Matthew's POV
"Have you ever been in a play?" I ask Tess. Today's a lazy day where we want to fulfill numbers fifteen, and seventeen on the MSBL (for those who haven't memorized my bucket list, those numbers are eating no meat for a whole day, and waking up at noon).
"Yeah, it was Romeo and Juliet actually," she replies. "It was a love story and I had a male counterpart that I had to kiss."
"You said you never kissed anyone before me, though."
"I didn't count it as a real kiss with real feelings."
We're quiet for a while. "So how was it compared to me?" I ask, trying for the cocky angle once more.
"Oh, he was so much better," she answers me, a wicked smile on her face. "He used his tongue, and it was just...damn."
"You're awful," I say, pouting. "Do you enjoy torturing me?"
"Only when you least expect it," she says. "I'm joking. He was okay, but nothing compared to you."
"Yeah?" I ask, putting a finger under her chin.
"Yeah." Just before her lips touch mine, someone knocks on the door.
"I'll get it," Tess grumbles. She rolls out of bed and opens the door to my mother.
"Oh, Tess!" Mother exclaims. "Well, I should have suspected it. You guys better go down for lunch. You two already missed breakfast."
We grumble our yeses and Tess whispers something in Mother's ear. "Oh, that sounds really fun," my mother says with a quiet smile. "Do you need someone to drive you?"
"Nope, I can manage. Is that fine, or do you want us to stay here at the palace?"
"You better do it today, because you two have a press conference tomorrow, and a photo shoot the next day, an interview after that, then the twins' birthday the next day." Shit, we have a busy week. "Thank you so much for planning the whole thing, by the way. Tess, you really helped out a lot."
"Of course," Tess replies cheerily. "Anything for my future mother-in-law."
"Oh, speaking of which, you and Matthew have to get started on wedding planning."
I groan from the bed and bury my head under the pillows. "Men these days," I hear Mother's muffled voice.
"Tell me about it. Okay, thanks, Mom. We'll be down in a few minutes."
Tess closes the door and grabs the pillow covering my head. She starts hitting me with it and I moan. "Stop it. Let me sleep."
"Matthew, wake up. It's time to get up."
A depressing thought enters my mind: I'll never know if this morning will be the last with Tess in my arms. I'll never know if this will be the last time I get up out of bed.
So I somberly get up and smile. "Alright."
"Huh. That was easier than I thought." She goes to her room to change and get ready for the day.
I guess depression is a side effect of dying.
Matthew's POV
Tess drives to the Angeles Theater with me in the passenger seat. I don't know where we're going. She just told me to wear a suit, and here she is, her dark blue dress glittering in the dim street lights as we zoom down the freeway. This could be the last time I sit in a car. I mentally curse myself. What good does it do to think what the world will be like without me? I feel like I've been taking my entire life for granted. I've been living with crystal chandeliers and a loving family and an entire staff of maids and guards to protect me.
And what did I do?
I sat in the library for hours, reading because I wanted to live someone else's life and feel something else. If I had known that I had only a handful of years left, I would have lived my own life. If I would have known, I would have spent every minute with Michael, the twins, Xander, my parents. Why does Life have to be so shitty? I feel so terrible. I feel terrible I wasted nineteen years of my life with an indefinite number of days left. I feel terrible I'm wallowing in my own misery.
A warm, small hand takes mine. "You okay, Matthew?" Tess asks, looking at me when there's a stoplight.
I smile. "Yeah."
What will it feel like when I die? Will it be a bright light and gradually ebb to a different dimension? Will I see God before my very eyes while I look down and see my own Lifeless body? Will it be white hot and painful until I succumb to numbness? Then what will happen after? Will I get to see Michael with Evelyn and my grandfathers, both the terrible and the great that I never knew? Is this how grandma Amberly feels? Does she know that we have a limited supply left?
There are too many questions without answers.
"Matt, what in the world are you thinking about?" I hate how miserable I'm feeling when Tess thinks I'm fine and painless.
"Just where you're taking me," I lie without hesitation. "I'm debating between a rich charity gala or a movie premiere."
"Mm, the last one is awfully close."
"What are we seeing? Tell me, woman!" I say impatiently.
Tess laughs, and I wonder if I'll have the liberty to hear her laugh when I'm dead. "We're here." She turns right to the driveway of a magnificent building that I recognize immediately as the theater.
"Oh, a play!" I say, mustering some enthusiasm that's only ten percent forced.
"Not just a play. We're seeing a musical."
"Musical? Even better."
She stops the car and the valet opens her door, offering a hand to help her out. "Thank you, Sir," Tess says, smiling.
"Any time, Miss," the valet replies, not recognizing her. I don't blame him. Tess doesn't usually wear makeup in public—or anywhere for that matter. She has this dark, sparkly stuff on her eyelids, and she looks so beautiful I want to just kiss her right here.
I stick out my arm, and she wraps her hand around it. "Are you cold?" I ask.
"I'm fine, but thanks for asking."
"Can I ask you another question?"
"Yeah?"
"How do girls wear heels?"
She throws her head back and laughs, some of her hair spilling down her back with her every movement. "We just do it. It's an innate ability we have."
"Yeah, I bet," I tease.
We walk inside, and I try to remember the last time I've been to the Angeles Theater. I was about sixteen, and I went with all of my siblings to see a comedy play about a man who becomes invisible. It wasn't bad.
Now here I am three years later, with a girl I couldn't bear to live without. I wonder now: is there a trade-off system with people? There's a force/distance trade-off in physics; does a similar principle apply to people? I find Tess in my life, Michael leaves. Will it happen when I'm gone? Will Tess find another man to love?
