It wasn't long before an ambulance came and took Satoshi to the hospital. I couldn't stop crying as I watched the paramedics try to keep him alive during the ride there. We entered through the emergency room, and a doctor forced me to wait in the waiting room, making my heart ache as I watched them roll him away in a hospital wagon before the doors closed in front of me. I stared at the closed doors for a minute or so before I robotically walked to the waiting room and sat down on a chair.

For the next couple of hours, I did nothing but sit down and pray to The Lord that Satoshi will survive. Every passing moment felt slow as I constantly glanced at the door, hoping that it will open with a doctor to give me some news. The longer I waited, the more I grew afraid that the worst had happened.

Finally, I heard the doors next to me open to reveal, Sonia, Bonnie, Iris, Cilan, May, Drew, Dawn, Kenny, Andy, and Octavia entering the room. Iris, May, Dawn, and Bonnie didn't hesitate to pull me into a group hug the moment I stood up from my seat.

"Is Satoshi okay?" Drew asked worriedly.

"I don't know," I answered. "I've been waiting for hours and haven't heard a thing. For all I know, he could be dead right now."

Everyone looked at me with grim looks, unable to say anything to comfort me. Bonnie pulled me into another hug, trying to comfort me. I hugged her back, but deep down, I knew it wasn't helping.

"What's been going on, on your guys' end?" I asked.

My friends looked at each other before Sonia answered.

"Calem and Abigail have been arrested," she began. "With so many witnesses seeing Calem shoot Satoshi, records proving that it was Abigail's gun on top of Iris and Bonnie's testimonies revolving around Abigail's intentions to kill you, it was all the police needed to take them in."

I felt a brief moment of relief, knowing that Calem was arrested, but the relief was replaced with a feeling of shock as I reeled the other half what Sonia just said.

"Wait, Abigail attempted to kill me?" I asked.

Iris nodded and said, "Bonnie and I overheard her and Jessie talking from the catwalk. Princess Miette told Satoshi that Abigail would kill you if you came back for him."

"It's true," Bonnie said while still hugging me. "That's why Satoshi sided with the princess. She was going to kill you if he stayed with you."

I stared at my short friend, dumbfounded. I knew the princess would go through lengths to make Satoshi turn his back on me, but I would never have guessed that she would have me murdered.

"I can't believe it," I said. "This whole thing is the princess's fault. If she didn't threaten to kill me, Abigail wouldn't have been there, and Calem could never have gotten his hands on that gun."

Drew frowned and said, "I wish I knew Calem would go so far to keep you and Satoshi from being together as to try to kill him. If I had, I would have made sure the other hosts would have kept holding him down until we did something with the gun."

May patted Drew's back, trying to comfort him. I stayed silent for a moment, wishing the same thing before I asked, "What about Princess Miette?"

"We don't know," Cilan answered. "I saw her leave after the curtain went down and she didn't come back. My guess is she was already out of the building before everyone else in the auditorium heard the gunshots. Naturally, we were all panicking with no idea where the shots came from or if we were all in danger. We all ran out of the theater before the police and the ambulance arrived. Octavia, Andy, and I didn't come back until Iris told us what happened."

Octavia and Andy nodded to back up Cilan's explanation. I frowned, wondering what the princess was going to do with her servant arrested. Finally, the door to the emergency room opened, and we turned around to see a doctor walking toward us. I immediately broke the hug with Bonnie and walked over to the doctor with a pleading look.

"Is Satoshi..." I asked, unable to finish my question.

The doctor sighed and said, "He's stable for now. The bullet didn't hit his lungs, ribs, or any blood vessels, but he still lost a lot of blood."

I let out a big sigh of relief until the doctor continued.

"His thigh was not so lucky," he said. "The bullet that hit it pierced some muscles and the bone."

My worry came back, and I asked, "What does that mean?"

"It means his leg is permanently damaged," the doctor answered bluntly. "He won't be able to walk normally again."

I looked at him devastated, and Dawn and May quickly placed their hands on my shoulders to try to comfort me. I looked at them and gave them a look of appreciation before turning back to the doctor.

"Can I see him?" I asked.

"Are you a relative?" The doctor asked.

"I'm his girlfriend," I answered.

The doctor frowned and said, "Does he have any family members?"

I opened my mouth to answer until I realized something and turned to my friends.

"Where is Jessie?" I asked.

