For the next several weeks, Satoshi and I continued our secret relationship under Princess Miette's nose. Every day, Satoshi would entertain the princess during business hours at the host club. When business hours end, the princess will request more time with Satoshi only for him to disappoint her by saying that he needs to meet with me for tutoring and working on the play. Once she leaves his room, Satoshi would sneak out through his secret passageway and make his way to my dorm where we worked on homework and the show together before we would kiss, talk, and eventually cuddle whenever we wanted to. As time went on, we grew closer, and while I'm not there yet either, I became more confident that my boyfriend will begin to open up and eventually fall in love with me.

Unfortunately, we would often be apart during the weekends. Even though it wasn't in the contract, Jessie and Princess Miette had arranged it so that Satoshi would have to spend every weekend with the princess. Jessie was determined to use that time to trick the princess into believing she was growing closer with Satoshi to strengthen the chance of taking him as her groom. Meanwhile, I would spend the weekend showing my progress with writing the show with Sonia, May, Iris, Cilan, Harley, and Dawn, to go over lines, composing songs, and discuss tech stuff, costumes, and sets.

As we continued to develop the play, my friends and I grew excited that we were making wonderful progress for the art program's very first play. But underneath my excitement, my heart was aching, imagining what Satoshi might be doing to please the princess. The thought of him caressing her cheek or saying sweet words to her and the princess would swoon and sigh blissfully while looking at him the indecorous way she did the night of the ball wherever he wouldn't be looking tormented me inside. I wished I knew for a fact what the two of them were doing whenever he had to be with her.

Fortunately, my wish came true halfway through the fall semester. It was Monday on the third week of October, and I had just finished class for the day. I walked back to the art program dormitories together with Bonnie, Iris, Dawn, May, and Octavia before we all went inside our respective dorms. Once inside my room, I quickly tossed my backpack onto my bed and sat down on my desk, eager to get some writing out of the way before Satoshi would come after host club hours. I struggle to stay focused as I typed, but my hands were shaking and my heart was racing, eager to see my boyfriend again.

It wasn't until a couple hours after class that I was several pages into writing a scene when I heard a knock on the door.

"Who is it?" I asked, with my eyes still on my typewriter.

"A lonely prince wondering if his beloved sitar player would let him in," Satoshi said from the other side of the door in a singing voice.

I froze in place in the middle of writing a line of dialogue, and I smiled brightly. I got up from my chair, closed the curtains, and raced to the other side of the room. As soon as I flung my door open, Satoshi came in with a big smile on his face and lifted me up in his arms. I let a yelp of surprise before I giggled and wrapped my arms around his neck as he spun me around. Eventually, he put me down, and I took a moment to close and lock the door before I placed my hands on Satoshi's cheeks and leaned in for a kiss. When I pulled back, we stared at each other for a moment before we hugged each other tightly.

"I missed you," Satoshi said.

"I missed you too," I said with a sigh. "I hate that you had to spend time with the princess after class even though you have to put up with her all weekend."

"I know," Satoshi said, resting his head again mind as we hugged. "It feels like I went to some faraway place away from you every time it's the weekend."

I moved my head back and looked at him worriedly.

"You didn't have to do anything more than you normally do, did you?" I asked.

Satoshi gave me a frown and said, "You know I don't. I thought we've been past you asking that question."

I frowned back and looked away, saying, "I know. I just can't help but worry. It feels like any moment Jessie will tell you to take your act further by having you kiss her or something."

Satoshi's frown turned into a smirk as he moved my face to look at him with his hand on my cheek.

"You don't have to worry about that, all right?" He said. "Jesse hasn't said anything, and even then Princess Miette doesn't want us to do that yet if ever. Apparently, she's so deep into the illusion that she thinks we should hold off something like kissing or holding hands or something like that until many months later into our fake relationship. And even then, anything I do with her means nothing compared to when I'm with you."

I smiled and put both of my hands on his hand that's on my cheek as he caressed it.

"You'd tell me if you had to, though, right?" I asked

Satoshi nodded and said, "Promise."

We leaned in for another kiss and stared at each other silently until Satoshi spoke again.

"How about your weekend? Everything progressing, okay?" He asked.

My smile grew, and I said, "It's progressing very well. Spectacular, Spectacular grows more complete by the day, and we've heard that the theater will be ready to use before winter break."

"I heard that from Princess Miette. That's wonderful," Satoshi said. "Your friends are getting their theater, and you're getting closer to tell your first story about love. I'm happy for you."

