Exactly one month had gone by since Maya's arrival in Esfalda. She sat up in her bed, feeling somewhat drained on this particular morning. Looking around, she studied the room that she had become so familiar to her. With its large canopy bed, sitting area, brick fire place, orchid colored walls, and plush divan at the foot of a window that nearly reached ceiling, it was definitely more space than she needed. Despite this, over the past few weeks she came to think of the room as her safe haven. It was different from the room she had stayed in during her first few nights in Alsthior. A few days after everything settled down, she was told that her room would be in the same wing as Richard's. Despite this fact, there was still a relatively large distance between their rooms, and the two rarely crossed paths.
Walking over to the window, she pulled the curtains back, allowing sunlight to pour into the bedroom. Maya squinted as her eyes adjusted to the brightness of the rising sun. The light was reflected on the early morning dew, illuminating the landscape. The scene never failed to lift Maya's spirits.
While she began to get used to her new life in the foreign county, she continued to work hard at trying to find a way to get home. During her sparse moments of free time she could be found in the library, looking at maps and studying geography in an attempt to find similarities between where she was and medieval Europe. Each day, however, only provided her with more evidence that wherever she was, it definitely wasn't a place she had learned about in any history class. She had even gone to multiple officials at the castle, inquiring as to whether or not they'd heard of countries such as France or Spain. Eventually she gave up, convinced that half of the castle probably thought she was crazy.
After locating her slippers, Maya snuck out of the room. She developed a habit of waking up early in order to explore the castle while everyone else was asleep, mainly so she could finally get around without getting hopelessly lost. It also served as a form of stress relief. Walking around the enormous castle all by herself, without a single soul around to bother her, made her feel at ease.
With every morning that passed, she found that she grew more familiar with the layout of certain areas. There were still some places she opted to stay away from, finding it unnecessary to have every nook and cranny memorized. The halls that she was able to navigate through, however, never ceased to amaze her. Everything about the interior of the castle left her in a state of constant awe, as she found herself drawn to the intricate details of the walls, the baroque designs that dawned the ceilings- ranging from giant chandeliers to elaborate murals- and even the stitching patterns on the curtains. It always left the impression that she was walking through a first class art museum, rather than the place that was to become her new home.
Deciding to squeeze in a few more minutes of sleep before starting the day, Maya headed back to her bedroom. Waiting for her on the other side of the door, much to her confusion, was Cedric, who looked a little too comfortable sitting on the edge of her bed.
"Good morning, Maya," he greeted her.
"What are you doing here?"
"I convinced Mille to let me bring your breakfast in her stead," he motioned towards the sitting area, where breakfast for two had been set up at the table.
"You don't think that it might be a
little
inappropriate to sneak into my room this early?" she could feel a knot forming in her stomach, but he stayed where he was, innocently smiling at her.
"Come now," he said, "I just wanted to have breakfast together and talk for a little while. It
has
become increasingly difficult to find you alone." She couldn't deny that over the past few weeks, she'd spent most of her time with various tutors. When she wasn't with them, she was usually with the Queen. However, she also hadn't made much of an effort to see anyone else, especially Cedric. Actually, she was under the impression that he might've seen her as a bit of a nuisance, considering he'd only caught her during moments when she found herself needing to rely on him.
During her first couple weeks in the castle, aside from providing emotional support and tending to her wounds until they fully healed, there had been several additional instances where he came across her lost in the hallways, offering to help her out only after teasing her about her sense of direction. Recently, thought, their only interactions consisted of polite greetings when walking through the halls or nodding to acknowledge one another's presence when they were both in the library to study. Hearing that he actually wanted to spend time with her, that he had gone out of his way to do so, was a surprise to her.
Maya felt her heart pound against her chest. "I'm sorry, but I think I'd actually like to be left alone," she told him curtly. It wasn't her intention to be rude, but if she was honest with herself, it was difficult to think straight around Cedric, and she didn't want to end up doing something that would betray Richard's trust. Many a night was spent thinking over her feelings towards Richard. He was the one that she agreed to marry, and she wanted their union to be a pleasant one. Not to mention that he
was
trying to win her affections, to get her to see him as something other than a friend. She felt horrible about being unable to return his feelings, but it was something that she just couldn't force. Either way, the last thing she wanted was to do something that make it even more difficult for her to get closer to him.
"You've been here for a while now, right? It's been weeks since you last saw your friends and family. I just thought that you might be feeling a little lonely and in need of some companionship."
