Chapter 11: Chapter 11
Vida
Burn’s Bar, New York City
“What a ridiculous idea!” Vida laughed.
Tessa can be a riot at times. And her suggestions are as wild as her imaginations.
“Why? You’re single. You’re gorgeous. You’re smart. What’s stopping you?” Tessa asked as she wiped a tray clean.
Vida lowered her voice. “I don’t want to have sex with someone unless I am sure of my feelings towards him.” Her best friend snorted at her response. “Besides I’d prefer to read books all night than scream some asshole’s name and instantly regret it the morning after because I find out he’s going through a divorce and has two children to support.”
Tessa rolled her eyes. All she ever wanted was for Vida to be occupied by other things. Even if her friend did not admit it, she knew deep down that Vida was still stressed about that night. “Whatever you say, dork.”
Vida laughed and turned to the window behind her and peeked. “Hey, Lance. Got that order for table 16 ready? The man’s about to pass out.”
Lance peeked back and looked behind Vida. “Don’t make me nervous, Vida. You know how my hands sweat when I’m nervous.”
“I’m just messing with you,” Vida giggled. “Take your time, all my tables are done, except for 16.”
Lance waved his hand dismissively and disappeared back into the kitchen. Vida took over in wiping some trays clean.
She had not thought about actively looking for random hookups. Yes, she had thought of being in a healthy relationship but life has been too busy for her to actually start going out. Vida’s no stranger to dating apps. She just found them exhausting and repetitive.
“Order up for table 16!” Lance yelled from the kitchen.
“Thanks, Lance. You’re the best.” Vida grabbed one of the clean trays and grabbed the plate on deck. She then proceeded to table 16, carefully balancing the tray on her hand. It took years to master carrying a tray with one hand. The first time she worked at Burn’s she had to carry trays with two hands like a toddler.
Once she reached the table, she graciously set the plate down. “Good evening, Sir. Thank you for patiently waiting for your dish.”
“Thank you.” The man smiled at Vida and naturally, she returned it.
“Would there be anything else?”
“No. I believe everything is in order,” he replied as he looked at his plate.
“Great. If you need anything, I’m more than happy to assist you. Enjoy your meal.” Before she could leave, the customer stopped her by holding her hand. Vida tried so hard not to overreact and made a scene of yanking her hand away. She reminded herself that she’s at work and there’s security if this man ever tried anything funny.
“I appreciate your great service,” the man read Vida’s name tag. “Vida.”
“You’re welcome, Sir.” Vida replied, her smile genuine. This guy seemed to be nice.
“Harry,” the man said as he slowly loosens his hold on Vida’s hand. “My name’s Harry.”
Vida nodded and she walked away. When she got back to the waiters’ station, she stole a glance at the man, Harry, at table 16. She felt her cheeks getting red when she realized that Harry had been looking at her too.
She quickly looked away and hastily went to the kitchen.
“You all good, Vida?” Lance asked as he passed by her carrying a tub of pesto sauce. “You look like you’re on fire.”
Vida shook her head. “No, Y-yeah. I’m fine.”
Damnit. What the hell was that, Vida?
Vida then knew it was going to be a long night.
---
Colter
Throne room, Kingdom of Howard
"How did you find the place?"
Colter just stood in front of the King and hung his head while Gian, who was standing a little farther from him, was panting but all the while delighted at what was unfolding in front of his eyes.
"I-I've been seeing this little white rabbit for quite some time now, and been following it." Colter explained. "I didn't know that it was leading me to the portal."
"Lies!" Gian could just not control his mouth. "He had been sneaking off multiple times to go to the forest and search for the portal. He knew where the rabbit was leading to and he was just bidding his time to be able to cross."
"Shut your fucking mouth, Gian!" Colter hissed. "You don't know what you're talking about!"
"No! You don't know what you're talking about. You very well know what happens if you cross that portal. If it wasn't for me, following you around on your little escapades, you might have broken the highest law in the land and crossed it." Gian yelled. "You deserved to be punished!"
"Silence!" The King's voice thundered in the room. Both brothers bowed their heads in respect to the King's command.
Colter could not believe that he had been careless once again. He had let his guard down and was not able to shake his annoying brother off his trail. His fingers started to tingle and he could feel his body temperature rising. Gian was really out to get him.
"Do you know why, we are all forbidden to cross that portal?" King Malik asked. Colter did not bother to answer as he was not sure if it was an actual query or a trick question. "Crossing the portal means opening a connection to the human world. We have long since lived peacefully without the nuisance of humans. Their puny lives do not matter to us. But since the Ecanus are special beings, we might be of use to them. If they ever find out that we exist, we don't know what horrors they will do to us. They'll treat us like guinea pigs, making us do their bidding and subject us to their experiments."