"Aw, thank you, Satoshi," I said before I remembered something. "Speaking of which, May and Cilan composed a solo song for you."

Satoshi looked at me, taken aback.

"Really? I'm singing a song on my own?" he asked.

I covered my mouth to hide a giggle and said, "Of course, silly. Did you really we wouldn't give you one when you're the star of our show?"

Satoshi thought about it for a moment before he shrugged, silently admitting I had a point.

"So, are we gonna have to get together with them to teach me the song?" He asked.

"Nope, that's the best part. I'm going to teach it to you right now," I said cheerfully. "May figured I would want to so that I can still keep you for myself for the day, which I absolutely do."

Satoshi smiled and said, "I guess having a couple people know about us has some advantages."

"I agree," I said as I grabbed his hand. "Now let's get started on homework and then work on the song. The sooner we finish both..."

"...the sooner we go back to kissing," Satoshi finished with a flirtatious grin.

The two of us giggled as I led him back to the other side of the room where Satoshi sat down on the side of my bed, and we took out our homework out of our backpacks. Even though Satoshi is a senior, and I'm a freshman, I was able to understand what some of his classes like algebra and science, were trying to teach him. In short, years of working hard as a student came in handy for Satoshi, and it looked like a perfect opportunity to know what to expect in my senior year.

After two hours of homework, Satoshi let out a long groan, relieved to be done.

"Ugh, that equation was so hard to understand," he complained.

"Oh, be quiet, you big baby," I said with an amused smirk. "You'll get the hang of it."

"Doubt it," Satoshi grumbled before his annoyed look turned into one of excitement. "But enough with that. Let's practice your new song already."

My smirk turned into a happy smile, and I said, "Right," before the two of us put away our homework in our backpacks. I opened a drawer in my desk and took out some sheet music stamped together and handed them to Satoshi.

"Your Song?" Satoshi read the title out loud skeptically. "No offense, Serena, but I don't think that's your best name yet for a song name."

I rolled my eyes and said, "Not every name has to be creative, Satoshi. Besides, it's appropriate for what is happening in the scene?"

"How so?" Satoshi asked.

"Well, at this point in the play, the prince has grown to adore the sitar player so much that he wants to express his feelings in a song," I explained. "But he doesn't know how to write music, so he has his royal musicians write a song for him. He tells them everything he deeply wants to say to the sitar player, and the musicians compose the song, thinking he's making it to woo the maharani."

"Ah, how sneaky," Satoshi commented with a grin. "So does he sing this when they are secretly meeting?"

"Yup, the next time the two of them meet, he surprises her with the song," I answered while taking out my phone. "Cilan and May also made some work-in-progress background music with the orchestra to help you practice."

Satoshi smiled and nodded before he frowned and looked at the sheet music nervously.

"From reading the notes, this looks like it will be a lot of work vocally," he said.

"That's why you rehearse, silly," I said. "Now, are you ready to try?"

But instead of responding, Satoshi kept his eyes glued to the sheet music, reading the notes and lyrics carefully. As he looked through it, a bright smile slowly appeared on his face that I looked at in confusion. Finally, he stood up and looked to me with an eager smile on his face.

"Alright, I'm ready," he announced energetically.

I stared at him for a moment, unsure of what could make him so excited to practice the song. Then I gave him a small smile before I took out my phone, opened the music app and played the song. Satoshi stood up straight, faced the wall, and cleared his throat before he began to sing.

My gift is my song

And this one's for you

And you can tell everybody this is your song

It may be quite simple but now that it's done

I hope you don't mind

I hope you don't mind

That I put down in words

How wonderful life is while you're in the world

"Good, very good," I complimented with a bright smile. "Looks like I'm not the only one between us with a great singing voice."

Satoshi smirked at me before he faced the wall again and continued singing.

I sat on the roof and kicked off the moss

Well a few of the verses well they've got me quite cross

But the sun's been quite kind

While I wrote this song

It's for people like you that

Keep it turned on

I continued to look at him with a smile, enjoying his singing. But then he sporadically turned to me and kneeled down with his eyes fixed on me. I felt a small blush on my cheeks as he leaned his closer to me while singing.

So excuse me forgetting

But these things I do

You see I've forgotten

If they're green or they're blue

Anyway, the thing is what I really mean

Yours are the sweetest eyes I've ever seen

As soon as he finished that part of the song, he took my hands and suddenly pulled me up. I let out a yelp in alarm as he pulled me closer and placed the hand that's holding the sheet music on my waist.

