Chapter 42: Chapter XIX Realization-1

By the end of my first week in Spain, I had learned a lot about the culture and the nation. It fascinated me how different two countries so close to one another could be. It was also fascinating to see the difference in upbringing between Alejandro and I, seeing as we both were royalty. I had learned that there were few differences and there was a lot of things we had in common. We both had the same taste in music and preferred to be alone over being in a crowd. Which was ironic I realized after some brooding, seeing as we were Prince and Princess. Our titles aren't keen on introverted behaviour. I discovered that he had never been in a relationship before but was more nervous about that than ever. He would need to look for someone worthy of being a Queen. I don't know if that was harder than my ordeal or not, but I realized that he wouldn't consider a commoner. His father was incredibly strict and kept Alejandro's sights on noble women only. But it felt strange. I knew Caleb since I was young and grew up with him, watching him graduate and mature. With Alejandro it was different, because I was placed into his trustworthy hands and I was not even eighteen yet. He, on the other hand, was twenty-three. I had never expected to become such good friends with him so quickly, and I had honestly thought at the beginning that he wouldn't respect me because I am still a minor. I was thankful for his caring nature. "Buena noches, Sarina," I had introduced Alejandro to Sarina over a video call, and because I contacted Sarina each evening, he would sometimes join the conversation. Sarina seemed to be intimidated by the Prince at first, but they had warmed up to each other. Alejandro had laughed hysterically when I told him how Sarina and I had met, but what was even worse is that Sarina was on the other line and was embarrassed throughout the entire explanation. Now knowing that she had purposely sought me out, I wondered if she wanted to show off to me. Well, it did leave a lasting impression. "Buena noches, Prince Alejandro," she greeted back, her accent adorable and her black hair shining through the screen of my phone. I could see behind her the other gymnasts tumbling and flipping off the uneven bars. Their practice hours were crazy, but I simply cannot wait to see them at the Royal Variety Performance. "How's it going in the world of tumbling?" Alejandro questioned, having discovered Sarina's preference. We were seated on one of the beds in the hotel we were staying at, now straying to far from the palace to be able to return each evening. "Could be better. I keep going off the mat," she shrugged, looking behind as her sweaty comrades worked hard. "Practice makes perfect," Alejandro shrugged. "Of course, Your Highness," it was probably strange to her. She met a stranger at a café and now she was thrown into the world of royals and palaces. How she had not freaked yet, was a mystery. "I need your opinion," I decided to steer the conversation in the direction I had intended. "So we are in..." I looked towards Alejandro in question. "Benidorm," he answered for me. I looked back towards the screen. "Benidorm, which is a coastal city, and we're basically hiding out in a hotel here. We didn't go to the beach," I looked to Alejandro who shook his head. "No, no we didn't," "But he forced me on roller-coaster and dragged me to see dolphin shows," at this, he decided to push my face down and scrambled to look over me like some sort of child. He grabbed the phone from me and returned to sit behind me, releasing my head in the process. "Hey!" "She's afraid of dolphins!" he told Sarina whilst laughing, embarrassing me even further by revealing my phobia. "Give that back!" I tried to grab the phone, but his tall figure made sure to keep it out of reach, his other arms wrapped around my waist to keep me from jumping up to my phone. I could hear Sarina's loud laughing, Alejandro following her example. "This isn't funny!" "It sure is. But don't worry, we all have things we are afraid of," Alejandro said, rising from the bed and moving towards the closet where I had hung two outfits. "But listen, Sarina, our dear Princess here is in a bit of a dilemma," "How so?" I heard Sarina ask. "Well, tomorrow we are going to the Ibiza Island and Mel cannot decide on what to wear! It is absolutely terrible!" his dramatic actions made it sound apocalyptic, and I blushed in embarrassment. "But after rummaging through Her Highness's highly compressed packing of cloths, we have managed to narrow it down to two swimsuits. Exhibit A!" he announced, turning the camera to the first outfit. He was making fun of me, I knew it. I was so embarrassed I wanted to die. "We have a nice minty pastel green crochet bikini with a high chest because Princess is afraid of cleavage. Exhibit B!" I buried myself under the pillows, hiding my blushing face from the world. "We have a frilly pastel pink one-piece with cut-out sides. What is your vote?" I could hear Sarina hum in thought. "But the one-piece has V-neck so maybe not," "Yes but the see the bikini..." I couldn't believe my ears. My best-friend and my newest friend were arguing about clothes and colours. I had never expected anything like this to happen. "But pink is so... girly!" "Unless you weren't aware, Mel is a girl!" "The green is so much cuter!" these were the people I had decided to trust. I hid myself under the pillows even more. "She might feel more secure in the one-piece!" "Secure? Have you seen her body? She's stunning!" while they were bickering I heard these words from Sarina and I immediately blushed, silently squealing to myself. She liked my appearance? Eventually the arguing stopped when I chose to wear the bikini, Alejandro grumbling to himself. We bid Sarina a farewell, seeing as she had practice to return to. "You two will be the death of me," I told Alejandro, following him down to the feasting hall for dinner. The corridors sounded by his forever pleasing laugh. ♕♥ ♕♥ ♕ "Asombroso!" I exclaimed at the sight of the private royal beach, the clear turquoise waters enticing and the pure white sands tickling my feet. I had only ever been at a beach once in my life when I was younger, but now I could actually appreciate it. Alejandro stood next to me shirtless, but I tried to ignore that fact. The security team stood surrounding the beach, but in my fit of excitement I ignored everything else. I tossed down my bag and towel, running towards the ocean. Alejandro chuckled at my childish excitement. I removed my dress as I ran, dumping it somewhere on the beach before diving straight into the warm waters. I loved the feeling of swimming and nothing had changed with my years of aging. I dove deep under the waves, spotting the gentle sea life beneath my form. I heard a splash and looked up to sea Alejandro diving down towards me, a smile on his face. I returned the smile, heading back up for air. My fairy-tale dream as a child was not to be a fairy, or have a pony, or even to be a princess (that was before my mother explained to me exactly who I was) but I wanted to be a mermaid. I still fantasize about such realities. I would happily give up being a human princess just to be a mermaid. It would be so much simpler then. "You're a natural swimmer," Alejandro told me, panting slightly as we hovered in the waters. "No, it's because I did a sport," ballet counted as an intense sport and nobody could tell me otherwise. "What have you been doing?" "Uhm... getting hand cramps," he explained. "Paperwork?" "Wait until you have it," I wasn't excited for that part. "But you'll be a natural. I can tell," I scoffed in disbelief. "How?"