My friends looked at each other before Sonia answered, "I don't think I've seen her at all since before the shooting."

"Is this Jessie a relative?" The doctor asked.

I hesitated and said, "She's kind of more the person who kept an eye on him on his family's behalf."

"Is there any way you can contact her or his family?" The doctor asked.

"No, there isn't," I answered. "And frankly, everyone here are the only people who care about him. You'd likely be wasting your time even if you could contact his family.

Sonia, Bonnie, May, Drew, Dawn, Kenny, Octavia, and Andy nodded to back me up. The doctor sighed, uneasy with the situation.

"Do you plan to stay the night?" He asked.

"Yes," I answered.

"Very well," the doctor said. "But you'll have to wait until they've moved him to a room a couple floors up, and he'll have to rest for the night."

"I understand," I said.

The doctor left the room without saying another word. I sat back down in my seat while Iris and Bonnie sat down on the chairs next to me and patted me on the back.

"Don't worry, Serena, he's going to be okay," Iris said.

"Yeah, but his leg is badly damaged," I said. "How is he going to take the fact that he's never going to walk normally again?"

My friends looked down glumly, admitting I have a point. May then smiled sadly and kneeled in front of me.

"But you'll be there," she pointed out. "It might not be as hard for Satoshi if you're there to comfort him."

I gave her a sad smile and said, "That's true. Now that I have him back, I'm going to stay by his side."

"There you go," May said. "And don't forget that we'll be here to help both of you."

"May's right," Dawn said. "We're your friends. We'll help you both out."

"You can count on me," Kenny said.

"Me too," Drew said.

"Andy and I have your backs," Octavia announced with Andy nodding.

"Same with us," Cilan said, speaking for both him and Iris.

Sonia placed her hand on my shoulder and said, "Serena, I can't deny that I'm still hurt that you caused trouble because you and Satoshi secretly dated behind our backs, but you have pulled through in giving Spectacular, Spectacular the ending it deserved on top of giving us back our show. I also won't deny that what I saw on stage that you and Satoshi have a love that is worth fighting for. It would be an honor to help you two out."

I smiled appreciatively at my teacher before I frowned sadly.

"I suppose the show is canceled from future showings now that we've lost our star after a shooting," I said.

Sonia, my friends frowned and Sonia nodded.

"Yes, I think that is unavoidable," she said. "Honesty, I'm worried about the future of our theater since Princess Miette's name is on the lease. No doubt she's going to do something now that we've rebelled against her wishes on top of the hosts getting injured. Having one of our actors shoot the star on opening night is terrible publicity for our art program and, most likely the host club."

We all looked at Sonia worriedly, and Dawn asked, "Does that mean we're going to lose our theater after just one show after everything we've worked on?"

Sonia sighed in defeat and said, "I'm afraid so. The Art Revolution is most likely over now."

My art friends looked at the head of our program, devastated. Andy and Cilan quickly hold their respective girlfriends for comfort. Dawn unknowingly turned to Kenny and hugged him, and he hugged her back. Bonnie looked down, about to cry and I patted her on the back. Drew puts his hand on May's shoulder and she instantly turned around to hug him tightly with his shoulder covering her face. Drew was taken aback for a moment before he held her tight as she silently cried. I look at my friends sadly, knowing their dreams were crushed.

"I'm sorry, everyone," I said. "I guess in this regard it really is Satoshi's and my fault. Maybe it would have better if we didn't get the show at all so that you wouldn't be going through this."

My friends all turned to me in shock, and Andy said, "Don't beat yourself up, Serena. Even if you caused trouble, you still fixed the show in a way where we would have forced Princess Miette to keep the new ending. If anything, all the blame should be on the princess and Calem."

"Andy is right," Octavia said. "None of this would have happened if they weren't trying to keep you and Satoshi apart for their greedy desires. As far as we're concerned, everything is their fault and I for one hope Calem, in particular, rots away in prison."

The rest of my classmates said words of agreement at the same time. Sonia stayed silent before a small smirk emerged from her face.

"Well, on the bright side, the host club will probably go down with the theater," she said. "Between Jessie's most popular host getting shot because another one attempted to murder him and the rest of the club apart from Paul betrayed her, she probably has no choice but to shut the club down."

Drew smirked and turned to May.

"If that's the case, then I guess I'm out of a job," he said. "With that said, I wouldn't mind taking the chance of pursuing something with you if you'll have me, May."

