As the car stopped, I got out and looked up to see a huge castle with stone walls and a lot of windows. Looking this small beside the construction, I had the remind myself to keep my mouth closed and not to stare at it for a long time. Looking at my grandma to see what she was doing, I saw no one next to the car in the place where she had to be.

"Come on." I hear her say and see that she was already at the gate.

"Coming." I say, starting to run towards her.

As the large gate of the castle was opened by two servants, I saw an amazingly long lobby with a lot of small tables on which there were vases with different kinds of flowers, a long red and blue carpet and some portraits of people who I assumed were the ascendants of the current Royal family. The ceiling was also covered in a beige colour with some chandeliers hanging.

Walking forward and turning right just before the end of the lobby, we arrive once again before a large door.

"The Jones family." a servant says through the door.

"Let them in." I hear a voice saying.

As the servant opens the door, I see three people standing in the middle of the room that is also very large, just as the rest of the castle I've seen. It appears to be a living room, with some sofas and couches on one side, while at the other, a huge bookcase occupies the whole wall. In the middle, behind these people, I see a small table. I recognise these people as the ones from the last portrait I saw in the lobby.

Focusing now on the people I see that they are two women and a boy. The older woman is wearing a dark blue dress with long sleeves, a small hat on her head and a beautiful diamond necklace. She also has two rings on her fingers and a bracelet on her left hand. The white high heels make her look very elegant and royal. My grandma tells me that she is the former Queen, to which I slightly bend my head and my knees to greet her. The other woman is wearing a beautiful red dress with long sleeves, a crown on her head and a beautiful shiny necklace completes the dress. She has a ring on her fingers as well and the white high-heels makes her look marvelously young. She is apparently the Queen at the moment, to which I bow to her as well. The good-looking boy besides them is wearing a dark blue suit and some nicely-polished shoes. As soon as I find out that he is the Prince, I bow to him as well.

"How are you my dear Margaret?" my grandma asks the former Queen as we all sit down on the sofas.

"I am doing pretty well considering my age. What about you Barbara?" she asks my grandma.

"Doing fine, as well. I am very glad that I got to meet my granddaughter, Eileen, and that we will live together but I am sad about the reason it got to this. Anyway, how is your son, the King?"

"Oh, he is doing really great." answers the Queen. "My husband is away with business: keeping peace with our allies and trying to get others to join us."

"Oh, I see. It's just a pity we didn't get to see him today, but we will have the opportunity another time. Shouldn't we let the children get to know each other?"

"Yes, we should." said the Queen, gesticulating to me to go to the next room with Arnold.

Heading towards that door, from behind the Prince, I see how the door opens as if it was automatic. Getting through another lobby, we finally enter another room which looks like a ballroom. It has a chandelier in the middle of the room that looks so close to the floor that it almost seems like you could touch it if you're under it. The paintings on the walls and ceiling were very pretty. There were also some chairs on which the light shown, getting in through the big windows on the walls.

"Can I sit down?" I ask Arnold showing the chair.

"Yes." he says.

"So, how is it being a Prince? Do you like it?" I ask.

"Not very much." he says.

"Were you home-schooled?"

"Yes."

"Wow! So nice. By private teachers?"

"Yes, and my mom taught me foreign languages while my dad taught me about the Royal life."

"Woah, cool. And how old are you? Older than seventeen?" I ask, wondering if he's older or younger than me.

"Seventeen." he says.

"Oh. We're the same age. Hmmm. Are you tired or shy? It doesn't look like you're in the mood to talk."

"Just shy. And sorry."

"No, don't be. It's okay. It's not like you're the only shy person in the world. I also have a friend who was shy but slowly, when we became friends, she started to open up. You will also get used to me and other people that you will too open up and not be shy anymore. It will take some time but I know you will get there. Would you like me to talk about my friend and about other things while you just listen and talk when you want and are ready?"

"I'd love that." he says.

"Her name is Martha. We've met in middle school. In the first day of school, we had to go down into the yard for a start-of-year celebration and I was so lost in that school... I luckily recognized her as one of my future classmates from her profile picture on social media, as we had a group chat, so I quickly followed her and other people into the yard. As I saw a sign with my class number on it: 5 B, I knew that I was in the right place. I also introduced myself to her and other classmates, but we didn't really have time to talk as the celebration was starting, having to be quiet to hear the Principal's speech. That was followed by some dancers performing and some other speeches. Afterwards, we went back inside, in our future classroom where our Homeroom teacher said a few words about how the school will be and that we should really learn for our future. Shortly after, we were all heading home. "

" Oh, school must have been fun. "he says.

"Yes, it was. The following day, we already started doing lessons and having to go to the whiteboard and do the exercises. Martha went to the whiteboard more than anyone and when I saw how smart she was, I said I wanted to be friends with her. When it was break time, I went over to her trying to talk to her, saying that my name is Eileen and if she would like us to be friends. She didn't say anything and just kept writing in her notebook. I didn't feel as if she was rude because my mom taught me that there are a lot of shy people and to not be offended if someone doesn't answer my questions immediately or if they don't talk as much as I do. So I told her all my hobbies and what movies I like watching and about my favourite toys from childhood. After the bell rang announcing that the break was over, I went back to my seat. That class, we had to write a short essay on what traits we love seeing in people. I wrote that the traits I like are respect, empathy, creativity, kindness and honesty. " I tell him.

"These are traits everyone should have."

"I agree. So, after we wrote the essay, we handed the paper to our teacher and then we had another break which was longer so that we have plenty of time to eat. As I was taking out my sandwich and putting my books away, I saw someone approaching me. When I looked up, I saw that person was Martha. 'Can I sit here?' she asked me, showing the chair in front of me. 'Yes sure.' I said. 'What did you write in the essay? What are the traits you love seeing in people?' she asked. 'I wrote that I like respect , empathy, creativity, kindness and honesty.' I say. 'Oh, I wrote the same things.' 'Ha wow. Do you want to be friends?' I ask. 'Oh, really. I would love that.' And so, we became friends. Do you have a story like this about your friend?"

"Not really. My friend is my bodyguard, John. We've met when I was 5 years old. My parents brought him to the castle as his parents were poor and they were indebted, so, when my mom visited their house and saw what a wonderful son they had, they decided to take him as my bodyguard and the debt would be forgotten. They also got different jobs here so that they could make a living: his mom is a maid in the kitchen while his dad takes care of the horses. As we were the same age, we quickly clicked. "

"Oh, that's nice. It's good to be able to see your friend every day."

"Yeah." he said smiling, looking towards John.

"Lunch is ready." we heard someone shouting.

"We should go." Arnold says.

"Yes, let's go."

-------------------------------------------------------

I have finally published a new chapter. I only have 4k in total 😭😭😭

I hope you enjoy the book. Stay safe and healthy! ❤️