A/N: hello readers! i am so sorry my friend for the month long wait for this chapter! i have been writing for NaNoWriMo this past month, and it has been keeping me busy! along with that, i have also been way overwhelmed with school. online school is really kicking my butt. but, i did finish this chapter in lew of it all.

The contents of this chapter was requested by one of my readers! yay! so, if you were the lucky reader who commented about America getting her period, this is for you! i loved this suggestion and had to put it in! sorry that it was so late, but better late than never!

this is also for the two people who commented in the last week or so requesting more! there is more to come, no worries.

thank you so much for all of the support! it makes my heart happy :)

Anyway, enjoy this chapter, more to come this week! (hopefully!)

*THIS IS RATED M! DON'T READ IF YOU DON'T LIKE SPICE!*

He left me again after surprising me with another wedding gift. I was still in shock, but under all of that shock lay a wave of guilt. I hadn't really gotten him anything at all. What would I even get the King? He has everything he could ever want for all of his life. All he has to do is ask for it, and he could have it in his hands within the next day or two. Even if I did get him something (which I did plan on doing despite not knowing what to get him), how do I top four pianos?! He got me four pianos as wedding gifts, and I don't even have an idea of a wedding gift for him.

I didn't have time to think about it right now. I still had work to do, so my ideas would have to wait until I determined what to put out at this party. I read through the reviews putting sticky notes on the ones that had Maxon written something funny or cute on that I wanted to keep. After I read through the papers that Maxon, Marlee, and I had written out, I went with majority rules. So, if one of us said yes while the other two said no, the overall consensus was a no. This obviously applied to the opposite of the matter with the yes's, as well. This would just make it so that way I had a better shot of getting food everyone enjoyed. The total process took just about two and half hours to read through them all and determine whether or not that food was worth putting out tomorrow. I narrowed it down from 36 foods to 21 and decided to keep all 7 drinks because we all enjoyed them. I was happy that I finished when I did because it was time for lunch, and I was starving to the point of pain (again).

I left my office and went straight to the Women's room with all of my papers. I kicked open the door since my hands were full. Marlee looked so alarmed with my entrance.

"Jesus! You could have knocked!" She yelped, still startled from my loud entrance.

"Sorry. My hands are kind of full…" I told her, lifting the papers up to emphasize why I couldn't open the door softer.

She came over to me, shaking her head as she went, and took all of my papers from my arms. I sighed in relief and shook out my arms. She sets them on the table where she spilled her coffee yesterday. "Can I look at it before you turn it in?"

I nod, I plop down on the couch and relax. I don't care what she does, honestly. A maid comes in and I ask for whatever they are serving for lunch even though Maxon and I will be taking lunch separately. The maid, whose name is Lana, agreed and went off to get me some food. Marlee reads through the final product quickly. "Looks good, America."

"Thank you. Oh! I have to tell you something!"

"Yes?"

"Maxon got me three new pianos!"

"What!?"

"I know! He said that it was the rest of my wedding gift. He already got me the one over there and now there are going to be three more!" Lana comes back with food and I thank her and take a bite of the BLT that she brought. It's absolutely delicious and just what I needed.

"Wow… he really does get you everything you want, doesn't he?"

I swallow my food and laugh, "He does. I didn't even ask for these! He was just like 'she could always use more' and then he bought me three new pianos that are really high quality and really expensive. He said that we should put one in his room, one in my room, and then one in my favorite parlor in the whole palace."

"All of it makes sense, except for his private quarters. Why in his room?"

"He likes to listen to me play music, so he wants one in his room for when I play for him to hear.." I continue to eat through the rest of our conversation.

"Ah. So, what have you done for him about wedding gifts?"

"That's the thing. I want to get him a nice wedding gift, but what in the world am I supposed to get the king? He can go and ask for whatever he wants and he'll get it without any problems."

"Well, what does he like?"

"He likes action movies and loves photography. He likes his work. It's hard, but he likes it. He likes hunting, archery, and horseback riding. He even has his own horse. He likes me. Correction: he loves me."

"I feel like there's more to him than just that. There has to be more than him."

I sat thinking for a second, and then another pain in my lower stomach. I ignored it and continue to think for a minute more, finishing off my sandwich before I shared the rest of my thoughts, "He likes to take walks with me around the garden. He told me that he sometimes walks at night around the palace to better his thoughts, though he doesn't do that too much anymore because of me sleeping in the same bed as him."