May smiled, feeling her heart skip a beat. But then her smile turned to a threatening glare, and she grabbed Drew by the suit.

"I'm perfectly fine with starting a relationship with you, Drew," she said. "But, you must never put your reputation or anything else before me again."

Drew smiled while May continued to glare at him. Then before the brown-haired girl knows it, the green-haired boy planted a firm kiss on her cheek. Dawn let out a quiet gasp while Iris, Bonnie, and I stared at the display surprised. May stood still like a statue in shock even after Drew pulled back and smirked at her.

"Promise," he said.

It took a moment before May snapped out of her shocked state and looked at Drew with a bashful smile. The rest of us smiled at their moment until the door to the emergency room opened to reveal the doctor coming back. I immediately get up from my seat to face him again.

"Satoshi is in his new room," he said. "He's asleep, so if any of you apart from his girlfriend want to see him, you can only stay for a couple minutes or so before you have to leave to let him rest."

"We understand," Sonia said.

"Good," the doctor said. "Please follow me."

I didn't hesitate to obey him while my friends walked behind me. The doctor led us to the elevator, and we went up a couple of floors before going down another hall to Satoshi's room. As we walked, I decided to ask the doctor some questions.

"Does Satoshi know about his leg?" I asked.

The doctor turned to me as we walked and said, "Yes, I told him before he fell asleep," he answered.

I frowned and asked, "So what's the plan concerning that and his chest wound?"

"That's where I would like for you to contact his family," the doctor said. "The chest wound will heal for about ten days, and even then, it'll be months before he stops being in pain. Ideally, he'll have to go through about six to eight weeks of therapy for his leg, but that depends on what kind of insurance his family has because it will cost a fair amount of money."

I grew concerned, knowing how Satoshi's family doesn't like him, and began to hope that they will pay for his time for healing in spite of that. I put the thought in the back of my mind, however, as the doctor turned right and lead us inside a room where I gasped in shock. Satoshi was lying on a hospital bed with a large, white bandage on his chest, and his left leg also bandaged and hanging up on a sling. There were needles injected in his arm and he had a grimace look of pain while he slept. I felt tears in my eyes as I walked over to pet his head, sad that my poor Satoshi was in agony. My friends surrounded me as I then took Satoshi's hand and held it close to me.

"He'll be in this much pain for months?" I checked out a sob.

"Not as bad as this, but he will feel some degree of pain for roughly that long," the doctor clarified.

I felt slightly relieved with this information, but I was still upset with what Satoshi was going through. Once again, Bonnie, Iris, Dawn, and May stood behind me and started patting me on the back or shoulder for comfort while everyone else just looked at Satoshi sadly. We stayed like this for a couple of minutes until the doctor cleared his throat.

"Alright, it's late, so I have to ask the rest of you to leave," he said.

"Of course," Sonia said calmly. "I'll try to get in contact with Jessie tomorrow. She should help you get in contact with Satoshi's family."

"Thank you. I appreciate that," the doctor said.

With that, everyone started saying their goodbyes to me. The girls all gave me hugs with Dawn hugging me last.

"Are you going to be okay, Serena?" She asked.

I looked at Satoshi and said, "As long as he's alive, I will be. I would be remiss if I said I wasn't worried about what he's going to go through with his leg or whether or not his family will help, though."

Dawn frowned and asked, "Yeah, I've been meaning to ask, what did you mean when you said the doctor would be wasting his time trying to contact Satoshi's family?"

I grimaced while still looking away from her and said, "It's private information."

Dawn frowned at my answer before she sighed and said, "Okay. We'll come back to visit as soon as we can tomorrow."

I turned to her and gave her an appreciative smile before Kenny stepped in.

"I'll walk you back to your dorm if you'd like, Dawn," he said.

Dawn smiled at her best friend and said, "I'd like that."

I smiled as I watched the two of them leave together, hoping that maybe it will lead to something else between the childhood friends. My smile then turned into a sad frown as I turned to Satoshi. I put up a chair next to his bed and sat down with my eyes fixed on him. He still had a look of agony as he slept. I took his hand again and held it up to hug his arm and stroked his hand with my cheek.

"Lord, please help Satoshi to heal soon," I prayed. "And may you soften the hearts of his family that they will cover him so that he will get the help he needs."

