention back to her. Her lips were curled into a warm smile; her eyes fixated on the view.
"Yes it is." I whispered in reply.
We sat there for a while, just taking in the surroundings. With nothing but the chirps of the birds and the slow swaying of the trees in the wind, silence soon submerged us and we were left to appreciate the few moments away from chaos we had.
"Alex?" Aerowyn asked, sparing a single glance in my direction before turning back to the pond.
"Winny." I replied with a nod.
She giggled at the name. "You know the only other person who called me that was my Grandfather," she added with a small smile.
"I'm sorry, I didn't-"
"No, it's fine," she interrupted. "I like it."
She turned to face me again and we held eye contact for a moment as silence engulfed us.
"We should probably go and get ready for breakfast," she stated, standing up from the grass verge and brushing herself down. I glanced down at my empty hand, realising she had been holding it the entire time. "You coming?"
"Yeah," I spoke, standing up. With one last glance at the now fully risen sun, I began following Aerowyn back towards the castle.
Breakfast was exactly like it had been for the last week of my stay, only there was a change in the seating arrangements. Instead of me and Garry sitting together on the far side of the table, Garry and Aerowyn had switched places leaving me with the princess by my side. Not that I complaining. We basically had our own conversation, occasionally joining in with the group notices about the royal portrait. You see, since there was a new king ruling now, the family would have to take another family portrait, like the one I saw on my way to the library. It was some family tradition from the seventeenth century that they felt the need to keep alive.
"So, are we all set on the portrait arrangements?" The king spoke, drawing both Winny and I back into the conversation.
"Indeed. Everyone is still set on showing up, and the maids are on hand with the outfits to get everyone ready." Garry explained, glancing over his schedule before turning back to the king.
"And you all are feeling okay?" He asked, turning to his family. The three nodded, smiling back at the king. "Very well then. We will meet back here in two hours to greet our guests."
The group was soon dispersed and I found myself with a new schedule for the day. Garry had set me in charge of Augustus and Aerowyn, which is how I found myself standing outside of Aerowyn's room, just like a day a few days prior. Augustus was across from me, already dressed in his finest attire.
"So my sister seems to like you," he spoke, his eyes creeping over my outfit choice before returning to my face. It was pretty obvious he was judging me, but I already knew I was irregular in a royal castle. I mean, I’m a singer in a pop-punk band.
"Yeah, I guess she does," I smiled, holding back the temptation to smirk.
He opened his mouth to say something else, only to be cut off by Aerowyn sauntering out into the corridor. She spun around, flaunting her outfit to the both of us.
Her dress was floor length–a faded blue with crystals embroidered along the neckline. With her hair curled and pulled back into a clip, she wore a tiara embellished in the royal jewels. Not to mention her smile was as genial as ever.
"Well don't you look dashing, Gus-Gus", she spoke, throwing an arm over Augustus' shoulder before pulling him into a one-armed hug. He rolled his eyes, shuffling beneath her grip.
"You're going to ruin my outfit, Aerowyn," he accused, to which she let go, holding both hands to her mouth, feigning shock. I chuckled lightly at the two of them, turning away to check the schedule for the rest of the day.
Within an hour Augustus and Aerowyn were with their parents, greeting their family as they arrived, whilst I helped Garry co-ordinate the last of the photoshoot arrangements. Before long, the royal family were being ushered into the room, all dressed in their royal colours.
I shuffled back against the wall, staying out of the way whilst Garry helped the photographer sort the family into their places. I watched Aerowyn as she found her place, lifting one of her youngest cousins into arms. She tickled the little girl causing her to giggle aloud. I smiled, admiring the exchange between Winny and the girl. It was no wonder she was loved so much around here.
She glanced over at me, a beaming grin enhancing her soft-pink lips. With one nod, she turned away to face the photographer. In that second, my heart fluttered.
