Chapter 18

I stabbed the soil I was cultivating with my small shovel more forcefully than I should have, but I did not care. Another week has gone by, and it hasn’t been any better than the last. Problems seemed to come my way the longer I stayed at the university. My grades were excellent, and I was enjoying all of my classes, including political science. I listened to my future mother-in-law and took the course as an elective.

However, that’s not what’s stressing me out, it’s my extracurricular activities. I joined gardening, art, and dance clubs, but as soon as I discovered they also included occults, I had to stop going. My gathering of supporters turned more irritatingly hard. So I established my own club for plant-based eaters. I shared information about how much good it did to our nature and how animal consumption was bad. I taught the members to prepare and cook a lot of plant-based recipes. They knew of my plans for running for the president of the student council and my projects. My members were all of noble blood, but they were pressuring me to let other people join us. They didn't like that I was good with commoners, but I drew the line with the occults. I don't get what the problem was. They're the minority anyway.

Aside from that, I noticed Henry was becoming more distant, and we'd been fighting a lot. He stood me up on several occasions, and whenever he did show up for our dates, he was late. He always seemed distracted, but he wouldn’t tell me what the problem was. I suspected cheating, but I have no proof of that yet. Him and Jade were basically ignoring each other now. The only times they were together was when Jasper was with them. Still, it could mean they were meeting secretly, right?

“You are such a tease, My Lord,” someone said suddenly, and I perked up from my plants. The voice sounded like it came from a woman.

The reason I chose the most secluded and neglected area of the university garden to do my gardening was because no one came there and I could be alone with my thoughts. It was dead quiet there. One could hear the birds and the insects. And now there were people frolicking—possibly fornicating—in my garden!

I got up to investigate after hearing giggling from somewhere near. My heart was pounding in my chest as I looked into the privet, where I could pick up the sounds. I was expecting the worst when I turned a corner and discovered a small opening in the tall hedge, only to find Jasper Otxoa and some girl lying in the grass, making out, hidden by the tall plants.

I released a breath I did not realize I was holding. I heard the words ‘My Lord’ and the first thing I thought of was my boyfriend.

Can anyone blame me? Henry, despite his young age, was the most eligible bachelor in all of Terran. He was smart, rich; he was nice to look at... and most of all, he was the most powerful person in the world, especially once he ascended the Volfenheim Throne. Everybody would want him. Anyone would do anything just to be in my position as his destined queen.

Anyone except those two.

They were undressing and passionately kissing each other, as if they were two starving people who had finally found food.

The girl had darker skin than Jasper and she was curvy, her buttocks were plump, and her bre*sts were big. I subconsciously touched my own and felt weird. My butt was just the normal size, but my bre*sts were tiny and it's always been the source of my insecurity. Not wanting to feel bad about myself anymore, I turned to look at Jasper.

Why does Jasper like having s*x out in the open? Such a deviant.

More importantly, how could girls want to do it in the bushes? The thought reminded me of Becca. Was he that good that they'd forgotten their shame just to—

Oh.

Aside from his great body and beautiful face, I found out Jasper was also well-endowed. So well, the girl gasped and stared before stroking it repeatedly. She was giggling, giddy... excited. She got down on him and I saw Jasper close his eyes, a lewd expression on his face.

Then the couple continued to make out, completely unaware of their surroundings. When the girl moved and straddled Jasper, he took a b*ob and s*cked on it like a child. The couple’s hands were everywhere, caressing, groping, kneading, until Jasper lifted her up a little and their bodies joined together. The girl let out a strangled moan, wrapping her hands around her partner's head, burying him in her bossom.

And then they started to move. Up. Down.

The scene both intrigued and grossed me out. I kept a close eye on them, noting Jasper’s every move and the girl’s reactions. I was inexperienced but not clueless about intercourse. I studied positions, pleasure points... the works. I watched videos and read books, and they all felt clinical to me. But watching these two made me feel strange and hot all over. They made me feel like a pervert. I wanted to turn away but couldn’t.

“Selina!”

When I heard someone call my name, my heart was racing. I whipped around to see my boyfriend running towards me. I let go of the hedge to meet him—and also to get away from the couple. I forgot that I had called him there, but as usual, he was late.

“Honey-bear!” I said, kissing Henry on the lips. Surprised, the young king blinked at me a few times. My boldness also shocked me, but I laughed it off, bumping him with my hip and then looped my arm around his. “What’s with that reaction? Is my kiss that terrible?”

“I—no—” Henry sighed exasperatedly. “What if someone saw you?”

“There’s nobody here,” I scowled as I let go of his arm. “Besides, you’re my boyfriend. It’s natural for us to kiss. It'd be weird if we didn't.”

“I know that, but—”

“Unless you no longer regard me as your girlfriend.” I turned away from the king, irritated. “Do you think I didn’t notice you pulling away from me?”

I smiled when Henry grasped my arms from behind me. “That’s not true. You’re my queen and I’m yours.”

“Then act like it.” I pulled away from him and faced him with a serious expression. “Kiss me.”

“Selina…”

I looked at him sadly. “See? You’re all talk. You only say things that I wanted to hear, but you don’t really mean them.”

“Why are we talking about this all of a sudden?”

“Because you’re a terrible boyfriend. Do you not believe me? When was the last time you were on time for one of our dates? When was the last time you gave me a compliment or inquired about my day? Henry, when was the last time you told me you loved me?”

We were both silent for a while. I had not intended for the conversation to be so deep—I was only acting initially—but my words kept spilling out. However, I realized I wasn’t sorry at all. I felt like they lifted an immense weight out of my chest.

“Selina, I—I’m so sorry.”

I regarded the king with skepticism. His apologies were really getting old.

“I didn’t know you felt that way, and I’d do anything to make you feel better.”

“You won’t even kiss me,” I huffed, rolling my eyes. “You won’t even—”

Before I knew it, Henry had his palms on both of my cheeks, staring me in the eyes as if reading me and looking at me for the first time. I was so surprised my eyes bulged and I could only stare back. I closed my eyes when the king pressed his trembling lips against mine.

He pulled away exactly three seconds later, as if he was counting.

Henry’s face was flushed and he couldn’t look at me, clearly embarrassed. I, however, was chewing my lip, deep in thought, until I noticed something stirred in the privets. Without thinking, I grabbed the monarch’s lapels and kissed him.

“Oh, my gods, is that—” they heard Jasper’s female companion speak, but she was silenced quickly… by Jasper, most probably.

Now aware of the other people in the garden, Henry tried to pull away, but I did not let him. I tightened my hold on him and deepened the kiss until my boyfriend lost coherent thought. We were both panting when I let go of him.

My eyes searched for the other couple in the garden and when I saw them, they were still standing behind us. Thankfully, they were fully dressed and looked decent. The dark-skinned girl was still in shock, and Jasper had his hand around her mouth to stop her from making noises. Jasper was smirking, but there was something in the glint of his eyes.

Henry was still in a daze when I touched the front of his shirt, all flirty.

“Hey, honey-bear," I said. "Let’s get married.”

___________