********************************************************************************

The next day, I woke up to the feel of a hand, caressing my cheek softly. I slowly opened my eyes to realize that I fell asleep using the side of Satoshi's bed as a pillow. I noticed the hand, and my eyes widened before I quickly lifted my head to see Satoshi looking at me. He gave me a weak smile and my eyes began to water, relieved to see him awake.

"Hey, beautiful," Satoshi said. "Sleep well?"

I choked out a laugh from him calling me beautiful, and I leaned in to give him a soft kiss. He moved his other hand to hold my other cheek as he kissed me back while still laying down before I pulled back to look at him relieved.

"How are you feeling?" I asked.

Satoshi let out a groan and said, "My chest and leg hurt like you wouldn't believe, but I feel better with you here."

I snorted out a chuckle and said, "That sounds more like the words of a host than a normal person."

"Granted, but I'm serious when I say that I'm happy you're here, Serena," Satoshi said. "Plus, we both know there's nothing normal about our relationship."

"True," I admitted.

We stayed silent while we were lost in each other's eyes, with his hand still on my cheek. After a while, I smile faltered slightly before I reluctantly brought up a sour subject.

"So, I learned from Iris and Bonnie that Princess Miette threatened to have me killed," I said.

Satoshi frowned and said, "Yes, she did. The night I tried to persuade her to keep your ending, she told me that part of the contract Jessie signed involved Abigail dealing with anything that interfered with her plans to ultimately obtain me."

"And you knew you had to protect me even if you had to break my heart in the process," I said.

"Yes," Satoshi answered. "I hoped that my act would have broken your determination to fight for me so that you'd be safe, but like I said last night, I should have known you'd figure it out."

"Well, you did tell me that you'd do anything to protect me a couple of times," I said with a small smirk before my face turned serious again. "That said, I can't believe she would go that far just to literally possess you."

"Neither can I," Satoshi said. "I guess in the end, we both had someone who would go through horrible lengths to keep us apart."

I nodded before I smiled slightly and said, "But they failed, and that's the important thing. Love overcame all obstacles in the end, just like the prince and the sitar player."

Satoshi chucked before he said, "That's right, though I envy the prince for not getting shot."

My smile immediately disappeared, and I turned my head to look at his leg.

"How do you feel about your leg?" I asked.

Satoshi looked at his leg sadly and said, "I honestly don't know yet. I mean, it's not like I'm paralyzed or anything, but I don't think it's going to hit me until I can get off this bed and start to experience walking differently."

"I'm more worried about whether or not your physical therapy will be paid for," I said. "Sonia said that she was going to try and contact Jessie so that she could contact your family. "

Satoshi frowned bitterly and said, "I doubt it will do any good."

"I know. I said as much to the doctor last night," I said.

"You didn't tell him everything, did you?" Satoshi asked.

"Of course not. Just said that he would be wasting his time trying to contact them," I said assuringly.

Satoshi smiled, appreciative that I kept his past a secret. He started caressing my cheek again, and I wrapped my arms around his arm tightly as if it was Satoshi himself. Just then, we heard a knock on the door, and I turned around to see Jessie with a tall man with blue hair standing next to her carrying a suitcase. Jessie had a cold look on her face as the two adults let themselves in with Satoshi and I glaring at Jessie.

"Jessie," Satoshi greeted bluntly. "I assume Sonia contacted you?"

"She did not," Jessie said, not looking at him directly. "We are here on behalf of Mr. Giovanni."

"Satoshi's father knows what happened?" I asked.

"He does, but I wouldn't exactly call Mr. Giovanni this welp's father anymore," Jessie said.

Satoshi and I looked at her, confused, and I asked, "What do you mean?"

Jessie turned to the man and nodded. The man opened his briefcase and handed out a piece of paper to Jessie. The magenta-haired woman walked over to the other side of Satoshi's bed and handed the paper to him. I watched Satoshi read the paper, confused until his eyes widened.

"My father disowned me?!" He exclaimed.

"What?!" I shouted in shock. "How can he do that?"

Jessie scoffed and said, "Don't act so surprised. From what I've overheard when I came in, I figured Satoshi told you everything about his relationship with Mr. Giovanni. As such, you should realize that my boss and his family already want nothing to do with him. Your precious boyfriend may have been useful while at Galar Academy as a host, but that was before he took part in destroying an investment with Princess Miette's theater and severed a rare business opportunity between Rocket Incorporated and the Galar royal family. Not to mention, he's the reason you ruined my host club by turning nearly all of my employees against me. I shouldn't have to explain how that's more than enough cause to finally get rid of this brat once and for all."