"It has been a while, yeah. But I'm fine," she lied, glancing to the side to avoid looking at him. "I mean, of course I miss everyone back home, but everyone here has been really nice to me, and I've been too busy to feel lonely."
Cedric studied her, his eyes filled with sympathy. "I can see the tears in your eyes, Maya."
Quickly, she turned her head away from him to hide her face. She stuttered, trying to find an excuse that wouldn't betray her true feelings, but her efforts were to no avail. Cedric stood up and walked over to her, wrapping his arms around her small frame. Maya tensed at the unexpected action, but sensing that it was done out of concern and worry for her, she relaxed.
"Yeah, I guess you're right," She buried her face in his chest, taking comfort in the warmth radiating from his body. "I miss my mom, my dad, even my obnoxious brothers. I miss my books, my computer, my favorite foods...it's only been a month, but I miss everything and everyone so much," by now Maya had given up on holding back her tears.
"It's not that being away from them for a month is hard, but thinking back to when I last saw them, I never thought that it would be the last time we would be together. If I can't find a way to get home, if I never see my family again...I just can't imagine having to spend the rest of my life here."
Cedric let go of her, only to take her hand in his. "Everything will be okay. You have a castle full of people who are looking out for you."
"It's not like their motives are entirely pure," she murmured, studying their intertwined fingers.
"At the very least, believe me when I say that I have your best interests at heart. You can come speak to me about anything. I mean it, alright?" She looked up at him and nodded. He smiled once again, satisfied with her response. "Come now. My mission was to feed you, not to make you cry," he led her over to the sitting room, where they each took a seat at the table.
Spending time with Cedric, talking about anything and everything, was so refreshing. She didn't have to worry about being overly polite or saying the wrong thing. On the other hand, just being near him, without exchanging words, made her feel at ease. She sincerely hoped that she would be able to continue relying on him as a close friend.
"It was supposed to be a surprise, but how would you like to get out of the castle for the day?"
Setting down her cup of tea, Maya looked at him, "what do you mean?"
"Alsthior has such beautiful beaches, and the countryside is breathtaking. It's a shame that you've been here for this long and haven't been able to actually see the kingdom."
"That sounds great," Maya was genuinely excited. She couldn't even remember the last time she'd been able to go to a beach. "But...there's no way I'd have time."
"I asked Richard to take you out today. Told him, as a doctor, I believed some fresh air would be good for your health- mental and physical."
"I don't know what to say. Uh, thank you! I really appreciate it, Cedric, I mean it. Thank you." Her mind went to work imagining all the things she'd be able to see.
"If it makes you this happy, then I would do it again in a heartbeat."
Their eyes met, and no more words were exchanged. Maya felt her face heating up, but she found it impossible to pull her eyes away from his. A small voice, deep inside of her, screamed for her to say something, anything, to break this particular instance of silence, but she ignored it, losing herself to the gentle kindness she found in his stare.
Outside the room, they suddenly heard a series of footsteps running around accompanied by people calling out orders, indicating that the rest of the castle had woken up. Maya cleared her throat, "Um, Mille might be here soon to help me get dressed so..."
"Say no more," Cedric stood up, "I have no intention of overstaying my welcome." He respectfully bowed to her before showing himself out of the room. Maya's eyes followed him as he left, "Hey, Cedric!" she called out. He turned to face her. "Thanks again. For everything, I mean," she said somewhat awkwardly, not sure how to best convey her gratitude. He gave her a smile and bowed. Once the door shut behind him, she ran her fingers through her bed-head and sighed.
"I'm a horrible person," she mumbled, feeling guilty about the feelings she still wasn't able to control. She lay there, contemplating how her life had become so screwed up in one month, one month that had felt like a million years.
Maya reached for the teapot and poured herself another cup, finding comfort in the steam tickling her face, and the sweet aroma awakening her senses. More than anything that had happened over the past month, Maya was upset with herself for having spent so much time there without finding any clues as to how to return home. She refused to give up. If there was a way for her to get to Esfalda, then she knew that there had to be a way to get back home, and she intended to find out how before she had to follow through with marrying Richard. Not that she would refuse to do so if she was still there when the time came. It was a decision she willingly made, and she would uphold that decision if need be.
However, she still found it hard it believe it was something she would be made to go through with. She didn't even think that the laws of Esfalda or Alsthior could be applied to her. There had to be something about the Crown Prince of a powerful kingdom not being able to marry normal middle-class girls from a different world. And getting married so young, to a guy she barely knew? That was still something she couldn't imagine for herself. The only way she could defend the decision was by telling herself that doing what was asked of her would make it easier for her to have access to information that would get her home.