"Well, you could get him a camera or a gun or something." She tapped her chin in thought, "I have a naughty idea…"

"Alright, I need ideas and if you have even one, I'm willing to hear it. Spill."

"He likes photography, right? So, you get him a new camera, but -here's the catch- he's only allowed to take naughty pictures of you on it."

"Naughty pictures of me? Like lingerie and sexy poses…"

"Like you two do a risque photo shoot, with my help of course, and he gets two things that he loves. Photography and cameras and then you! It's genius!"

I sigh. Marlee's right. It is a good idea. And it would give him two of his favorite things. Then he could keep them for whenever he needs a pick-me-up. I have to agree with her on this one. "I'm not completely opposed to this… We can do it…"

She squeals with excitement. "Yay!"

"But we don't say anything about it until the camera comes in. Understand?"

"Yes ma'am. You need to know what type of camera he wants or what makes a camera good so you can get him a good camera that will do what he wants."

"I'll ask him about it. I'll just be inconspicuous and ask him what makes a camera good. Then, I'll do some research and ask my maids to get me the one that matches the description the best." I shrug. "It's the best idea I have."

"I think that will work."

"Good." Lana comes back in at this moment to take plates from me and to take anything else. "Hey, Lana?"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Please take these papers to Silvia. Tell her that this should be the final call and that if she has any questions, she needs to contact me as soon as she can."

"Will that be all, Your Majesty?"

"One last thing."

"Yes?"

"Send King Maxon a message for me, will you?"

"Of course. What would you like me to tell him, Your Majesty?"

"Tell him that Marlee would like a list of all the best qualities in a camera. If he asks why I need you to tell him that it's because Marlee is going to get herself a camera so she can take photos of her husband and of us together. But only explain it to him if he asks why."

"Is that all then?"

"Yes. Thank you, Lana."

"You're Welcome, Your Majesty." She curtsies and exits quickly with the papers in hand.

"I'm going to use the restroom. If she comes back before I return, tell her I say 'thank you', please?"

"Alright."

I nod to her and walk out of the women's room. It baffles me that there isn't a bathroom in the Women's Room. To me, it seems logical to put a bathroom in there because of the female body, but whatever. I decided that the restrooms right outside the dining hall would work for my use. The whole reason I had to use the restroom in the first place was because I felt a little… damp in the nether regions. Plus, I had one wave of really excruciating pain through my lower abdomen on top of the other pains from earlier, and typically that means something bad is happening below the belt. I wasn't sure if it was just something I should ignore, like discharge, or if it was blood from my period. I was leaning towards it being my period because of the cramps I've been having the past day or so, but I can never be certain. So, I wanted to check. Just to my luck, it's the latter. I huff in anger. This is not what I wanted. Especially if I plan on going through with the sexy and erotic photos for Maxon. Speaking of Maxon, he is going to have a cow about this. I clean myself up and plug it up to head back to the Women's room.

I open the door and sit back down, now with a slight increase in comfort after cleaning up that untimely mess. I open a magazine and try to just drown out the rest of the world.

"You look upset." Marlee states after a moment of silence. I guess my anger is bubbling from the inside out and just radiating off of me into the room.

"I am," I grumbled.

"Why? You literally just went to the bathroom how could you be…" She stops talking when she looks up at me. I just shake my head at her with a small glare. "Oh... Oh… I see… That time of the month again? You have every reason to be upset. I understand completely. Do you want me to get you some chocolate or something sweet?"

I shake my head and sigh, clutching my stomach. "No… I think I'm going to go take a walk in the garden. Walking helps with the pain."

I lied straight through my teeth. Walking doesn't help with the pain, but I can't sit there and listen to her ask me questions trying to help when we both know there is nothing she can do to help. Besides, I grew up without help from anyone, why would I want it now? I stand up and leave without another word. She doesn't try to stop me. She lets me go, and I have to thank her for that. My steps are short and my feet and dragging on the floor. It hurts all too much to lift them to walk normally. The only way I can describe how I feel walking over is like getting shot and being told to run a marathon. And I was shot, and then had to run to cover. It hurts so bad, but I can manage it for right now. I feel like I'm limping because of the amount of pain I'm in. I walk over to the doors from the Women's Room, gripping my stomach through another agonizing cramp. I have a sharp inhale and I double over for a moment which stirs the attention of the guards by the doors as if my unsteady walking wouldn't give away my pain.