"But Mr. Giovanni agreed to take care of him!" I shouted. "Satoshi needs financial help for healing and physical therapy for his leg!"

Jessie scoffed coldly and said, "I think I speak for both myself and my boss when I say we could care less about damaged goods that used to benefit my business and nearly secured a business deal like no other. Besides, Mr. Giovanni only made that deal to silence an irritating woman that no one has seen since it's not like she can go back on her part of the deal when she's not around."

"Satoshi is not damaged goods!" I shouted, infuriated. "He's a human being!"

"He's a useless subordinate," Jessie said unfazed. "You may defend him as much as you like, but the fact is he's your problem now."

I grinded my teeth and barked, "Stop talking about Satoshi like he's -"

"It's fine, Serena," Satoshi interrupted.

I turned to my beloved, confused with what he just said. Jessie also turned to Satoshi, who looked at her with a bitter look.

"I knew my father would disown me if I didn't get the princess, and I don't care that I am, " he said. "If anything, I'm relieved. I don't know what I'm going to do with how I'll have my time in the hospital taken care of financially, but I do know that I'm tired of trying to prove my worth to my father and his wretched family. All my life I've been ashamed for what I am and saw myself as something only worth what pretty rich girls would pay for. But Serena? She loves me. She loves me for who I am and wants to bring out the best in me. I will gladly be impoverished for the rest of my life if that is what it takes to stay by her side with her love forever."

I looked at Satoshi with a sweet smile, touched by his words. Jessie, on the other hand, scoffed again in amusement.

"How sentimental of you," she said mockingly. "I hope you enjoy your time together penniless."

"And I hope your wealth with comfort the fact that you'll never get a chance to be the center of the spotlight again," Satoshi countered.

Jessie glared at Satoshi, but he just smirked, pleased that he touched a nerve. With a low growl, Jessie coldly left the room with the tall man following her robotically. I watched them leave, amused until I turned to my boyfriend with a worried look.

"What are we going to do now?" I asked.

Satoshi frowned and said, "I don't know. I'm not inherently surprised that my father would be upset for what I did last night, but I didn't think he would disown me so flippantly for it."

"Me neither," I said. "Regardless, we need to think of something to pay for your expenses here. Maybe I can find a job and earn the money."

"No way," Satoshi said seriously. "I get that you're determined to help me, and that's one of the reasons why I love you, but I can't let you do that."

"Satoshi, you need to heal and have your leg taken care of," I said. "I can't stand you not getting the care you need when I can help. I know it will be tough, but getting the treatment you need is more important than how you get the treatment. Come what may, right?"

Satoshi looked at me disapprovingly for a moment before he sighed in defeat.

"You are a very stubborn girl," He said.

I smiled and leaned in to give him a soft kiss on the lips.

"Perhaps, but I'm your stubborn girl," I said proudly.

Satoshi smiled back and lifted his arm to put his hand on my cheek again. We stay like this until we heard a knock on the door, and I turned around to see Sonia, Bonnie, Iris, Cilan, May, Drew, Dawn, Kenny, Octavia, and Andy entering the room. Satoshi and I smiled as they entered the room with Drew and May standing on the opposite side of Satoshi's bed.

"Hey, man, glad to see you're awake," Drew said.

"Thanks," Satoshi said.

"I bet you're relieved that he's awake, Serena," Bonnie said cheerfully.

I smiled at my short friend and said, "I sure am."

The rest of our friends smiled at us before Sonia stepped in.

"We saw Jessie passing by with some guy on our way here," she said. "Did she make contact with your family, Satoshi?"

Satoshi and I frowned and looked at each other sadly.

"She did," he answered. "And my father just disowned me."

"WHAT?!" Everyone exclaimed.

"Why on Earth would he do that?" Octavia asked.

"It's a long story," Satoshi answered. "Basically, my father's company was supposed to gain a large business opportunity with the royal family through me marrying the princess. But now that I ruined their chance because I chose Serena over her, I'm no longer of any use to them."

"And now Satoshi doesn't have any financial help to cover for him being here or to get physical therapy for his leg," I finished sadly.

Our friends looked at us in disbelief, appalled that Satoshi's family did what they did. The room was quiet until Bonnie turned to me with a cheerful smile.