"Satoshi, what are you doing?" I asked.

"We're going to dance during the last part," he declared.

I looked at him dumbfounded and asked, "What is it with you and us dancing while one of us sings?"

"What? The music on your phone is building up, and this seems like the right moment," he answered. "Besides, I would like to dance with you as my girlfriend and not someone I think is Princess Miette."

It took a moment to process what he was saying before I smiled and placed my free hand on his shoulder.

"Then, by all means, let's dance," I said.

Satoshi smiled back before we began to dance around the dorm just in time for Satoshi's last singing part in the song.

And you can tell everybody this is your song

It may be quite simple but

Now that it's done

I hope you don't mind

I hope you don't mind

That I put down in words

How wonderful life is while you're in the world

I hope you don't mind

I hope you don't mind

That I put down in words

How wonderful life is while you're in the world

With the song over, we stop dancing and stared at each other with heartfelt smiles on our faces. We were silent for a minute or two, still in dancing positions before Satoshi spoke.

"How was that?" He asked.

I giggled with my mouth closed and said, "The singing was lovely, but everything you did apart from that was unexpected. Where did all that come from?"

Satoshi grinned at my response and said, "Well, after closely looking at the lyrics, I realized that I could use it to in a small way express the way I feel about my own sitar player since I'm happy that she's in my life and does have very sweet eyes."

My face became beet red, but a giant smile emerged from my face. My heart was skipping beats, knowing he meant it.

"You are too much sometimes, you know that?" I said.

"Perhaps," Satoshi said. "But I know it's something you like about me."

I looked away from him and pretended to be a deep thought before I looked back at him and said, "True."

Satoshi chuckled, pleased that he is right, and we leaned in for a soft kiss. But then our touching moment was interrupted by someone lightly knocking on my door.

"Oh, Satoshi, Serena. Hello," Princess Miette called out in a singing voice. "May I come in?"

The moment we heard her voice, the blood drained out our faces. Satoshi and I looked at each other with our mouths agape while the princess tried to open the door even though it's locked.

"Satoshi, Serena, I know you're there," Princess Miette said with her cheerful voice hiding her irritation from the other side. "Let me in, please."

"C-c-c- coming, Your Highness," I managed to say while Satoshi and I finally parted from our dancing positions while I loudly whispered,"What is she doing here?"

"I don't know," Satoshi loudly whispered back. "She said she was leaving somewhere off-campus when her appointment was over."

"Well, then I guess she wasn't out for very long," I grumbled.

"Let's worry about it later," Satoshi hissed. "Let's grab whatever parts of the script you have and we can say we're busy going through lines."

I nodded while still annoyed that the princess was there. Without another word, I ran over to my desk and took the pages of the script that I had worked on earlier before Satoshi, and I rushed to the front door. When we are inches away from the door, we simultaneously took deep breaths and forced ourselves to smile before I reluctantly unlocked and opened the door to reveal Princess Miette and Abigail waiting for us.

"Your Highness," I greeted with a humble bow. "To what do I owe the pleasure to have you here in my doorstep?"

Princess Miette smirked at me, pleased that I was acting like the lowly peasant she saw me as before she answered.

"Don't flatter yourself, Serena. I'm here for Satoshi," she answered blatantly before turning to Satoshi. "I know we just saw each other at the clock tower, but I thought we could spend a little extra time with a picnic."

Satoshi and I turned to Abigail and noticed that she was carrying a large picnic basket. Satoshi cleared his throat and gave the princess a fake smile.

"My dear, sweet Miette, you are making my heart leap with such a sudden surprise," he lied in as soothing voice. "But I'm afraid we only just started going through lines, and we have so much to do. I fear I just don't have the time."

"Nonsense," Princess Miette said with a smile. "If you two are just about to start, then I see no reason you can do it in my presence. Besides, you haven't eaten yet, have you?"

Satoshi and I both mentally groaned at her question. Normally around this time, Satoshi would order us food delivered to my dorm so that we can have dinner together, but the princess sadly came here before we could start thinking about eating.

"Er, no, we haven't," Satoshi admitted reluctantly.

"There you go," Princess Miette said with a proud smirk, knowing that she won. "Don't worry. We won't be going far. Just a mile or so from the school. Serena, since you're needed for going through Satoshi's lines, why don't you carry the basket for us?"

