Preventing a Royal Engagement
A/N: Thanks for the reviews! On with Chapter 6! =D
Chapter 6: Surprising a Friend
"So, Tinka," Kasia said, as the traffic light outside the limo turned green. "What is Günther like?"
"Well, since Günther is my twin brother," Tinka said, "it only makes sense that he is like a male version of me."
Kasia laughed and asked, "Is his wardrobe sparkly like yours?"
"Yes," Tinka answered with a quick glance at CeCe. "If only he was here in Chicago with us."
Kasia smiled and looked around the limo at Anton, CeCe, Rocky, Dina, Ty, and Deuce, all six of whom had joined her and Tinka's journey to Chicago O'Hare International Airport to greet Günther upon his arrival. CeCe was the only one who did not know that they were meeting up with Günther. The others, however, were secretly informed by Tinka beforehand about the surprise.
As their limousine pulled up to the arrival terminal of the airport, CeCe turned to Tinka and asked, "So, who exactly are we picking up at the airport?"
"Oh, just a relative, a fellow Hessenheffer," Tinka answered, nonchalantly. It was not a total lie; she was just concealing some of the truth.
"Yeah, apparently she wants us to meet him," Rocky added, as casually as she could.
"Just what Chicago needs," Deuce said, jokingly. "Another Hessenheffer."
All of the passengers laughed as the limousine pulled up to the arrival terminal of the airport. The vehicle came to a halt, followed by the click of a door opening, and the sound of footsteps becoming louder.
Once the driver opened the door, Ty exited the limousine and offered his hand to Tinka, who allowed him to help her out. CeCe, Rocky, and Dina followed the couple out, with Deuce right behind them. Anton, who did not seem to notice Ty's actions towards Tinka, stepped out and held out his hand, so Kasia could easily climb out and not trip on her royal robes.
As soon as they were all standing outside of the terminal, Tinka released Ty's hand and walked over to an electronic screen, which displayed the day's incoming flights and their arrival times. Anton joined CeCe, Rocky, Dina, Ty, and Deuce on a nearby bench.
"Did he land yet?" Kasia asked, approaching Tinka from behind.
"Yes, five minutes ago," Tinka said, spotting his flight number on the screen. "He should be out momentarily after he collects his luggage."
Anton, meanwhile, was carrying on a quiet conversation with Dina, Ty, and Deuce. All four of them could not wait to see the look on CeCe's face when she learned the identity of Tinka's relative that they were meeting up with. They smiled at each other knowingly, struggling to contain their excitement.
CeCe, however, rested her chin on her hand and her elbow on her knee. She had a glum look on her face, a look that did not go unnoticed by her best friend.
"CeCe, what's wrong?" Rocky asked, concerned.
"Nothing," CeCe said, quietly. "I'm just thinking about the ball tomorrow night, that's all."
"Well, why aren't you excited about it?" Rocky asked, sounding genuinely confused. "It's going to be so much fun."
"Not when you don't have a date," CeCe muttered, heaving a sigh.
Rocky, who noticed a moving figure out of the corner of her eye, said to CeCe, "You miss Günther, don't you?"
"Why wouldn't I?" CeCe replied, staring at her shoes. "It's been months since we've talked."
"Well, that can easily be fixed," Rocky said with a smirk on her face. "Look up."
CeCe raised an eyebrow, but did as she was told. The minute she lifted her head, her eyes widened in surprise and she stopped breathing.
Although exhausted from his long flight to Chicago, Günther cheerfully walked up to the group of teenagers on the bench. His eyes sparkled when they landed on the redhead, who was failing to keep her tears of joy from sliding down her cheeks.
CeCe, meanwhile, smiled broadly upon seeing her boyfriend. He certainly had not changed a bit since she last saw him; his clothing was splattered with glitter and rhinestones. His blonde, windswept locks slightly covered one of his eyes in a seductive manner. His smile, a feature of his that she certainly missed, brightened her mood immensely.
Rocky, Anton, Dina, Ty, and Deuce watched the scene unfold before them. Tinka passed Kasia a sparkly handkerchief, both of them with tears in their eyes as well.
CeCe, who could not believe what was happening, said, "Günther?"
"What, no hug, bay-bee?" Günther asked, playfully.
The redhead did not waste another second. She leaped off of her seat and into Günther's open arms, not caring who saw her. The tough CeCe Jones, who barely showed anyone her vulnerability, buried her face in Günther's shiny jacket and held onto him tightly, having missed his warm embrace for the past two years.
Günther, who was thrilled to be back in Chicago, did not mind that his girlfriend was using his precious jacket as a tissue. He was just glad to see her again.
