A/N: Hey guys, it has been some time since I posted a new story. The idea came to me after listening to my favorite song, all fall down by one republic. I will try to update as much as possible. Hopefully writer's block doesn't get in the way. But anywho I hope you enjoy!

You know how they say that best friends are a forever and always type of thing? I thought that too…I believed that for a period. I assumed we were going to stick like glue and never drift apart. But here we are.

It's been a couple of years since I last saw him. I tend to think about him from time to time. Hoping that he's doing well and that he is safe wherever he is. I saw him almost every day until one day I didn't. I searched for him everywhere in the castle that day. I was worried something horrible had happened until my parents sat me down. They explained that he embarked on a ship and just left. I didn't want to believe them at first. But days turned into months…I waited patiently for something, anything from him. I waited for an answer, a clue that would tell me why he left. It never came. I gave up and lost hope after a year passed. I accepted this cruel fate that my best friend was no longer going to be by my side.

I heard a small pop sound coming from the balcony. I got up from my bed to check it out. I pushed the doors and saw small rocks on the floor. "Where did these come from?" I wondered. "Psst!" I walked over to the rim and looked around. "Down here!" I looked down and saw him. "I need to show you something so come down!" and so I did. He showed me his soul surfer as he called it. It was his latest invention. "Come on Mel, let's take it for a spin!"

"I don't know Jim, I've never been on one before. Are you sure it's safe?" He grabbed my hand, pulling me close to him. "Do you trust me?" He asked. I nodded my head. He started up the surfer and I closed my eyes shut as I felt us fly up into the air. "Open your eyes Mel, it's okay." When I opened my eyes, I was amazed at the sight before me. Looking at the night sky from your balcony is one thing but seeing it up close is truly something else.

I leaned against the balcony rail remembering that day. "Melody? Honey it's almost-" I heard a loud gasp and quickly turned around to see my mom there. "It's almost time and you're not even ready?" I quickly took off the towel that was plopped on my head and gave my mom a sheepish smile. "Sorry mom, I lost track of time." She shook her head at me and motioned for me to sit down. "Honestly Melody, you know this day is important and I don't understand why you weren't ready." She let out a soft sigh as she brushed out the tangles in my hair. "There finished. I will see you downstairs." She planted a kiss on my head as she walked out of the room.

I took a few deep breaths as I stood behind the curtain.You got this, no need to worry. Just stand up straight, don't speak unless spoken to, smile and you'll be fine.As the curtains opened, I took one last deep breath trying to calm myself. "Now introducing princess Melody!"

Everyone in the ballroom started clapping and staring at me. That didn't help my nerves at all. I let out a nervous laugh while forcing a smile. I scanned the room seeing many unfamiliar faces. There wasn't anybody that I recognized here, which made me more nervous than before. I noticed my parents standing by the entrance, greeting all the guests. I was heading over to them when a young boy who seemed about a year or two older approached.

"May I have this dance princess?" He asked as he stuck his hand out towards me. I bit my lip wondering if I should accept. I quickly looked over at my parents. They seemed rather pleased and motioned me to take his offer. I looked back at the young boy before taking his hand. "Alright." I replied. He placed his hand on my waist as I put mine on his shoulder. The music started playing and we started to dance. It was odd how I wasn't stepping over his feet already. The dance was nice but there was someone who I wanted to dance with more than anything. But sadly I didn't see them.

"So uh...what's your name?" I asked trying to strike up a conversation. "My name? It's Alexander." He replied. "Nice to meet you, I haven't seen you around before." As we danced, I tried my best to keep my focus on him. "It's my first time here…" His words became drowned out by the music. The song they were playing reminded me of something that I wish I could relive again.

"Come Mel, I'll teach you." I raised my eyebrow at him. "You teach me? How? Do you even know the first thing about dancing?" He shrugged his shoulders as he dragged me into the ballroom. "What are we doing here?" I asked. "Well you said you wanted to learn and there's no better place to learn than right here." I laughed. He took my hands in his, guiding me to the middle of the room. He placed my hand on his shoulder and wrapped his arm around my waist. Soon we started to dance, I did step on his toes here and there, but we had fun.