I wanted to scream no and tell her to go away and leave Satoshi and me alone. But then I realized that not only would I still be able to work on Spectacular, Spectacular with Satoshi, but I can carefully watch the princess as she would flirt with my secret boyfriend. It wouldn't be the same as Satoshi and I spending time alone, but if the pompous cow greedily wanted to invade my time with him, I want to be there so that I still have my Satoshi around.

"I would be honored, Your Highness," I lied through my teeth.

"Excellent," Princess Miette said before turning to Abigail. "That will be all for now, Abigail."

"Yes, My Lady," Abigail said bluntly while robotically handing the picnic basket to me.

Princess Miette then grabbed Satoshi's arm and held it tight with both of her arms with a pleased smirk on her face. It took all of my willpower to contain my jealousy as the two of them walked toward the elevator with Abigail and me following behind.

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

After exiting the art dormitory, Abigail went back to the main building while Princess Miette, Satoshi, and I walked outside of the school grounds. By now, the sky had started to turn orange as the sun was slowly beginning its descent. We walked through the grassy fields until we made it to the top of a hill in front of a lake.

"Ah, here we are; Lake Miloch," Princess Miette said proudly. "Beautiful view here, isn't it?"

"It's divine, Miette," Satoshi replied before giving the princess a fake, loving look with his hand on her cheek. "But not as divine as you."

Princess Miette looked away from him, giggling bashfully and said, "Oh, Satoshi," while I glared disapprovingly at my boyfriend. He gave me an apologetic look while the princess was still looking away before she turned to me.

"Serena, you may set up the picnic on this spot," she instructed, pointing at a specific spot.

"Yes, Your Highness, I said begrudgingly.

Satoshi frowned, and he watched me get down on my knees and set up the picnic for him and Princess Miette. The princess grinned as she watched me lay out the picnic blanket as if she was watching an obedient dog, do everything that comes to her mind. Once I was done, Princess Miette sat down on the blanket without giving me so much as a thank you while Satoshi gave me a sympathetic look.

"I know you're going to love what I brought, Satoshi," Princess Miette boasted as she opened the basket. "I've got the fanciest and most expensive tuna and cucumber sandwiches without any crust, cookies, and in this thermos, I have Kuding cha tea."

"Hmmm, how delightful," Satoshi said before turning to me. "Would you care for some, Serena?"

I opened my mouth to say yes, feeling a little hungry, but Princess Miette squealed in laughter life she just heard a funny joke.

"You're too kind, Satoshi, but this is a picnic for two, and a commoner like Serena shouldn't bother even touching some of the fanciest food money can buy," she said with a wave of her hand. "Besides, she would be far more productive going through lines with you while we eat and enjoy this view together, wouldn't you, Serena?"

I took a deep breath through my nose to control myself again before I said, "Right you are, Your Majesty."

"Then hop to it," the princess demanded.

"At once," I said, humbly bowing my head.

For the next twenty minutes, I read my progress with the script out loud while I had to watch Princess Miette and Satoshi eat and drink together. Satoshi watched me intently as I read out loud while the princess had her eyes fixed on him with a dreamy look.

"Now, on the next scene, the prince and the sitar player meet up the night after the maharani announced her engagement to him," I said. "The scene takes place in the sitar player's home at night. She paces back and forth, tormented that her beloved is engaged to another woman before the prince sneaks in through the window, dressed in the best friend's clothes."

"Hmmm, so the prince has to be dressed in peasant clothes to meet up with her. How improper," Princess Miette commented. "It sounds like he's a little desperate just to meet up with someone he's infatuated with."

"I respectfully disagree," Satoshi said calmly. "I think that if someone means a lot to you, then you should do whatever it takes to be with them. If dressing as a commoner is what the prince needs to do to be with his beloved, then it only makes sense that he does it without question."

He turned to me and smiled as a way of saying he would do that for me, and I smiled back sweetly.

"I suppose," Princess Miette said uncaringly before turning to me. "You may continue."

I nodded before I cleared my throat and read the script out loud.

The sitar player turns to see the prince, and they race into each other's arms.

Sitar player: I was afraid you weren't going to come.

Prince: I almost didn't, thinking you wouldn't want me to.

The two of them break their hug slightly to look at each other. The sitar player looks at her beloved with a devastated look.

Sitar player: Why didn't you tell me about the engagement?