"Your Majesty, are you alright?"

"I'm fine. Just let me out. Keep watch, but I should be fine. And, for the love of everything good in the world, don't tell anyone about this or you won't have a job…" I grit out to them. I straighten up and walk with power, like I normally do. My pace is slower, leaning more towards agonizing than it is powerful, but hey, at least I'm lifting my feet off the ground now.

They open the doors and let me out without any questions. I slip off my shoes and begin to walk over to our bench. My walking is slow until the pain eases up just enough. I finally made it to the bench after the painful walking. I grit my teeth and seeth out in pain as I practically collapse into the grass beside the bench. The sound that came out of my mouth was something close to an animal being stepped on or something. It was not lady-like at all. I stayed tightly coiled up, leaning over the bench, similarly to how I first met Maxon, for a long time. I would clench up and curse under my breath as waves of unbearable pain racked my body. My body would relax and I would sigh in relief when the pain dulled enough for me to let go. I tried to adjust so I wasn't so uncomfortable, but the only position that allowed me to feel any sort of relief was the tightly coiled ball thrown over the bench pathetically. My period has never been this bad. I even feel a tear or two leave my eyes as the next wave of aching pain travels through my lower abdomen, back, and even my thighs.

At some point, I hear the crumble of the grass, heavy breathing, and mumbling beside me as someone joins me by the bench. A warm and inviting hand rubs my back. I feel a wave of dizziness as I look up to see who is comforting me. I am so happy to be met with Maxon's comfortingly warm brown eyes. I smile weakly, and he returns a more anxious smile, his eyes full of relief to see me at least conscious. His arms pull me up into his lap. I coil up into him, grunting as more intense pains radiate through my lower back and abdomen. He rocks my body, trying to dull the pain with no success. My hands grip into my body, tightly around my stomach. He kisses my head and rocks me. Another wave of pain, my body tenses up as I wail out.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm. Fine." I groan in between my words, "My. Stomach. Cramping."

He doesn't shy away when I tell him this, he pulls me closer. For some reason, I thought Maxon would be more uncomfortable with this whole period thing. Maybe he doesn't know what I mean when I say 'stomach cramps'. During the Selection, I didn't have much pain or any pain at all. So, when that time of the month rolled around, it was as simple as just figuring it out and hiding discomfort if there was any at all. I've never had this much pain to this level of extreme pain.

I groan out, "Take. Me. Inside… Please."

Without a second of hesitation, he stands and lifts me up. I grip onto his neck as he holds me bridal style. I groan into his neck and he holds me tighter. His rocking is consistent, but also sort of fast. He must be running. I squeeze my eyes shut as he swiftly takes me inside. I hear the doors rattle open as we make our way up. I feel him shift me up a little bit. The movement causes me to groan out loudly. I feel my grip tighten into his neck, my nails digging into his skin.

"I'm sorry, Darling. Just trying to get you up the stairs." He apologizes without hesitation.

I nod into him, releasing my strong grip a little bit. He goes quickly, I can tell he's skipping steps just by how quickly we're going. Before I know it, I hear the doors to one of our rooms open. I peek my eyes to be met with navy walls instead of the pristine white walls of my room. I'm so glad he brought me here instead of my room. I close them once I hit the covers of our bed. I curl up the second I am let down, groaning in pain. "Make. It. Stop."

"Let me get you some pain meds, okay?"

I nod. Grip my stomach tightly, hoping for the pain to stop. At this point, I don't think it ever will. Before I know it, Maxon is back with water and pain pills for me.

He helps me sit up, but I quickly fold over through another wave of intense pain. Once the pain subsided for the most part, I was able to sit up. It hurt like mad.

"Open, Darling." I listen to him. He pops the two pain pills in my mouth quickly. I was willing to swallow them without the aid of water, but he already had the glass up to my lips and I couldn't refuse. Being in pain made me dehydrated, without a doubt. He laid me back down, my head resting on his thigh as he sat down. He wrapped me up in his arms and curled into him, whimpering like a hurt puppy.

