CHAPTER 27
Luke was laying on his bed, going through some young celebrity's instapic page when a knock sounded on his bedroom door. Great. He was a tad bit busy, but of course that didn't matter to whoever was looking for him. Sighing, Luke powered down his phone and sat up, yelling "Come in." To whoever it was standing on the opposite side of his door.
That person turned out to be a middle-aged maid (Luke would place her in the mid-forties range. Her hair was graying, but her skin wasn't yet wrinkled). Like many of the servants in his palace, Luke didn't quite know her name. That wasn't good. He really should work on that. It was embarrassing to always have to describe them by their physical attributes and not by name.
Still, he wouldn't be working on it today.
"Am I needed?" Luke asked the maid. It was the only conceivable reason why someone would actually be looking for him. It's not like he had to deal with foriegn wars or anything. No, that was a problem for his sister and father.
"Yes, Your Highness. Your mother wanted you to meet her in the Merman parlor." The maid told him, curtsying so that the hem of her black dressed touched the floor. The Merman parlor? Which one was that again?
All the sitting rooms, parlors, lounges and libraries had names relating to some historical figure or another. Luke, however, referred to them by which color they were decorated in or occasionally what floor they were on. Hence him knowing the rooms by the yellow room, the room pictures of flowers, the navy room, etc etc.
Oh!
The navy room. That was called the Merman. Who Merman was or why he had a room in the palace named after him was beyond Luke. He was probably either an early advisor to Gregory Illéa or a massive donor. It really could be either one.
"Right. Thank you. I'll head over." Luke told the maid. He waited till she exited the room before turning to his closet. He didn't know what his mom wanted him for, if it had been something important she would have told him, but it wouldn't hurt to look presentable. He quickly switched out his baggy t-shirt for a red and white striped polo shirt. He then ran a comb through his blond locks, making them lie flat against his head. Or at least as flat as he could get them without adding gel. He didn't feel like messing around with that right now.
A glance in the mirror told him that he looked acceptable for meeting with extended family (unlikely), meeting with advisors (even more unlikely) or being forced to go out to brunch at some fancy new restaurant (very probable).
After stopping to admire a few paintings along the way, Luke finally arrived at the parlor Allyson had selected for today. It was in the east wing of the palace with a view of the forest that surrounded the southern border of the palace grounds. The guard stationed outside the door bowed to Luke before opening the door.
Typical.
Suffice to say, when the maid had said "his mother" Luke had not been expecting to see the entirety of his family seated in the room.
She really should have been more specific.
Allyson, Bennet, Farrah and Max were all seated there, engaged in some conversation. Luke caught the tail end of his father's sentence, "-outside palace grounds, of course."
"What are you talking about Dad?" Luke questioned. "What's outside palace grounds?"
Bennet looked at his wife for approval before continuing his sentence. Allyson nodded, and with a sigh, Bennet turned to Luke. "Well...Your new home, Lukie." He said cautiously.
What?
What was he talking about? Did the palace catch on fire and somehow Luke hadn't heard? Was his room needed to host foreign dignitaries? No and no. None of the possibilities that ran through Luke's head made sense. None would result in him leaving the palace. This was where he grew up. He lived here. So what the hell were his parents talking about?
"What do you mean my new home?" Luke asked suspiciously.
"Once you're married, where you're going to live." Bennet explained. "Surely you can't expect to stick around here forever. Wouldn't you want to live elsewhere?" He coaxed. Luke knew what his father was doing. He was trying to get Luke to agree before he elaborated in order to avoid a tantrum farther down the line. He had used it many times when Luke was younger, he really should have been expecting it. Bennet always did that when he wanted a simple yes. When the matter seemed like a question, but the answer had already been decided.
The strategy might have worked when Luke was a child, but not anymore. Besides, he was eighteen years old. Tantrums were far, far, far behind him, after all he was an adult now. He had to start acting like one.
"I don't know. I like the palace." Luke said simply. "Why would I want to leave?"
"You and your wife should live somewhere else." Allyson told him. "That's what most married couples do. They don't stay around with their sister forever."