Prince: I didn't know there was one. The maharani announced it without saying a word to me. Her hold over the kingdom is growing if she believes she can decide my fate without saying a word to me.

The sitar player's fear grows, terrified that she will lose her prince.

Sitar player: What are we going to do?

The prince frowns and sighs as he caresses the sitar player's cheek. She closes her eyes and places her hand on the hand that is on her cheek.

Prince: We have time. The maharani has planned to hold off the wedding until both kingdoms are merged. That will take several months, perhaps a year or two.

Sitar player: (unconvinced) And what happens to us after that?

The prince's frown deepens, and he looks away from the sitar player.

Prince: I don't know. I know what I have to do to save my kingdom, but I don't want to lose you in the process. I pray that we will find a way around this so that our love will carry on, and the kingdom will be free of the maharani's clutches.

Sitar player: I don't know if that's possible. I love you, but I wouldn't want you to doom everyone just for me.

The prince smiles as he continues to caress the sitar player's cheek.

Prince: I don't expect you to, but that won't stop me from trying to figure something out. I love my kingdom, but you mean so much to me too. I think about you all day. I see your face everywhere and your music rings in my ears. If your mother were alive, I would praise her for bringing you into the world. The maharani may have my kingdom, my subjects, and my hand in marriage, but she doesn't have my heart and she never will.

As I read the dialogue out loud, Satoshi was smiling at me fondly while Princess Miette was fighting the urge to laugh.

"I must say that some of your lovey-dovey dialogue needs some adjustments, Serena," she said bluntly. "I think you can do with less over-the-top expressions."

If it wasn't for the fact that she was the princess who was funding Spectacular, Spectacular, I would have called her a hypocrite, knowing that she ate up all of the ridiculous things Satoshi would say. I would have also pointed out that this was only the first draft of the scene, and I usually tinker with it when I'm going through it with my boyfriend. But instead, I gave her a nod of understanding and Princess Miette smirked, believing I was taking her criticism to heart. Satoshi, on the other hand, looked at the princess disapprovingly without her noticing, clearly thinking the same thing. I opened my mouth to continue, but then Princess Miette's eyes suddenly lit up and she gasped loudly before turning to Satoshi.

"I got a great idea," she said. "The prince may be unable to meet the sitar player's parents, but you and I can meet each other's. Maybe at some point over winter break, you can meet my father and I can meet your mom. I don't know about you, but I would love to meet and get to know the woman who brought you into my world."

I felt my heart sink at her idea. The possibility that the princess might get to meet my boyfriend's parents before I do felt nothing short of cruel. But as jealousy rose inside of me again, I realized that instead of pretending to be happy or enthusiastic, Satoshi was looking away from Princess Miette and me what a grim look on his face. Princess Miette and I looked at him, confused before the former asked what was on our minds.

"What's the matter, Satoshi?" She asked.

"I can't introduce you to my mother," Satoshi said.

"Aw, come on, sure you can," Princess Miette said with a playful pout.

"No, I can't," Satoshi said coldly.

"Why not?" Princess Miette asked, scooting closer to Satoshi, thinking he's playing hard to get. "If we start to get very serious, I should get to meet her sometime."

"You can't," Satoshi growled.

"Whyever not?" Princess Miette asked, not catching the way he spoke.

At this point, I was concerned with the princess trying to pressure Satoshi into getting what she wanted. It was clear to me that something about his mother was something personal that he did not want to talk about.

"Your Highness," I began. "I think you shouldn't press the matter any -"

"Silence, Serena!" Princess Miette hisses before turning back to Satoshi. "Honestly, Satoshi, why can't I see your mother? Are you afraid that she's going to humiliate you in front of me or -"

"My mother's dead!" Satoshi snapped angrily.

Princess Miette and I moved back, startled by his outburst. For about half a minute, Satoshi was still looking from us bitterly before he took a deep breath and turned to the princess with a calm expression.

"I apologize, Miette," he said. "That was wrong of me."

"It's alright," Princess Miette answered while still startled. "I take it you were close with your mother?"

Satoshi looked down and said, "That's just it, I never knew her. She died giving birth to me. All I know about her is that she was a very kind and cheerful woman that many people adored. It's probably why my father has always held a grudge against me for being the cause of her death. More than anything, I wish there was a way I could have been born without killing her and I would get to know her."

My heart was aching as he was explaining this to the princess and me. I couldn't believe that under Satoshi's charming demeanor, he is someone who lost a dear parent before he could ever get to know her. Princess Miette frowned sadly and scooted closer to Sarlshi before resting her head on his shoulder and giving him a side hug.