The King stood up from his throne and descended the dais. He took his time to walk towards Colter. When he reached his youngest son, he could not help but feel disappointed. Out of all the people in the kingdom, it was his son who would break the rule of the land.
"You know that death awaits those people who disobey the rule of this land. Do you understand that, Colter?" The King asked.
Colter could not trust his voice to work, so he nodded.
"You are a disgrace to this family." King Malik added quietly.
Everything went still. Even Gian, who was watching Colter closely, felt the gravity of the King's words.
Colter clenched his fists and tried very hard to control his breathing. He could feel the heat rising from within him and it was not a good thing to set the throne room on fire.
"I expected more of you, Colter. When I gave that power of Fotiá, I imagined great things for you. Bestowed with one of the rarest of talents, I expect that you will give honor not just to the family but to the entire Ecanus." King Malik moved closer to Colter. "But what have you done? You blatantly disobeyed rules. You went lurking around the one thing that is forbidden. In case you forgot, Colter, you are an heir-apparent. Your every move is under the scrutiny of the people. What would they say if they saw you poking around the forest, following enchanted rodents, and entering that portal?"
Colter wanted to answer back but he bit his tongue. He knew that his mother would not approve of talking back to the King. So, he tried to drown out his father's voice and kept the image of the Queen in his mind.
"I'm sorry, Father." Colter said.
"I shall hear no more excuses from you, Colter. This must be the last time you mess up. If you step another foot on that clearing, you would not like the consequences that come after. The King turned his back on Colter and went back to sit on the throne. "Your brother would be keeping an eye out for you, from now on. You should be grateful that he is after your welfare and the safety of the Howard name."
"Yes, Father." Colter said. He had already heard these words. Ever since he was young and started training, it was always Gian who was the best. He would always tell him to be more like his brother: disciplined, obedient, and worthy.
His father seemed to overlook Colter's achievements. All his misdemeanors trump every accomplishment he ever made. Colter guessed that this is what it was like to always live in the glorious shadow of your brother.
The King didn't even bother to acknowledge that Colter had bothered to show up in training earlier that day and learned that he was not so bad after all.
Colter took a deep breath and exhaled. He felt something else tingling aside from his hands: his eyes.
Crying was such a foreign concept to Colter. He had never cried about anything, maybe except that one time that his pet gecko had died. But after the King saw him bawling over the heap of scales on his bedroom floor, he was made to understand that crying was pointless and would only do more harm than good.
Before the tears could fall from his eyes, he swallowed the lump in his throat. "I apologize, Your Highness. I assure you, it won't happen again."
Colter gave a clipped bow and left the throne room, with a heavy heart.
---
The young prince wandered the village streets. He was wearing a cloak that bore no insignia from the royal family so he could freely roam around without anyone recognizing him. He thought about Gian possibly tailing him so he childishly threw his middle finger in the air, hoping that his brother's rat eyes can see.
Suck on that, Gian.
As he walked along, he sometimes wondered what it was that his father could not see in him. All his life, Colter devoted himself to being the perfect son. Although, there were really times that he misbehaved, that was part of a normal childhood. While he was growing up, he ensured to always please the King so he could one day be proud of him. Even just for once.
He gave it a lot of thought but after quite sometime, he came to the conclusion that he had no memory, whatsoever, of his father being proud of him.
Colter wished he had been born into a different family. He would keep his mother but he would very much like a different father. His life would probably be different and less complicated if he was not royalty. Less expectations, less responsibilities, less pressure.
Suffice to say, being royalty and one with extraordinary talents at that, is hard. Especially if you have a father that fails to see you as a son.
He had not noticed it but his feet carried him over to Pruneé, the local bar. Music and laughs can be heard inside. Colter could see that the bar was a bit crowded tonight but that didn't bother him. He wanted to forget everything that happened today and the last few days, even if only for a night. He's going to drink his troubles away and let fate decide if he'll ever make it home tonight.
Colter entered the bar and took a seat at the only open table in the place. He flagged down a waiter for the menu.
"Welcome to Pruneé, what can I get 'ya?" the waitress asked as he was handed the menu.
Colter kept his hood up as it didn't seem to bother the waitress or anyone in the bar. He went over the selections but thought better of it.
"You know what? I'll have the strongest alcohol that this bar can offer."
"Uhm, you sure about that, hun?" the waitress asked cautiously. "Because we have what you want but I don't think you can handle it. You look like a lightweight to me."
Colter signaled the waitress to lean in for a secret. When the waitress was close enough to see Colter's eyes, she gave out a squeak, in recognition of the prince. "Tell you what, if you keep it a secret that I was here and serve me graciously tonight, I will tip you handsomely. How about that?"
The waitress' eyes widened and she nodded. She stood up straight and proceeded to the counter to place his order.
"I've got a special order for table 16!"
As he waited for his drink, he absentmindedly traced the carving on the table: the number 16.
Colter then knew it was going to be a long night.