Luke had never quite considered that he would have to live somewhere else when he was married. He supposed it made sense. There was no need for him to stay at the palace when he could live a much more private life nearby. He never wanted to be in the limelight of political affairs, his parents were offering him a way out.
If only they had actually asked his opinion before settling the matter. From the sound of it, they had already decided when he was leaving and where he was going. Luke couldn't exactly fault them for that, they were only making things easier for him, but it would have been nice for him to give his input for once.
Something about his mother's words were odd though. She had said sister, not parents.
"Where are you and dad going then?" Luke challenged his mother, "Are you going to be moving out too?"
Allyson smiled sadly. "Yes, we've," She gestured to Bennet, discussing it for quite some time. We just wanted to make sure you got out the door first. It's not fair to Farrah and Max for us all to be here while they try to raise a family."
Luke had never exactly thought about it that way. That his presence might be more of a burden to his family members than a pleasure. Here he thought that everyone should consider themselves blessed to spend time with him.
How wrong he was.
Max smiled, "We don't mind." He said politely. Farrah didn't respond, whether to back up his statement or to disagree with it. She just took a sip from her large cup of water, her head resting against Max's chest.
"Well, I would also like to get out of the palace." Bennet said. "I've been living here for over sixty years, I think it's time for a change of scenery."
"Where are you going then?" Luke asked.
"Dominica." Allyson said smoothly. "The weather is supposed to be lovely year-round. It would be a nice place to retire to." She said wistfully.
Luke however, didn't quite share her view point.
"Dominica!" He exclaimed loudly. "Bu-but that's so far away."
"It's a three hour plane ride. Grandmama lives in Clermont and that's about six hours away by plane. Let them do what they want Luke." Farrah said, speaking for the first time since Luke had walked into the room.
"There are hurricanes!" He protested loudly.
"There are earthquakes in Angeles." Bennet said. "I'm not too worried about that.
Luke really didn't want his parents to move away. It was all becoming too real too quickly. Luke was getting married, he was moving to God knows where, and the cherry on top was that his parents were leaving him too. It just wasn't fair.
And why was Luke always the last person to know about these types of things? He didn't want to always be the odd one out. It wasn't fair that he was still seen as a little kid. He was getting married for heaven's sake! It was about time he actually got to partake in family discussions and not just find out about them after the fact.
"Where am I moving to then?" Luke asked heatedly. "Or did you decide that already too? Is there a deed I need to sign?"
"You're staying in Angeles, assuming it's alright with you." Bennet added the last part of his sentence hurriedly after seeing the incredulous look on Luke's face.
Luke was actually fine with staying in Angeles, he didn't feel like moving anytime soon. Of course he wasn't going to tell them that. He wasn't letting his family off the hook that easily though.
"You could have asked. I'm assuming you already purchased the home where I'm going to be living?"
"Watch your tone." Allyson told him. "And for your information, we didn't. We have a few options to choose from and thought that the three of us could go look at them in the next few weeks. I have pictures for you to look at, if you want."
Allyson took a dark blue folder embossed with the Illéan seal from the mahogany coffee table in front of her. She handed it to Luke, who opened it, curious to see what his parents (Or, let's be real here, some government worker) had cherry-picked for him.
The houses, or perhaps mansions would be the better word, were all large, though not nearly as big as the palace. They were huge structures though, the smallest containing six bedrooms. From a glance, it seemed that they all had security booths in the front of the mansions. Luke tried not to look at the price printed at the bottom of the sheets, but they were all well over five million dollars.
"Wow." Was all Luke said as he looked through them.
"Personally, I like the second one, but it's up to you." Bennet informed him. Luke took a closer look at the second one, it was a tudor style manor, a house that would have been better suited on the east coast then among the modern styles that dominated the streets of Angeles. It seemed like something his father would favor, with its traditional facade and stone exterior.
"I guess." Luke gave a noncommittal shrug as he spoke. How was he supposed to know what house he wanted? "Am I actually going to see them in person?" He asked, examining the photos closely.