"I'm sorry," she cooed. "I know what it's like to not have a mother too. My mom passed away when I was only a baby. It's really hard to grow up without both parents, isn't it?"

"Yeah, it is," Satoshi said with no emotion in his voice. "It's very hard."

"Mmmm," the princess agreed before giving Satoshi a smile. "Just know that I'm here for you if you want to talk more about it."

Satoshi gave her a small nod without looking at her. The princess's smile grew, and she tightened her hug, believing that she grew closer to Satoshi. I, on the other hand, looked at my boyfriend sadly, wishing I could say sorry too without the princess rebuking me because of my class. It all started to make sense after seeing him with a locket containing a picture of a woman the night of the ball. Maybe her death is connected to the way Satoshi acted when Calem called him an illegitimate child. Either way, I knew that the princess was only pretending to be sorry for the sake of the act she was playing as Satoshi's client, and I wish I could be holding him instead to give him real comfort. After a while, Satoshi sighed and gently nudged Princess Miette to break the hug with a forced smile.

"Let's not worry about that anymore," he said. "Why don't we go back to our picnic?"

Princess Miette smiled cheerfully and said, "Great idea. And I'm sure there's still more of the script, isn't there, Serena?"

"There is, Your Highness," I said, hiding my sympathy for Satoshi.

"Then get going," the princess commanded. "I want to hear all of your progress before Satoshi and I watch the sunset together."

I have a humble bow before I picked up the script and started reading out loud again.

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

For another hour or so, I read the rest of my progress with the script while Satoshi and Princess Miette went back to their picnic. As the sun started to set, the princess ordered me to leave so that she and Satoshi can watch the sunset together alone. Needless to say, I wanted to stay with my boyfriend, who is clearly still hurt how about having to bring up his private business like that, but I silently obeyed and walked back to campus.

Once I made it to my dorm, I tossed the script on top of my desk, plopped onto my bed and sighed sadly. It hurt that I couldn't be with Satoshi for the rest of the day and it was worse that I had to watch another girl pretend to comfort him after bringing up a touchy subject. I wanted to find out what the matter was eventually, but not like this. As surely as The Lord lives, I wanted him to tell me personally on his own terms.

I stayed like this for about a half-hour before I heard a knock on my door. I sat up and looked at my door curiously before I walked towards it and opened it to reveal Satoshi on the other side. Before I could say anything, he walked right in, closed and locked the door behind him, and pulled me into a hug. I stood in place, surprised before I hugged him back.

"I need to talk to you," Satoshi said as he held me.

"Okay," I said. "Should we sit down?"

"Please," Satoshi answered.

I gave him a small smile as we broke our hug and walked back to my bed. We sat down next to each other, and I waited for several seconds before I cleared my throat.

"So, what do you want to talk about?" I asked.

"What I said about my mother earlier," Satoshi answered plainly without looking at me.

I frowned and placed my hand on top of his hand as I said, "I'm so sorry about that. I wish the princess didn't pry like that. If it's any consolation, I lost my dad, so I know what it's like to -"

"My mother didn't die during childbirth," Satoshi said abruptly.

My eyes widened, and I tilted my head, confused.

"What?" I asked.

"My mother didn't die during childbirth," Satoshi repeated. "That was all part of my act to woo the princess. Everyone in high class knows that the queen of Galar died when Princess Miette was very young. Jessie instructed me to say that just to trick her into thinking we have that in common."

"So is your mom alive?" I asked.

Satoshi paused for a moment and said, "I don't know."

"You don't know?" I asked. "Satoshi, I don't understand."

"I didn't think you would right away," Satoshi said. "I guess what I'm trying to say is I'm ready to tell you everything about me now."

My eyes widened, and I asked, "Really? Why now?

Satoshi paused for a moment and said, "Because, at this point in our relationship, I feel that I can trust you. And if anything else, I would rather that you don't believe the lie that I had to tell Princess Miette."

I smiled and felt my heart leap, happy that I have finally gained my boyfriend's trust. I scooted closer to him and squeezed his hand to show that I'm ready to listen. Satoshi turned to me and gave me a smile before he looked down and began his tale.

"Well, first off, I should make clear that the part about never knowing her is true, but it's actually because she's forbidden to see me again," he said.

"Forbidden to see you again? Why?" I asked.