I was snapped out of my thoughts when the music stopped playing. We looked at one another. He smiled at me. I gave him a small smile as I curtsied. I took a step back as I was about to walk away but he quickly grabbed my arm, pulling me back in. "What are you doing?" I asked. He stared at me with a look of confusion. "Didn't your parents tell you?"

"Tell me what?" I responded. "Ladies and gentlemen, we have a very important announcement to make." I looked over at my mother as she started speaking. "As you all know, we held this ball in honor of Melody's 18th birthday but also for another reason." My eyes widened. What the hell do they mean? "To announce the marriage between our daughter and prince Alexander of the Eastern Kingdom!" Everyone in the room started clapping and smiling. "Melody, Alexander will you both step forward please?"

As I took a step back, Alexander stuck his hand out to me waiting for me to take it. But I couldn't move. My body went numb. My mind went blank. I opened my mouth to speak or say something at least but no words came out. I felt everyone's eyes on me. Waiting for my next move. "Melody? What are you waiting for?" He asked.

But what was I supposed to do? I was never told about this. I pushed Alexander to the side causing him to fall back and hit his head on the floor. I pushed past everyone. As I ran up the steps my mother tried sticking her arms out towards me. But I ran past her. I ran into my room and slammed the door shut. Nothing made sense and I don't think it will. I ripped off my dress and buried myself in bed.

I noticed something reflecting through the glass of the balcony doors. I looked back at my vanity and saw a gold necklace there. "Where did this come from?" It was in the shape of a seashell. I picked it up while brushing off the dirt. My name was engraved on the front. I ran my fingers over the engraving. I heard a small click, and the seashell opened. There was some writing on the inside. It said, "Whenever your world comes crashing down, that's where you'll find me." Those words echoed in my head. He would always say that whenever I had a hard time. There was another thing. A small folded up piece of paper. I unfolded it and read it. My eyes widened.

I quicky stuffed the paper in my pocket and the necklace under my pillow when I heard the door open. "Melody honey, we need to talk." My mother sat down beside me. I couldn't look at her. I just felt so angry and hurt. "Look at-" Her voice trailed off as she noticed the gold chain sticking out. Before I had the chance to notice, she already had it in her hands. The color drained from her face. "Melody, where did you get this?" She asked with a hint of anger in her tone. "It was on my vanity dresser, but why do you care?" I asked as I stood up. Her grip tightened around the necklace when I tried to reach for it. "I care because you shouldn't have this. I don't know how you found it, but this doesn't matter right now. We need to talk about what happened earlier."

"What is there to talk about? You and dad didn't tell me about my "fiancé" I had to find out just like everyone else. You both could have asked me if this was okay or if that I even wanted it…" My voice trailed off as I felt my anger boiling. "Melody, this is your duty as a princess to marry another noble. I thought you would understand."

"Understand what mom? Me marry someone who I don't know or love? I didn't ask for this or ask to be born as a princess. Now may I please have my necklace back?" I stuck my hand out towards my mom. She brought the necklace close to her chest. I could feel my anger boiling even more. "No, you will not have this. This does not matter. What matters is that you will perform your duties and marry prince Alexander." She replied, her anger rising even more. I snatched the necklace from her hand, holding it close to me as she tried to grab it once more.

"Why do you care so much about this necklace? Is it because this is from Jim?" She looked as if she had seen a ghost when I mentioned his name. "You think I forgot about him all these years? No, I have not. Every time I asked both of you about him, you just kept giving me the same answer over and over again. That's why I stopped asking." My mom was at a loss for words. "Melody…" I cut her off. "Get out please." I said calmly. "Melody please let me explain." I looked at her with disgust. "There's nothing to explain so just get out!" I screamed. My mom's eyes widened at my reaction. "That it's! You are not leaving this room until I tell you to do so. You don't want to listen to me that's fine, but you are going to marry prince Alexander whether you want to or not." She left in a huff and slammed the door shut on her way out.