"Yes, you, your mother and I are going to visit them. Think of it as an impromptu open house." Bennet assured him.
"When?" Luke asked. He wanted to know how much more time he had before he had to decide which house was going to be his new...home. The word felt sour in his mouth. The grand palace was the only home he had ever known, and soon he would have to leave it. Go to some manor in Beverly Hills or downtown Angeles.
Is this what going away for college felt like?
Count him out. If Luke had decided to attend college, which he hadn't, there was no way he would have stayed in a dorm room. Though, essentially he was doing just that. Only it was a humongous house instead of a closet-sized dorm.
"A week or two." Allyson said. "We have to arrange it to visit all the houses on the same day. Don't worry too much about that."
Gee, as if he wouldn't be worried about where he was going to live for the rest of his life.
Thanks Mom!
"Okay. Wait, why do I have to stay in Angeles?" Luke asked, the notion suddenly occurring to him. "I mean, can't I attend all those benefit parties and do charity work and all that stuff from anywhere in the country?" Then he could actually stay with his parents!
"No." Farrah stated firmly.
Well, that was mean. As far as Luke knew there were plenty of charities in Dominica or Clermont or Lakedon. Somewhere he wouldn't have to deal with the mess of paparazzi that swarmed to Angeles. After all, most actors, musicians, comedians, and singers, not to mention the royal family called Angeles home. It, along with Waverly were the two provinces with the most media outlets. That meant the most journalists, photographers, and talk show hosts looking for any photo of Luke they could manage to scurry up.
"Why not?" Luke protested. "Isn't the Ewell foundation based in Dakota? And the DVC centered around the midwest?"
Farrah shrugged. "Yes, and it's actually the northwest, but close enough. Regardless though, you're not going to be doing those charity functions." She told him.
Luke chuckled, she was clearly joking, "What am I doing them. Am I going to be an accountant?" He asked, coming up with the most basic sounding job he could think of.
"Please. You're nowhere near qualified to be an accountant." Luke rolled his eyes at that. He didn't know what an accountant did, but whatever it was, he was sure he'd be a damn good one. "No. You're going to be a foriegn diplomat."
Luke didn't say anything for a long time. Truth being told, he was probably better qualified to be an accountant than to work in politics, despite what his sister said. He had turned a blind eye to the political spectrum for most of his life, or at least as blind an eye as he could living in the center of the Illéan government. He had never expected to actually need to work in government.
There had to be someone who was a far better match than him for the job.
Luke sighed as his insecurities bubbled up inside of him, insecurities that he never dared voice to anyone in years. It wasn't often that he felt this way, like he wasn't good enough, not since he was much younger. It was these feelings that had landed him in meetings with his therapist in the first place. He didn't want to go back there. So he forced an annoyed look on his face, it was better to seem like he was aggravated with this situation that anxious.
One would end with his mother lecturing him, the other would end with his mother suggesting he start going to therapy.
Besides, he was Lucas Schreave. He might not know the most about politics, but he was a prince. He wasn't going to let some silly job completely unravel him
"Why me?" He asked bluntly. "I mean, seriously, isn't there someone else who would be much better suited for the job?"
"Maybe so, but for some odd reason people seem to like you. All the foriegn royalty knows you. It's not like you can be part of the actual work force anyway. I pity the poor company who decides to hire you as their accountant." Farrah told him.
"I'm not actually going to be an accountant. I just said that." Luke corrected her quickly.
"I think we all know you weren't serious Lukie. You barely passed calculus." Bennet told him. Luke rolled his eyes at that. Personally, he would not call getting an 86 on the standardized exam barely passing, but for the Schreave line, he knew it was unspeakably low. Farrah had scored a 98, of course.
"That's not true!" Luke started to protest. "I got a B on it, there's nothing wrong with that. It was my lowest test score anyway."
"Of course." Allyson said soothingly. "Of course there's nothing wrong with that."
Trying to change the topic, Luke blurted the first thing that popped into his head. "So, am I getting an office or what?"