"Because I really am an illegitimate child," Satoshi answered. "You see, my father, Giovanni, is the head of a powerful company in the Kanto region called Rocket Incorporated. He is very well respected for being an aggressive businessman. Then one night, he seduced a woman named Delia Ketchum even though he was already married with two children. A couple months later, Delia came in contact with him to tell him that she was pregnant with his child. Eager to keep this news from the public eye, he tried to bribe her to be silent, but instead, she wanted him to take in the child when he's born. She wanted to raise me by herself, but she was a very poor woman and she knew she couldn't afford to raise me properly, so she decided that at least with my father, I would be well cared for. He reluctantly agreed, but he made it clear that she will never see me after she was done nursing me."

My mouth was hanging open as he explained all of this. Satoshi then reached into his pocket and took out then golden locket I saw the night of the ball. He opened it to reveal the picture and handed it to me.

"The last time she was around, she left this to me so that I always had a picture of her, even though we would never see each other again," he explained.

I gave him a smile and said, "She's beautiful."

Satoshi nodded in agreement without looking at me. I gave the locket a closer look and noticed the way the woman was smiling directly. Underneath the motherly smile, she looked very sad as if a part of her is going to be taken away. My smile faded away as it was clear that she wished she didn't have to be away from her son.

"It looks like she wanted you to know that she loves you in some small way with this picture," I commented.

Satoshi frowned and said, "I guess, but it often doesn't feel that way. Sure I live a life where I never go hungry, I have a roof over my head, I'm cared for if I get sick, and I get the best education possible, so I have everything she wanted me to have. But that doesn't change the fact that I'm not loved at home."

I looked at Satoshi worriedly with this information, and I asked, "Because you're illegitimate?"

Satoshi nodded and said, "Being cared for didn't cover the fact that I am a thorn on my family's side. My father, his wife, my half-siblings, Butch and Cassidy, deep down, they all hate me for being in their lives just because I exist. Really, the only ones who show any care about me are the staff and my tutors, and even then, it's only because it's their job."

"But your father was the one who slept with somebody behind his wife's back," I pointed out. "Doesn't his family have any hatred against him for that?"

"If they do, they've never shown it in front of me," Satoshi answered. "I often stayed in my room with whatever toys or books that were already used up by Butch. I mostly only left my room for meals and things like that. I guess my father and his wife arranged it that way so that they would see less of me. For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to do something to make them love me. Maybe something that would benefit my father's business in some way that's he and his family would give me some kind of recognition. That's part of why I went to Galar Academy."

"How would going to school here help you achieve your goal?" I asked.

"Honestly, Serena, I wasn't sure," Satoshi admitted with a nervous grin. "I just thought I'd find the answer eventually while taking all sorts of classes here."

I covered my mouth, trying no to laugh at my boyfriend, but it was enough for Satoshi to feel more embarrassed about his flawed plan. Satoshi began to blush before he frowned again and continued.

"Anyway, I was able to get in through Jessie since she is a part of the school board and a representative of Rocket Incorporated in Galar Academy," he said. "I started off enrolling in various electives with my required classes to help give me ideas of what I could do for a living that might benefit my father's company. Though it hasn't been going well since I'm not the best student in the universe, as you know."

I gave him a small smile and give his hand a light squeeze.

"All the more reason to have me as your tutor," I said confidently.

Satoshi looked at me again and gave me a grateful smile before he continued.

"Then around halfway into my first semester here, I heard about the host club that Jessie is the head of," he said. "I was curious about it, so after visiting the club to observe what happens there, I went up to Jessie and asked if I could join. She immediately refused at first, but when I explained that I want to help with her business there and she realized that my looks could work to her benefit, she agreed, provided that I did everything she said. She taught me everything I needed to know about being a host, and after a couple of weeks, she decided I was ready and assigned me to a couple of clients. I was uncomfortable at first, having never really talked to girls before, but after I used some of the tactics Jessie taught me, my clients started to fall in love with me. After that, I became more confident in what I was doing and I started to get more clients. As you can probably figure out, I started to become so popular that I'm the most highly demanded host and since Jessie was gaining a lot of business through me, she had a room for me in the clock tower built for me with all of those paintings and statues that have something to do with romance to make my client's experience feel so grand. And admittedly, I enjoyed it a lot."

I frowned disapprovingly and said, "Girls don't like it when their boyfriends talk about the times he's spent with other girls, Satoshi."

