Chapter Text
While we’re watching the waves on the beach, January stands up and starts pacing around anxiously.
“What’s wrong, January?” Matteo asks, looking up at her.
January wrings her hands. “It’s just, this whole thing is really upsetting.”
“Having superpowers?” Tuma asks. “I think it’s pretty epic.”
“No.” January sits down next to me, and our hands brush. I don’t know what to make of it. “James has been treating us like absolute shit for the training program, literally tried to poison Sam, and then was so awful to us about the fake Crown Jewels thing. We all know what the threat is,”
Roxana nods, her expression and voice a surprisingly solemn contrast to how she usually talks. “Our powers being taken away and our memories being erased. Cast back into our old lives, with no purpose to them other than being married off for alliances, for those of us who won’t end up glorifying our country through the military.” She looks nervously at me. Yeah, I really don’t want to be married off, never have. The military would be marginally better, but who knows if they’d let a princess serve?
“And take a look at how someone who even did make it is being treated,” January responds. “Prince Harry. He got married to a woman who has ancestry nothing like that of his family, and they treated her so poorly that they relinquished being working royals. But I’m guessing he still has to do all these missions around the world while his kid isn’t even in kindergarten yet, or else they’ll take away his powers and mind-wipe him.”
“When you put it that way, it does sound pretty awful,” Matteo mumbles.
“Maybe it’s not as bad as it seems?” Roxana bites her lip. “I’m sure that James would’ve treated Sam if she got poisoned. And we don’t know exactly how assignments work. Surely there’s something like parental leave, for people like Harry?”
“What do you think, Sam?” Tuma turns to me. “I mean, you were the one who almost got poisoned and then didn’t have any real lunch.”
I look between him and January, who is smiling encouragingly. “I think it kinda sucks…” I reluctantly admit. “But what are we supposed to do about it?”
“I don’t know,” January also admits. “But I’m sure there’s something we can do to not take this lying down.”
***
We’re all feeling in slightly better spirits by the end of our day hanging out together, and then January laments never having visited my palace.
So what am I supposed to do, other than invite her over? It’s not like I’ve ever had a real friend before who understands what it’s like to be a royal who’s unimportant to everyone except for maybe some people in our family.
Judging from how January has described her twin brother, December, and the way she grew up, I don’t think that she even has people in her family who treat her like she’s important to them.
It’s also fun to play music with someone other than Mike. He’s always weirdly possessive over me playing music with anyone else, so it feels forbidden, which is my favorite kind of thing to do.
January looks at me like I’m the first person who’s ever truly seen her for her. We finish the song, and a shy smile spreads across her face. “You’re really cool, Sam,”
“Thanks,” I tell her.
It feels like something is different about our dynamic. We’re alone, and she walks up to me and tucks a strand of hair behind my ear, her face close to mine.
“What’s, um, what are you doing?” My heart is beating like a hummingbird’s wings inside my chest, as I look at her full lips.
“The reason I’ve never kissed anyone before is because I’ve never wanted to kiss a boy. And being gay isn’t really accepted in my country, what with how much of it is Catholic,” she admits.
“Oh,” My voice is quiet, and I’m not entirely sure how to respond - and then she’s kissing me, and it feels wonderful, and my hands tangle in her hair.
And then I hear someone clearing their throat behind us.
We break apart, and I meet the eyes of Mike, who is tearing up. Shit. I never knew he liked me like that.
He turns around and starts running to the stairs, and I turn to January. “You should probably figure things out with him,” she says, looking guilty.
I nod, and chase him down the stairs. I don’t want to be with him, and I honestly don’t know what to say to him, but I’ll figure out something.