My eyes pop open and I sit up when I feel my stomach roll. It tumbles around for a moment. Oh no, this can't be good. "Maxon… garbage can… hurry"

It rolls again. I cover my mouth, trying not to toss my cookies on our bedding. He bolts from the bed into his bathroom. He returns seconds later. I grab it from his hands and throw up the contents of my stomach into the bin. I'm not sure how he knows to pull the loose strands of hair that fell from my bun away from my face, but he does. He rubs my back with his free hand and tries to coo soft and endearing words to me. I appreciate it, but it doesn't really help me not feel the pain or stop throwing up. When I thought I was done, I leaned into him. I was careful not to touch him with my face since I had just thrown up. After that, I felt better, but yet somehow I felt worse too.

"Sorry…" I rasped, sitting up and wiping my lips clean of any leftover vomit.

He continues to rub my back and kisses my head, "It's okay. It's just me, Darling, no need to apologize."

He hands me the water that I take gratefully. I take slow sips, just like my mother told me to do after I got sick.

"Are you all good now?" I nod my head again and fall into him. He kisses my head, "So what was this all about?"

"It's just cramps. They feel like getting shot and then getting told to run a marathon without any adrenaline to naturally numb the pain, which is why I threw up. I was in so much pain earlier that I was feeling dizzy, and I still kind of am."

He winces, feeling my pain instantly. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"No, there's not, thank you though. Go work. I'll stay here and rest. If I'm not downstairs for dinner, either come check on me or have someone come check on me."

"If you want, you can go to your room. Mary might be over there and might be able to help you if you find that there is anything that you need help with."

"Will you walk me over?"

"Always."

I cautiously stand up from Maxon's bed. I grab the garbage can full of my vomit and his arm ready to walk with him slowly over to my room. I was still slightly dizzy, it wasn't too bad, but it was sort of noticeable. My feet pad across the floor since I left my heels outside. My shoes are the least of my concerns, though.

When Mary sees us come into my room, she curtsies hastily and rushes over. Panic fills her features, and I hate to say it, but it's not a good look for her. I guess I look really bad carrying Maxon's garbage can around and limping weakly next to him because she doesn't hesitate to ask, "What's wrong Your Majesties?"

"America says that she is having really intense stomach cramps. She wishes to remain here resting until further notice. I request that you stay with her and help her to the best of your abilities until I can come back here after dinner. Do I make myself clear, Mary?" Maxon states forcibly.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

"Good." Maxon guides me the rest of the way to my bed. I sit down and instantly regret it because the roll of pain in my stomach and back makes me want to curl up on the floor. I hunch over my body, trying to minimize the pain, but not being able to. He rubs my back until I sit up and unintentionally shove him off of me.

I mutter out, "You don't have to be so harsh with her… she knows how to take care of me, she did for four (almost five) months..."

He laughs and kisses my head, "I know. But when it comes to you, I'd rather not beat around the bush."

"Just don't be mean to her… she's kind to us..."

He kisses my head, "Your wish is my command, Darling." I fit myself under the covers and immediately start to doze off. I can still hear their conversation as I feel my body relax. My eyelids are too heavy to open them up to see them talking.

"I've never seen her like this," Mary tells Maxon quietly.

"I know. She was never like this during the Selection. I wonder if it's something that we should worry about."

"Well, that depends. If in the next few days she is still hurting like this, then maybe. It might be a serious issue or it might just be a one-time thing. She could also be a little sick and just have a really bad fever or the pain that she is feeling could be elevated because of stress levels. Being Queen is stressful, and she hasn't fully acclimated to the position yet."

"I think you might be right about that."

"Only time will tell for sure."

"I hate to do this, but she didn't exactly tell me why she's hurting. If you could, try to get her to tell you. I know she'll tell me with time, but I worry about her. You don't have to report it to me, but I feel like one of her general care-takers should know."

"Whatever you wish, Your Majesty."

"Alright. Will you please watch her and make sure she's okay for me? And note if she throws up or feels dizzy and have someone come get me if she wakes up before I come back to check on her again."

"Will do, Your Majesty. Do you want me to wake her for dinner?"

"I'm not sure yet. I'll come back before dinner to check on her and let you know the game plan from there."

"Okay. Sorry to hear about her. My best wishes to you and the Queen."

"Thank you, Mary."

"Anything for you and her, Your Majesty."