I feel so selfish when I think that I don't want her to fall in love with someone else. I want her love to be reserved for me only. But at the same time I want her—and everyone else—to be happy without me. I want them to live their lives as usual. I know it will be hard for Mother. She already lost her oldest son and her father. How will she feel when her second son dies?
Tess gives our tickets to the lady scanning them. "Thank you very much! An escort will bring you to your box seats."
A man leads us to our seats and I ask Tess, "Is this whole thing for just us?"
"Yeah. Is it fine?"
"Oh, it's better than fine." I kiss her cheek to reassure her. "Thanks for planning this."
"Oh, no problem. I wanted to see a musical anyway."
"You did it again," I say, smiling.
"Did what?" she asks apprehensively.
"You ended up doing something good for someone else when you meant to do something for yourself."
She raises her eyebrow and smirks. "I don't see how that's a good quality, but I'll take it as a compliment. Thanks, Matt."
I grin. "No problem."
We watch the musical, laugh at the funny parts, but I get lost in my petty thoughts when the main character is wondering whether or not she should tell her family she got fired for sleeping with her boss. Is this the last time I'll get to see a play?
If it is, I'm glad I get to spend it with Tess. "Matthew, I have to tell you something," she whispers when the main character finds out she's pregnant (plot twist!) and the intermission begins.
"What is it? Are you pregnant too?" I'm joking, but a bad feeling gnaws at me.
"Alexandra's pregnant with Alex's child."
What?
"You're telling me my younger sister is pregnant?" I whisper fiercely. "You're telling me that that bastard I started to actually like slept with my sister and got her pregnant?!"
"Shh, keep it down, will you?" she says, looking over to the people on either side of us. "And to be honest, Alex isn't the bastard."
"That's not funny!"
"I didn't mean it to be funny!"
I run a hand through my hair. "How long?"
"I'm guessing the night she got engaged."
"That was like a month ago! Why didn't you tell me sooner?"
"Because I knew you'd want to kill Alex! I thought that if I took you somewhere then I could tell you. You wouldn't explode in the palace."
"And have me explode somewhere?" Rage and fury has replaced my blood. I'm fuming.
"Matthew, deep breaths. Keep calm."
I do it for her, so this won't be the last night I'm alive. "Okay," I say after a while. "Okay."
"The wedding's been pushed forward to the end of this month so we can pass the baby off as premature. Hopefully, Henry won't know it's a child born out of wedlock either."
"Fine, okay. Let's just keep watching."
The play ends about an hour later. The main character's lover got a standing ovation, and Tess gasps. "He's the man from the Caste Placement Test." She beams with pride and stands for him as well.
When everyone is on the stage, the director walks to the stage. "Thank you everybody for being here," he says with a British accent. "A special thank you to Illéa's very own prince and princess, Prince Matthew Schreave and Princess Teresa de'Medici." He points at us and the claps turn to our direction. The camera flashes start raining in the theater. Tess and I smile to the cameras and the curtain drops.
On our way back to the car, people ask for pictures. This could be the last time the citizens see their crown prince. So I pose with adults, children, teenagers, people my age, everyone. I just want them to know that I care about them, even if I was never their king.
I'm sorry I had to make this chapter a tad bit depressing. There was too much fluff going on, so I decided to ruin your days. Sorry?
I got a line from TFiOS and I'm sure you'll recognize it.
Question of the day: How many of you were mad when Germany won against Brazil?
Oh, and to those who were wondering, soundloud is a website/app where you can record music and upload it for the world to hear.
Thanks for the reviews!
HikariTheNormaller- EEEK I TOTALLY DID NOT MEAN IT THAT WAY ABOUT YOUR DREAMS! GAH I'm obviously not the most eloquent :P Dammit. Ugh *smacks self with book*. Yeah, I've heard my fanfic isn't the most usual. And your mom :) That is the sweetest story. Thank you so much for sharing that with me! Miracles definitely happen with God ;) Thank you so much! P.S. I'm AcademicGirl but I'm not that acade...wait, yes, I am...
LittleMissTori- If you sue me, I could still write this story in prison, yeah? I'll just ask the cops to lend me a computer :P And I wish I had a good guy in my life too :) *sniff sniff* Thanks so much!
KhrystineR- Wow all your brothers-in-law are chefs? Yummy :) And twenty-five? Don't be ashamed! I'd be more worried if you were ten and reading my story. I have to admit this story isn't for kids. Rated T for a reason! Thank you so much! (P.S. I'm not a stalker, but I looked at your twitter and I'm curious...where are you from?)
agb1700- Yay! Thank you so much for your eyes! Lurve ya!
Kiren- Ugh, gay guys are more confusing than regular guys. JK! Thanks so much for the ideas!
fantasybookgirl- Aw, send my regards to your friend! Mmmmm ICE CREAM! I NEED SOME! Summer is so hot :P Thank you so much!
kayselection- Ooh that's a good idea! Elise could find the cure! Huh I'll consider that most definitely! Thanks so much!
dakotamo- That sounds like a good idea! Thanks!
salmabookworm- I'm surprised you actually know what soundcloud is! Cool! I have one, by the way :) Thank you!
WinteryRose- Yeah, don't you worry, child :) Thanks!
PokemonLuver151- Aww thank you!
LovableL101- I won't let him die. There is no way I'll just let him die. If he dies, he dies, but I didn't let him. :P Thank you so much!
Property of Illea- Mobaber? Hehe autocorrect? Mm I really want ice cream now. That's a very good idea of Elise. And wow! 17 chapters? Sheesh. I love how dedicated you are :D Thank you soooo much!
Love ya!- AcademicGirl