Deuce, who was surprised to see the redhead break down, said, "CeCe, are you crying?"
"No," CeCe mumbled, pulling back from Günther's embrace and giving her friends a clear view of her tear-stained cheeks, "I just…I just have an eyelash in my eye and can't get it out."
Rocky giggled as CeCe blinked her eyes rapidly to prevent any more tears from falling. She knew the real reason for why her best friend was really crying and could not help but feel happy for her.
"Oh, welcome back, man!" Ty said, slapping Günther on his shoulder. "We've missed you around here!"
"Believe me, I certainly missed you all as well," Günther answered, pulling out a sparkly handkerchief, like Tinka's, and gave it to CeCe. "I'm happy to be back."
"Well done, everyone," Tinka said to Anton, Kasia, Rocky, Ty, Deuce, and Dina. "We have successfully pulled off the surprise!"
"Wait, you guys all knew?" CeCe asked, pausing shortly after to blow her nose into the handkerchief. "You kept all this from me?"
"My apologies, sugar muffin," Günther said, wrapping his arm around CeCe. "I wanted to surprise you with my visit, so I told Tinka to keep it a secret."
"I figured that everyone else wanted to greet Günther upon his arrival as well, so I informed them of the surprise, and made them promise not to tell you," Tinka added, smiling at CeCe.
"Well, it was a very good surprise," CeCe commented with a smile of her own. "I guess I'm not CeCe "Unsurprisable" Jones after all."
Dina laughed and said, "There you go, CeCe, you got what you wanted: a date to the ball."
CeCe nodded and said, "Yeah, but I'm just glad to see Günther again."
Günther looked from CeCe to Anton and Kasia. He knew who they were, as he had seen them attend prestigious events back in the old country; however, he was never formally introduced to them. "Well, who do we have here?"
Tinka gestured with her hand for Anton and Kasia to step forward. She then gestured to Günther, and said, "Allow me to introduce you both to my twin brother, Günther Hessenheffer." Then, she gestured to the royal siblings, and said to Günther, "This is Prince Anton and Princess Kasia of the Byalikov royal family."
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Günther," Kasia said with a curtsey.
"Well, it is an honour to meet you, your Highness," Günther said, taking her hand in his and kissing it. He then turned to Anton and, although he disliked the prince for trying to force Tinka to marry him, he smiled at him and shook his hand. "The same goes for you, my Prince."
"Thank you, Günther," Anton answered with a slight bow, "but we are all friends here. Addressing us by our royal titles is not necessary."
"Yes, addressing us by our first names only is perfectly fine," Kasia added, kindly.
"Well, I don't know about you guys, but I'm starving," Ty said, rubbing his stomach.
"Hey, why don't we all go to Crusty's for some pizza and catch up?" Deuce suggested.
"Sounds like a plan!" Rocky exclaimed, looking to CeCe, Ty, Günther, Tinka, and Dina all five of whom had nodded their heads in agreement.
"Would you like to join us, Anton and Kasia?" Günther asked.
"Certainly," Kasia answered, sounding interested in the idea. "I have never eaten pizza before, but I have always been open to trying new foods."
"Yes, thank you, Günther," Anton said, gratefully. "My sister and I would love to accompany you and your friends for a meal."
"Okay, to the limo everyone!" CeCe called, ushering the group towards the limousine.
Rocky and Dina obeyed and walked off, chatting amicably with Ty and Deuce. Günther and CeCe followed them from behind, with CeCe holding onto one of Günther heavy suitcases for him. Anton and Kasia trailed the couple from behind. Tinka darted past the prince and princess, and walked on the other side of Günther.
Günther casually glanced back at Anton, then at Tinka, and whispered, "So, he is the goat butt that Mama and Papa are strongly encouraging you to marry?"
Tinka nodded with a scowl, and said, "Do not call him a goat butt, Günther, it would be an insult to goat butts."
Anton and Kasia raised their eyebrows in confusion when they saw CeCe, Günther, and Tinka burst into laughter in front of them, but the prince and princess decided not to directly question their behaviour.
After a few hours of eating pizza, slurping sodas, and talking enthusiastically, the group of nine teenagers decided to go their separate ways. Ty announced loudly that he was going home and left first. Tinka was the next to leave, after telling everyone that she would be stopping by the fabric store when, in reality, she was secretly meeting up with Ty at the park. Anton and Kasia, who believed Ty and Tinka's lies, decided to go to the Hessenheffer apartment. Günther, CeCe, and Rocky were the last to leave; they said their goodbyes to Deuce, who stayed behind to cover a work shift for his cousin. Dina also stayed behind to keep Deuce company.