"I know, but I want you to understand what my life has been before I met you," he said with an apologetic look. "The fact is my clients were the closest thing to people having any genuine care for me. It didn't matter if they only cared about the image of me or how I was indulging in their fantasies. I pleased them and they, in turn, were smiling at me, fawning over me, worshiping me even. And with Jessie profiting from it on behalf of Rocket Incorporated, it was a win-win-win."

Satoshi grabbed both my hands and looked deep into my eyes and finished saying, "But I would give it all up just to stay with you, Serena. When it comes to caring about me for me, you're all I have."

I smiled warmly and softly kissed him on the cheek.

"That makes me happy," I said before I frowned and looked away sadly. "But you're still trying to woo the princess so that she will marry you."

Satoshi frowned back and looked away, feeling guilty.

"You're right, I am," he admitted. "And I wish there was a way around it. Someone like Cilan may just get kicked off for his relationship with one of his clients, but with Jessie as the person who is sort of looking out for me, and Princess Miette taking such a keen interest in me as a candidate, the consequences could be extreme if any of them found out about us."

Neither of us looked at each other or said a word after that. The fear that we may have to part like Satoshi warned that we might do was on our minds. Eventually, a determined look entered my face, and I turned to Satoshi and moved his face to look at me with my hand.

"Well, I'm not giving up," I declared. "I'm going to believe in the best-case scenario for us to the end. We still have time to think of something while we spend time together and work on the play with everybody. We'll get past it."

Satoshi looked at me with his face still glum until he gave me a soft smile and placed his hand on my cheeks again.

"I wouldn't have it any other way," he said.

I smiled sweetly, and we leaned in for a brief kiss. I then laid my head on his shoulder and he laid his head on top of mine. We sat there silently for a few minutes until Satoshi frowned and lifted his head to look at me.

"So...did you say your dad died?" He asked.

I frowned and lifted my head to give him a small nod.

"Three years ago," I said plainly.

"What was he like compared to mine if you don't mind my asking?" Satoshi asked.

"He was my whole world," I answered with a sad smile. "I love both of my parents with all of my heart, but between the two of them, my dad was my dearest companion. He was kind, caring, lively, and loved both The Lord and his family endlessly. He was the one who taught me that there is no greater blessing from The Lord than the ability to love. It's also because of him that I wanted to be a writer."

"Was he a writer too?" Satoshi asked.

I nodded with a small smile on my face and turned my head to point at my typewriter.

"That was his," I said. "He valued the experience of writing on a typewriter more than writing on a computer."

Satoshi nodded, looking at the typewriter before turning back to me.

"How did he die?" He asked.

My smile disappeared, and I turned to him sadly.

"Tuberculosis," I answered. "He had it for a few years or so, and then one day, he was going for a walk until he started coughing up a lot of blood. He stayed home for a few weeks or so before I came home from school to find mom crying and the doctor trying to comfort her while a few men were taking away his body."

Satoshi looked me sadly and pulled me into a side hug. I didn't hesitate to wrap my arms around him with both arms and rest my head on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. "You must miss him."

"Very much," I said. "Though it helps to know that he followed The Lord till the end, so I know he's not gone for good. My mom and I follow The Lord too, so we will see him again someday."

"Mmmm," Satoshi hummed in acknowledgment. "I can't say I've felt that way about The Lord and things like that. Little difficult to do that with my kind of upbringing."

I lifted my head up and gave him a hopeful smile.

"I could help you get to know him if you'd like," I offered.

Satoshi hesitated and scratched the back of his head. My smile disappeared slightly, afraid that he was going to say no until he turned back to face me.

"Maybe one day, I will let you," he said. "I can't say that I am a hundred percent interested, but I guess there has to be something amazing about that kind of faith that would make someone as kind and wonderful as you."

My eyes widen, and I looked away bashfully. Satoshi chuckled, amused with my reaction while I was blushing. After a moment, I shook off my bashfulness and gave him a hopeful smile.

"If that's the case, then I will wait for as long as it takes," I promised.

"I know you will, Serena," Satoshi said with a soft smile.

We continued to stare at each other, smiling after that until we leaned for a brief kiss. After that, I laid my head on Satoshi's shoulder and he laid his head on top of my head again. Nothing else needed to be said as we sat down on the bed and held each other, having grown closer after opening up to each other. The future remained unknown with what is in store with our relationship, but for that night, all that mattered was that we had each other as our true selves.

How wonderful life was that I was in his world and he was in mine.