"Well, that's no problem," she said optimistically. "I can ask my parents to cover the expenses for you guys."

Satoshi and I looked at her surprised, and the former said, "Bonnie, that's really sweet, but we couldn't possibly -"

"Yes, you can," Dawn interrupted. "I say we all chip in for you. We all come from rich families, right? Whatever the cost won't put a dent in our parents' finances. Besides, our parents will completely understand if we explain that's for a friend in need."

"I agree. Count me in," Kenny said with a smile.

"I got your backs," May said.

"Same here," Drew said.

"I'd be happy to do it," Iris said.

"It would be an honor," Cilan said with a bow.

"Andy and I will chip in no matter what," Octavia said.

"What my lady said," Andy said confidently.

Sonia gave Satoshi and me a kind smile and said, "I want to aid you two to the end. Please let us help you."

Satoshi and I looked at each other, and we smiled, thinking the exact same thing.

"Thank you, you guys," I said.

"I can't thank you enough," Satoshi said.

"Hey, don't sweat it. That's what friends are for," Bonnie said. "Though with that said, what are you guys going to do once you're fully healed?"

Satoshi and I frowned and looked at each other.

"I don't know," Satoshi admitted. "I want to stay with Serena, so I'll go wherever she goes. It probably goes without saying that I can't stay in Galar Academy with my connection with Jessie completely severed."

"Well, I'm a member of the school board, too," Sonia pointed out. "Since you are a senior, we can arrange it so that you can finish the rest of your high school year in summer school so that you can graduate."

"That's a good idea," Iris commented. "You'll at least have a high school diploma so that you can start somewhere in your life.

"Not to mention it'll give you something to keep you occupied while you're in physical therapy for several weeks," Cilan added. "And we can provide you with means for you to live somewhere until you get up on your feet, Satoshi."

"Thank you, Cilan," Satoshi admitted before turning to me. "What about you, Serena? Do you think you'll stay?"

I thought about it for a moment and said, "I think so. After all, I still have my scholarship, so I can keep pursuing my dream to be a writer."

Satoshi smiled at me and said, "Good. I don't want what happened last night stop you from writing. It would be a waste of talent and I know how much it means to you."

I give my boyfriend a sweet smile and caress his cheek before I lean in for a brief kiss. Our friends smiled at our moment before it is interrupted by another knock on the door. Everyone but Satoshi turned our heads to see a pair of security men entering the room with their eyes fixed on Sonia.

"Ms. Magnolia?" One of them asked.

"Uh, yes. Can I help you?" Sonia asked.

"We would like you and your students to come with us," the other said.

We all looked at each other in confusion before Sonia asked, "Is something wrong?"

"Just come with us, please," the first one said. "This is a private matter."

I frowned, not wanting to leave Satoshi's side. Bonnie, Iris, Cilan May, Drew, Dawn, Kenny, Andy, Octavia, and I looked at each other, wondering what these two men want us for.

"Do I have to go?" Drew asked.

"Are you in the Galar Academy's art program?" A security person asked.

"No," Drew answered.

"Then stay here," the man ordered.

Drew nodded and turned to me.

"I'll keep Satoshi company," he said.

I gave him an appreciative smile before turning to Satoshi.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," I promised.

"I'll be waiting," Satoshi said.

I give him another soft kiss on the lips before I reluctantly followed the security men out of the room with Sonia, Bonnie, Iris, Cilan, May, Dawn, Kenny, Octavia, and Andy. I already began to miss my beloved as we walked down the halls and went inside an elevator. One of the security men pressed a button, and we went up to the top floor before the two men led us down the hall to a meeting room for doctors. Standing in front of the glass window was Principal Magnolia and a man with orange hair and beard dressed in a fine suit. Sonia, Bonnie, Iris, Cilan, May, Dawn, Kenny, Octavia, and Andy are quick to bow to the man humbly and I took a moment before I awkwardly did the same. The man chuckled with his mouth closed, amused with my hesitation.

"I take it you don't know who I am, Ms. Yvonne?" He asked.

"Uh, I can't say I do, sir," I said, lifting my head.

"I thought not since you live in the Kalos region," he said. "I am Lysandre, the king of Galar."