Rocky joined Günther and CeCe on the way back to the apartment; Rocky hoped to get some more homework assignments out of the way before the ball the following night, while Günther and CeCe wanted some "alone time" with each other.
Logan was sitting on the front steps, enjoying the warm, autumn weather, when his stepsister, her boyfriend, and her best friend approached him. He was fortunate that his father had second thoughts about his second thoughts about Georgia, and that things worked out between him and her. Despite his dislike towards CeCe, Logan valued the new sibling bond between them because it brought him closer to Rocky.
"Hey, Logan!" Rocky called, alerting Logan of their arrival.
Logan spotted the trio and stood up to greet them. "Hey, guys."
"Oh, Günther, this is my stepbrother, Logan," CeCe said, introducing the two of them to each other for the first time. "Logan, this is my boyfriend, Günther."
"Nice to meet you," Günther said, shaking Logan's hand. He had heard of Georgia's second marriage to a man with a son of his own through one of CeCe's e-mails. "CeCe told me about you and her new stepfather."
"Yeah, she told me about you, too, and I think you're a great guy," Logan said, his grip on Günther's hand tightening and his eyes narrowing, "but I certainly hope I won't have to correct myself if you break my sister's heart."
"Trust me, I don't think that's going to happen, Logan," Rocky reassured him.
"Well, I'll take your word for it, Rocky," Logan said with a smile, as he released his grip on Günther's hand.
"Well, if you two need us, we'll be in my room," CeCe said, dragging Günther up the steps.
"Wait, you're bringing your boyfriend into your room with Mom and Dad not home?" Logan questioned.
"Yeah, that's exactly why I'm bringing my boyfriend into my room," CeCe answered.
Before Logan could reply, CeCe had already pushed the doors open and pulled Günther inside the apartment building with her. He groaned as the doors closed behind them.
"If they're going to do what I think they're going to do, you better stay out here for a while," Rocky said with a laugh.
Logan chuckled and said, "Yeah, thanks for the advice."
Rocky smiled. She loved being around Logan. In fact, she could even say that she saw him as more than her best friend's stepbrother, more than a friend. However, she was not sure that her romantic feelings for him were mutual, so she kept them to herself.
"You know," Logan began, breaking the silence between them, "since I'm going to be out here for a while, I wouldn't mind having some company."
Rocky blushed slightly, and said, "Thanks, Logan, but I'm going to go upstairs. I want to get some homework finished, so I can enjoy tomorrow night."
"Oh, yeah, the ball," Logan said. "CeCe mentioned something about Ty and Tinka and how they're going to reveal some sort of big secret during it."
"Yeah, and they're going to need all of the support they can get," Rocky explained. "Fortunately, Tinka's mother invited Dina, CeCe, me, and our dates to the ball, so we'll be able to be there to support Ty and Tinka."
"At least Günther is here to go with CeCe," Logan said.
Rocky nodded and added, "Yeah, and Ty is going with Tinka, and Deuce is obviously going with Dina."
"What about you?" Logan asked, curiously. "Who are you going with?"
"Me?" Rocky asked. When Logan nodded, she said, "Oh, nobody."
"Oh," Logan said, sadly. "Sorry to hear that."
"It's okay, it's no big deal," Rocky said, shrugging it off. "The important thing is to be there for Ty and Tinka, and that's what I'm going to do, whether I have a date or not."
Logan nodded again, as he looked at Rocky. It seemed like he wanted to say something else to her, but nothing further came out of his mouth, except a cough, which was likely an attempt to hide whatever he wanted to say.
Rocky faked a smile and said, "Well, I'm going upstairs. It was nice seeing you, Logan."
Logan quickly turned towards the steps and called, "Rocky, wait!"
Rocky, who was halfway up the steps, turned around. "Yes, Logan?"
Logan took a deep breath, let it out, and said, "If you don't mind, I would love to take you to the ball tomorrow night."
Rocky quickly glanced towards the sky, but saw no pigs flying. She was not dreaming. She looked back down at Logan and said, "Really?"
"Yeah, I wouldn't mind," Logan said with a smile. "I would love to go with you, that is, if you would let me."
"Yes," Rocky said, with a smile of her own and without hesitation. "I would love that."
"Zam!" Logan exclaimed, happily. "I'll see you tomorrow then."
Rocky nodded, silently. She waved at Logan, before she climbed the rest of the steps. She pushed open the apartment doors and went inside. The minute the doors closed behind her, she leaned against them and smiled gleefully.
Little did the brunette dancer know was that, outside of the apartment, Logan was expressing his excitement by dancing so wildly that people who passed him by thought he was trying to summon rain.
Chapter 6 Up! Questions? Comments? Should I continue?
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