"Yeah. You can choose any vacant office you want. I don't particularly care which." Farrah told him. "I think 1E has nice views of the garden." She said off the top of her head.
Luke took a deep breath, trying to calm himself. He didn't want people, even his family members, to know how much the prospect rattled him. It was all happening too fast for him to comprehend. He was going to have a wife, live outside of the palace and actually have to work in the Illéan government. He had never thought much about his future, but this was one possibility he had never really considered. Subconsciously, he had always thought he'd be living in some foriegn country, or splitting his time between two countries. Then the selection happened. He guessed that this was the new normal for him. All those other plans went out the window a few months ago.
Addressing Farrah, Luke just asked, "Who's office is that?"
"The woman retired a few years ago. I don't think you ever knew her." Farrah said.
Luke couldn't argue with that one. He didn't know most of the advisors and employees anyway. Still though, he wasn't sure how much more of this conversation he could take. "Okay then. Can I go now?" He asked hopefully. The room was becoming stifling.
"Why?" Allyson asked curiously.
"I have...a, uh, date. With Esme." He said, picking the first name he could think of. Sure, he'd go out with Esme. She was funny, nice to be around. Good enough for him.
"At least it's not Samantha." Farrah told him.
"What do you have against her anyway?" Max asked Farrah. "She seems nice, a bit simple, but nice."
"I told you, she's horrible." Farrah whined. "You know she actually threatened me with her father? And there's always that stupid dog trailing behind her. She actually named it after me, and had the nerve to say that I have the same name as that mutt, not the other way around. The dog is an idiot too, I saw her trying to eat air last week."
"I wouldn't exactly call that a threat." Luke explained. "She said that her father was considering donating more. Besides, to be quite honest, I don't think she knew exactly that you existed before coming to the palace. Sam didn't really seem into politics." Luke laughed remembering their first meeting. He didn't think that Farrah knew that the dog was actually a he though, and Luke would like to keep it that way. That would really be the last straw for Farrah, both dog and human.
Luke found Esme in the library, bent over an open textbook that was thicker than Luke's head. A small stack of paper was next to her, filled with neat writing and small illustrations. Brightly colored pens were scattered around the desk area, spilling from an open pencil case. Luke looked at the paper over Esme's shoulder in order to read it. "The stages of aneurysms detection." He read out loud.
"Oh, Luke!" She exclaimed jumping. "Don't sneak up on me like that."
"Sorry." Luke apologized quickly. "What are you doing anyway?" He asked.
"Studying." Esme explained. "I'm doing a remote semester in order to be part of the selection, so I need to keep on top of lessons. I just have to pass the final exam at the end of June in order to get credit for this semester."
"Are you worried about it?" Luke asked.
Esme shrugged. "Not really, no. Only morons fail the final exam. Well, morons and kids who show up hungover to the test. There's a surprising amount of partying at Harvard for it being an ivy league school." She added as an afterthought.
"Do you go to parties?" Luke asked.
Esme made a face. "I mean, I've been to a few, but they're really not my scene. It's far too loud, and way too many drunk people."
"That must suck." Luke hummed. "Well, I hate to take you away from your studies but do you want to go on a date? We could watch a movie or something like that." He asked. He didn't know why he was being so tentative about this. The girls should be dying for a chance to go on a date with him, or in Esme's case, a second date.
Esme glanced back at her notes before turning back to him. "I would love to, but don't you have other people to be going on dates with? I mean, you didn't even ask Sydney or Samantha on a date yet. I don't want them to get mad at me because this is my second one."
"They would get mad at you?" Luke asked in surprise. He knew the girls were competitive, but he had assumed that it was all in good fun. He didn't know the competition ran that deep.
"No, no, nothing like that." Esme assured him. "It's just that I would feel bad, and it is a game show you know, everyone wants to win."
"Game show wouldn't be the word I would use to describe the selection." Luke muttered.
"Do you prefer reality TV show? Or knock off Matchelor?" Esme asked him.