I hear him open the door quietly and close it at the same volume. I can hear Mary move a chair closer and set it down. I wanted to thank her for watching me and taking care of me while Maxon works, but I am fully immersed in a numbing, yet calming, sense of sleep.

I pop up at the sound of the door opening. My body regrets it instantly, but my mind disagrees when I see his eyes. I smile weakly at him and his eyes fill with relief to see me at least awake. He walks over quickly and sits by the foot of my bed.

"Sorry to wake you, Darling."

I rub my head, "It's okay."

"How are you feeling?"

"Fine. My head hurts a little, and my stomach is still cramping, but other than that I feel better."

"Are you feeling dizzy or nauseous at all?"

"No, I don't think so."

"That's good to hear."

"What time is it?"

"Only 3. I had a break and wanted to check on you."

"So I've been napping for an hour and a half?"

He nods, "Only a little bit, but I think it served you well."

"Okay. Well, there is work to be done and that includes you and me doing stuff."

"Are you sure? You don't have to work if you don't want to. You can have as many sick days as you want."

"I'm okay, and I could really use a distraction. I'll see you at dinner?"

"Whatever you wish, Darling." He rubs my shin, up to my knee, and kisses my cheek. He stands up and leaves. I sigh and finally get myself out of bed. My bed was comfortable, but not as comfortable as being with Maxon in his bed. I stood and stretched, careful to keep my balance if I were to have a wave of dizziness. Thank God that I feel even a little bit better.

"Mary?"

"Yes, Your Majesty." She peers from the closet to see me standing up. "Oh, Your Majesty, how are you feeling?"

She rushed over and placed a hand against my forehead and then over my cheeks. "I'm okay, Mary. Just a headache now and normal cramps. Can you get me some painkillers and send Lady Woodwork to my office?"

"Of course, Your Majesty. I'll be back shortly."

"Thank you."

She scurries out of the room. I sigh and walk over to the mirror. I look at my reflection. My dress kind of wrinkled from sleeping in it and my hair is falling from the low bun it was put in today. I look just so worn out, which I guess is how I feel.

"I hate to pry, Your Majesty, but would you like to tell me the reason for your troubles this afternoon? Especially since King Maxon mentioned that he doesn't know why." Mary asks, walking over to the mirror in which I stand. She hands me the pills and I take them quickly.

I swallow, "Well, I was having pains yesterday and today, but I ignored it. I didn't think it was a big deal, you know. I thought I was just sore from flying or something. Then, later in the day they were slightly worse, and they were getting worse throughout the day. I ignored them again. But then, I felt the drop. So, I went to the bathroom to check, and it was my period. I went for a walk, trying to ease the pain and distract, but it only made it worse. I ended up practically collapsing on the ground. I was having waves of dizziness and Maxon found me. He carried me up, and then I threw up in his garbage can. That's when we came over here."

"Your Majesty, that sounds terrible."

"It was."

"Alright, well, I hope you feel better. You should get going though, I would hate to keep Lady Woodwork waiting."

"Thank you, Mary."

"Anything for you, Your Majesty."

I nod to her and walk out of my room. It's only a few steps down the hall to my office, but it feels weird since I'm still barefoot. I open the door as quietly as I can, so I don't startle Marlee. The second the door opens she runs over to me. Her hands rub my arms as she spews questions from her lips, "Oh my God, America! Are you alright? I thought you were just going for a quick walk! What happened? Did you pass out? Did you get sick? Who found you? Are you feeling better? Are your cramps this bad normally? Do you ne-"

"Marlee, relax." I nudge her off of me and go sit on my couch. "I'm okay now. I was having really bad cramps and they were, like, really bad. I was feeling dizzy and I threw up because of them."

"Oh my God."

"Maxon found me in the garden and carried me up to his room, and then to my room. I took a nap because I felt like absolute shit."

"You look like absolute shit."

"Marlee!"

"I'm sorry, let me rephrase. You look like well-rested shit."

"Jesus… Really?"

"I'm not going to lie to you…"

"Thanks for that." I roll my eyes and laugh. "I have work to do, but you are welcome to stay here and hang out with me."

"Okay. I think I will." I got up and went to my desk to find my papers for the service project. I worked while Marlee relaxed, sipping a cup of tea that maids had brought for us shortly after I got working. We stayed this way till 5:00 when it was time to go to dinner. Which I was excited about because I could go to eat now, and I was so hungry.