My eyes widened, realizing that this was Princess Miette's father. My heart shook, knowing he was here regarding last night. For all I knew, he was here to punish for publicly defying his daughter. I glanced at my friends and they looked like they felt the same way as they started at the floor while still bowing.

"But enough of introductions. You can all stop bowing," King Lysandre said. "Please, take a seat."

We all silently obeyed King Lysandre with Principal Magnolia sitting next to him and Somia sitting next to her grandmother on the other side. Once we were all seated, the king was silent for a moment before he started talking again.

"It probably goes without saying that this meeting is in regards to what happened last night between all of you and Princess Miette," he said. "I can honestly say that I'm displeased that my daughter has gone to such lengths as having a contract to legally allow her woman servant to murder for her goals."

"Maybe you should bother to pay close attention to what your daughter is up to," I snarled without thinking.

My friends all turned to me, horrified with what I abruptly said to the king. Even a Principal Magnolia dropped her wooden demeanor to look at me appalled. My eyes widened, and I quickly bowed my head.

"Forgive me, Your Highness," I begged. "I shouldn't have -"

"It's alright, Ms. Yvonne. I completely understand," the king said calmly. "You have every right to be upset with my lack of restrictions on my daughter. I hope it comforts you to know that Princess Miette is being punished for her actions, and I have allowed Abigail to stay imprisoned for attempted murder."

I grew less tense, relieved that I have been pardoned, and pleased that Princess Miette and Abigail were being punished. My relief disappeared, however, as I realized that the king didn't say anything about Calem also staying in jail.

"All that to say, there are issues regarding the public image of the royal family and my close friend, Duke Xavier," King Lysandre said. "I speak for both myself and the duke when I express my deepest apologies for Calem Xavier's horrendous actions, but I cannot condone word getting out that my friend's son attempted murder or that my daughter was a part of it."

My friends and I looked at each other, already knowing that we are going to hate where this is going.

"Fortunately, while the cast and crew of your play witnessed what happened, the audience who are people of wealth and high-class currently have no idea. All they have heard were two loud bangs coming from the other side of the curtains and saw someone being put in an ambulance," King Lysandre said. "My people were quick to keep word from getting out that Calem shot Mr. Satoshi, but people will eventually want answers of what happened after they enjoyed watching a play. This is where all of you come in."

King Lysandre then took out a suitcase from under the table and opened it. He took out sheets of papers and handed one to each of us except for Principal Magnolia.

"These are written statements," the king said. "By signing them, you agree to be silent about what happened. If anyone asks, simply say there was an accident that injured Satoshi."

"Are you insane?" Andy shouted. "You're telling us to lie about an attempted murder just so that there aren't any charges to keep Calem locked up!"

"Yeah, and no one will learn about the princess's part in this either," Dawn said.

My eyes widened, shocked with what Andy and Dawn said. Everyone else looked at King Lysandre in disbelief while he, himself, was unfazed.

"That's the idea," he said.

"Why in the world would we agree to something like this?" Kenny said. "You're suggesting we let someone who almost killed our friend get away with his crime."

"Oh, Duke Xavier does plan to keep him in house arrest for a year or so," King Lysandre responded.

"That's not enough!" I said. "I don't care if he's the son of some duke. I'm not okay with going to school here in Galar while that monster is out of jail."

King Lysandre frowned and said, "And who said you're going to stay in Galar Academy?"

We looked at him, confused and May asked, "What do you mean?"

"Look at the back of your statement," he said to me.

I frowned and turned my statement around. My friends waited for me for about a minute before I looked at the king in disbelief.

"You're kicking me out of Galar Academy?" I screamed.

"What?" Sonia, Bonnie, Iris, Cilan, May, Dawn, Kenny, Octavia, and Andy shouted.

Sonia turned to Principal Magnolia and said, "Grandmother, he can't do this. Serena did nothing wrong."

"Maybe not legally speaking, but to some degree, this whole mess is because of her," King Lysandre answered for Sonia's grandmother. "Ms. Yvonne knew that Satoshi was exclusively bound to Princess Miette and yet dated her host behind her back. If it wasn't for that, my daughter wouldn't have tried to interfere with your play when she found out about the relationship and would threaten to have Ms. Yvonne killed. Furthermore, if word gets out about what really happened, it would be bad for all of you as well."

"His Highness is right, Sonia," Principal Magnolia said with a serious look. "News of Galar Academy students from wealthy and high-class families causing trouble against a member of the royal family could be bad for the reputation and public image of Galar Academy, your art program, your students, and their chances of pursuing careers in their respective professions, not to mention their entire families."