"If those are my only options, I guess I would go with reality TV show. At least that one isn't as vapid as the rest of them." Luke conceded. She did have a point though. Whoever's idea it was to start the selection (Personally, he didn't think Gregory Illéa came up with it) was probably watching some ridiculous program when they did. Now Luke was here continuing the legacy.
"Fair enough." Esme agreed. "Now what movie did you have in mind?"
"Well, since you seem to like reality television so much, I thought we could do a marathon of the top ten trashiest shows of all time." He offered. Esme opened her mouth to protest, but Luke held up his hands in surrender before she got a word out. "I'm joking, I'm joking. I don't know, I like most movies. Except horror. What type of movies do you like?" He asked her, leaving the decision to Esme. It was the polite thing to do after all. He didn't want her to be bored or not like the movie they were watching.
Esme shrugged. "I know this sounds cliche considering who my dad is, but I like action movies." She admitted bashfully.
Luke nodded. He liked a good action movie as much as the next person. "Cool. What were you thinking? I'm pretty sure that we have the new superhero movie. Boom Man or whatever it was called."
"You have that?" Esme asked in surprise, her jaw dropping. "It came out a week ago, I was hoping to go see it in theaters."
Luke smiled. "Yeah, I think we got an advanced copy of it a few weeks ago or something like that. I don't know, we get movies ahead of time a lot."
'Really?" Esme asked in disbelief. "That is literally the coolest thing ever. I want advanced copies of movies!"
"It is pretty cool." Luke admitted, grinning at her. Esme's wonder at his life was endearing really. It made him realize that not everyone had what he did, something he knew beforehand...but in a vague way. Now, the truth was staring him in the face. Or, in the faces of the thirty-five women who had come to the palace for his selection.
"Can we go now?" Esme asked excitedly. "I've literally been waiting for that movie for forever."
Luke glanced at Esme's textbook and notes, unsure of himself. "Uh, not to put a damper on things, but don't you need to finish studying? I don't know if I would be much help in all that...medical stuff, but I can sit with you." He offered lamely.
"I can finish all this later." Esme said, gesturing to her pile of notes. "I want to see that movie now, come on, I need to see it. You literally do not understand how much I love that series." Esme protested. As she spoke, she put all her papers into a plastic folder and closed her textbook. "See, I'm already packed up. We can go now!"
Now, Luke was never big on his studies, but he was fairly sure that it wasn't in Esme's best interests to postpone her note-taking for a date. Even if it was a date with a prince.
Still, he couldn't be anything but flattered that she was so excited about this movie. And like she said, she could always finish this later. So, Luke said. "Yeah, let's go." He agreed, helping Esme out of her seat.
Esme giggled, grabbing his hand. Now that she was standing, Luke actually looked at her outfit for the first time. She was wearing a flowy cyan colored skirt with a pink floral print, a white henley tucked into the skirt. A matching pair of wedge sandals and a cyan headband completed her outfit. Suddenly, Luke felt out of place in his polo shirt compared to Esme's casual outfit.
That was going to make watching the movie uncomfortable.
"The movie theatre is in the basement." Luke told her, leading the way.
"Right. The basement doesn't count as a floor does it?" Esme asked curiously.
"No, it's the sub-basement, basement, then the first floor." Luke explained.
"So there are really five floors then not three?" Esme asked him, using her free hand to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear as she spoke.
"Uh, yeah I guess." Luke said. He had never really properly thought about it before. "No one really goes in the sub-basement though. I think it's mostly staff quarters."
"So you mean over a hundred people live in the sub-basement?" Esme teased gently. "I wouldn't count that as no one."
"You're right." Luke agreed. "Let me rephrase that I never really go in the sub-basement."
"Much better." Esme smiled broadly.
"Also, I don't think we employ over a hundred people." Luke's voice trailed off at the end. He actually had no idea how many people lived at the palace. "We might. I don't really know."
"I don't think you employ that many either. I just said that." Esme agreed.
"Oh. Alright then." Luke said laughing. He stopped outside a dark brown door in the basement of the palace. "Here we are!" He announced, opening the door.
