Hey guys! I'm so sorry for how long this took! I went to six flags. That superman ride was soooo scary! With school starting and a few deaths in my school family, I've been really busy. Anyways, here it is...

Alex's P.O.V.

Oh my goodness! Kuru was in my bed and-AH! I mean, it's not that I minded, but I didn't want him to become formal around me. He was teasing me! I can't believe it. Kuru. Teasing. The world has officially gone mad. I got up and smoothed down my hair. Two minutes later, Amanda and Zoey arrived. "Alex!" Screamed Zoey, running up to me. "Hi!" I said to my 16-year-old sister who was hugging me around the waist. "Oh, Alex! I was so worried when you didn't come home! I know you think I don't care about you at all, but I do care. I really do" She said. "I know you do." I replied with a smile. "Oh, Amanda got something for you." Said Zoey. She pulled from her pocket a diamond necklace. An exact replica of the one I had lost that night. "Oh! You have no idea how much this means to me!" I said, pulling both Amanda and Zoey into a hug. We talked for a while and I explained in better detail what had happened to me(Leaving out the bit about Kuru taking me to Manjipoor and little things like that). After a bit, my parents came in. "Alex, sweetie, are you alright?" Asked my dad. "I'm okay, dad. I'm fine." I replied. And they hugged me even though I told them that they were crushing me. I then had to relay the story to my parents. It's supposed to be easier to tell each time you do, but it's not. It still hurts just as badly. I know my friends and family are trying to be there for me and stuff, but they don't know how much it hurts. And no, I am not letting Kuru take my pain. He is still asking me. I mean, its been over a month! He is just the sweetest, most thoughtful, caring- okay. Enough rambling. Nobody gets it. They try, but they can't know. And whats worse, I don't think I want them to. I don't want them to know that I'm still hurting. I'm supposed to be Alex, strong and brave. The princess who never gets sad or hurt. Who is always in control of her emotions. But I don't feel like her anymore. I don't feel invincible. I don't feel strong. I don't even feel like Alex anymore. And definitely not like a princess. When I was little, I watched princess movies like Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty and things like that. They seemed to have it pretty easy. I mean, they defeated the evil force, found a prince, got a kiss, and lived happily ever after. What more could a girl want? But not in one of those fairy tales has the prince turned out to be the villain. Not one. But my 'prince' did. Actually, all the guys I've dated turned out to be jerks. Marcus was super controlling. He didn't want me to have any guy friends or hang out with any guys besides him. He even tried to hit Kuru when he thought we were going out behind his back. Actually, we were only acting like normal friends. Then there was Caleb who, at first, was really sweet. But it turned out that he only wanted me because I could get him closer to taking over Manjipoor. Then his intentions changed and he joined my side. It was perfect. We were "in love" and nothing could break us apart. Or so I thought... He became suspicious of Kuru, and he told me how much he disliked his childhood friend because of how he acted around me. I told him right away that he had no right to say anything bad about Kuru. I told him that Kuru had been nothing but courteous and respectful to me since the day we met. Caleb didn't believe me, and went back to West Manjipoor. It was a bad fight. He came back the next day asking me to fire him from his job. He said that if I fired him he'd let him be with Zamira. That set me off and I told him that I could not be with someone who didn't trust me to stay true to him. He said that he could trust me, just not Kuru. I replied that he had basically said the same thing I had. He told me that I needed to stay away from Kuru; I said it wasn't going to happen. He said "If you are not willing to compromise, this relationship won't work out!" I replied that this was a subject that I would not compromise on and if he couldn't accept my decision, he could leave. So he left. He actually left. I didn't expect him to actually walk away. The last we've heard from him was in a letter to Zamira saying that he is in the North and doesn't know when he'll be back. My latest attempt at a boyfriend didn't really work out either. He tried to kill me for goodness sake! I would have probably died if Anala hadn't brought Kuru there in the nick of time. Maybe someday a guy will come who will sweep me off my feet, but I don't think that's really what I want anymore. I just want someone to talk to; someone who understands me. Someone who truly loves me not just for who I am, but for who I can become.I think I can be myself again. There will be good days and there will be bad days, but as long as I have my family and my friends at y side, I think I'll be okay. Okay is an awesome word. Kuru once defined it as not depressed and not great. Okay is holding on and knowing that someday,somehow, you will get through your struggles. You will find your way. You'll be okay. My family left, my friends have all gone home. I'm in my room in my palace; thinking of all these things. The door cracks open and I hear a voice ask to come in. "Of course. Come sit down." I reply. The person walks in the door with two cups of tea in his hands and sits beside me on the bed. "Hello, Princess." Comes the soft, quiet voice as he hands me a cup. "Hello, Strange man." I reply with a smile. I take his hands in mine and am about to speak when he says, "Alex, do you know that you are still beautiful? Do you know that we all love you? Do you know that you are going to find yourself again? Do you see that we care- that I care about you? You know this, don't you?" I don't reply to his questions. I look into his eyes, trying to read his expressions. "Why hasn't a prince come for me, Kuru? Why do I keep getting bad guys?" I ask earnestly. "Do you try to get better? You get what you work for, Alex. Consider how I worked my way up to this position. I had to work hard. If you want something badly enough, you have to fight for it." He replies. "Then what about me, Kuru? Am I not worth fighting for? Do you not want me badly enough?" I ask, my emotions heightening. "No. You are worth waiting for. I want you so much that I will wait for you. I don't want you to come to me because I tell you how I feel about you. I want you to figure it out for yourself." He answers with zeal. "Then tell me. Tell me what I mean to you." I say with excitement. "I cannot. I cannot tell you because there are no words for it, Alex." He replies. "I can. Even if the words don't measure up, the meaning does. I love you." I tell him quietly. "I love you too, my Princess." He replies, kissing my head. I guess I don't need a prince after all. I have everything I need here with me.

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A/N: Sooo... What did you think? Tell e in a review! I want to thank all those who reviewed on the last chapter. So, thank you Shreya Haldar and LoveShipper! I love reviews! they make my day! Thank you again! I'm sorry it took me so long to get this chapter up. My friend's om died and we've been busy and stuff. So... ya. anyways, love you and have a nice day!