"But we weren't the ones attempting to kill people," Bonnie pointed out.

"And Princess Miette is still the heir to my throne," King Lysandre countered. "My daughter is not a tolerant girl. If any of you cause further trouble for her, she'll make sure to make things miserable for you and your families when she becomes queen. I'm offering you all the chance to avoid that, but I can't do anything for you when I'm gone, and she's queen."

"But that's not fair," May protested.

"It doesn't matter what is fair," the king said uncaringly. "You brought this on yourselves by being uncooperative to the princess of Galar. So, you can either be silent for all of our sakes or bring trouble to yourselves just because you want justice."

"And what do expect me to do if you're forcing me out of school?" I asked. "Am I to just leave Galar and never come back?"

"I think that would be best for you," King Lysandre answered. "Frankly, between my daughter's jealousy and her taking the credibility of your writing, it stands to reason that you don't have much of a future here in Galar. I would also suggest that you get your boyfriend out of my kingdom as well. Even with Calem restrained and expelled from the school, I can't see Satoshi staying here be any good."

I frowned and looked down, reluctantly admitting that he was right. I would never get a chance to make a name for myself as a writer in Galar when there's bad blood between the royal family and me. Plus, since Satoshi had just said that he'll go wherever I go, he had no reason to stay apart from finishing school. But even so, the only place I can go is back home, and I don't know if my mother would approve of bringing Satoshi home with me just because he's my boyfriend. But if the two of us were to find a way to live through the situation we were in as a teenage couple with one of us disowned from his family, I had to use my wit. I turned to my friends and they were all looking at each other glumly, silently deciding to agree to the king's deal for their families. One by one, they signed their respective statements until I was the only one left.

"Well, Ms. Yvonne?" King Lysandre asked.

I took a moment to think further before I gave him a response.

"I have conditions," I said.

King Lysandre frowned while everyone else was surprised.

"You're in no position to make demands," he said. "I am the king, and you are in my jurisdiction."

"And pointing our you are the king works both ways," I countered. "As a king and a father, you have a responsibility to what happens in your country and what your heir does. By your own words, you have admitted to oversight with what Princess Miette has done in Galar Academy, meaning if Calem did kill Satoshi or if Abigail killed me, then our blood would be just as much as your hands as them and your daughter. Furthermore, being the heir to the throne or the son of some highly respected duke doesn't change the fact that they have committed or almost committed crimes that they would be punished for if it were any other person. So, as far as I'm concerned, Satoshi and I deserve compensation as foreigners in your region that you have wronged."

The room was in complete silence after I said my piece. None of my friends or Principal Magnolia could believe that I spoke to the king that way. The king himself was looking at me skeptically before he looked away in thought before nodding slightly.

"Fair enough," King Lysandre admitted before turning to me. "What are your terms?"

I smirked, knowing that I have the king where I want him before I replied.

"My demands are simple," I began. "Firstly, I want you to allow Satoshi and I to stay in Galar long enough for Satoshi to heal and complete his physical therapy as well as finish his school work so that he can graduate over the summer."

King Lysandre looked at me skeptically before he said, "I suppose you are hoping Satoshi could find work to make a living somehow by having a high school diploma?"

"Yes, and to give me time to figure out what we'll do once we go back to Kalos together," I said.

"Hmm. Well, there's no guarantee that things will go your way just like that, but that might be the best way to handle your situation," King Lysandre admitted. "What's your next demand?"

"My next demand is that you make arrangements to transfer me to the best school possible to help me continue pursuing writing back in Kalos," I answered.

The king looked at me skeptically and turned to Principal Magnolia, who nodded.

"That can be arranged," she said. "Serena is a very hardworking student, and she certainly has the talent in writing that should still be pursued."

King Lysandre debated in his head before he said, "Very well. Anything else?"

I started to think about whether or not there is something else I can demand from King Lysandre. With my other demands met and my friends promising to help Satoshi find a place to live, there didn't seem to be anything else. But then, a small smile emerged from my face as I realized that there was something special that I can do for the love of my life through a powerful man like the king. I reached into my pocket and took out Satoshi's golden locket. Everyone looked at me in confusion as I opened the locket and handed it to King Lysandre.

"I want you to use all your resources by any means to find and contact this woman."