Esme entered the room first, and though her back was to him, Luke could only imagine the look of wonderment that passed over her face at the sight of the palace's built-in movie theatre. The same expression appeared on almost everyone's face the first time they visited. "Pretty cool huh?" Luke asked, gesturing to the large space.
"It's more than cool!" Esme squealed in happiness. "Look at this place!"
Even Luke had to admit that it was a fairly nice room. There were three tiers of plush, black, leather armchairs, all with reclining capabilities. These sat facing a huge television screen, in fact, it rivaled the ones used in smaller movie theaters. Red carpeting covered every inch of flooring. A popcorn machine stood in the back corner of the room, next to a mini fridge stocked with water, soda, and other soft drinks. A basket sitting on top of the fridge was filled with different types of sugary candies. Framed movie posters lined the wall, most with the autographs of the film's stars.
Esme ran over to the posters, examining them closely. "Is that Ramon Carranzo's signature?" she asked, referencing the Deep Blue movie poster.
"I think so. He visited the palace a few years ago." Luke replied.
"Did you actually meet him?" Esme asked. "Did you talk to him? Was he nice?" She continued to bombarded him with questions, about what Luke could only assume was her favorite actor.
"Yes, yes, and I don't really know. It was just common courtesies when I talked to him." Luke said, shrugging. "I'm sure he's nice enough." Besides, it wasn't as if anyone was going to be rude to him, the prince of Illéa. Especially not in front of his family. Luke had a feeling that wouldn't have ended well for Ramon.
"That's awesome." Esme admired. "Did his co-stars come too?" She asked.
" I think the whole cast came." Luke answered. "I don't really remember."
"You don't remember?" Esme echoed, her voice shocked. "If I had met them I would have remembered every little detail about everything he did, and said, and wore."
"I'm sure you would have." Luke said. He didn't add the fact that he met a lot of famous people. It was more of a chore to him than something actually enjoyable nowadays. He really couldn't care less how many Olympic athletes or famous actors he met. They all blurred together in his head anyway. It wasn't like he actually cared about meeting them, it was more the other way around. The famous actors and Olympic athletes wanted to meet him.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Esme asked in indignation.
"Nothing, nothing." Luke backtracked quickly. "You just seem like a huge fan." He supplied. "Should I start the movie?"
That was enough to distract Esme who nodded. "Yup. The sooner the better." She told him.
"Let me make us some popcorn." Luke said, going over to the shiny red popcorn machine. He measured out the kernels and put them in the popper while Esme watched in amusement.
"You know how to work that thing right?"
"Of course I do." Luke assured her quickly. He then put in the necessary salt and butter, before turning the dial on the machine. Esme looked skeptical that it was actually going to work, but sure enough, a few minutes later golden pieces of popcorn started flying out of the popper. Once it was finished, Luke scooped out two bags of popcorn, one for him and one for Esme. "Do you want butter?" He asked her before adding it.
"Sure." Esme told him.
"Alright." Luke added the butter to both his and Esme's bags of popcorn, before coming over to sit in the chair next to her. He handed her the bag, "Here you go."
"Thanks." Esme said. "Now come on, turn on the movie!" She insisted.
"I'm going, I'm going." Chuckling, Luke loaded up the movie and pressed start.
Truth be told, Luke didn't like the film that much. There was far too much bloodshed for him, someone was being killed every few scenes. Still, Esme seemed to enjoy it and Luke enjoyed the popcorn. In his opinion, the popcorn was far better than the silly movie. He didn't say anything to the contrary as Esme praised it though, he didn't want to ruin it for her.
What was the harm in a little white lie?
A/N: OMG, this story actually hit 100k words this chapter. I seriously cannot believe this. I started this story simply because I was bored in Quarantine, and now here it is. Over 100k words. I am seriously so pumped for the ending. And I couldn't have done it without everyone's support, lovely reviews (Seriously, they make my day) and of course, wonderful characters. One of my biggest fears with writing an SYOC was that no one would want to submit, but I was so happy with all the girls I received.
Thanks everyone!
Joke: How does a vampire start a letter?
Tomb it may concern!