My head throbbed in pain as soon as I woke up. I was wearing light, white cotton shorts and shirt which the maids would have changed me into last night. Last night, I repeated the two words and sighed audibly.

I couldn't remember anything in particular as I sauntered towards the bathroom and splashed cold water over my face. I took a glimpse of myself in the mirror and scowled. Mascara was running down my cheeks like I had cried all night, lumps of makeup clinging to my skin as I woefully recalled that I didn't use makeup removal tissues. The maids hadn't bothered to clean me up and now the after effects was irking me.

My hair was in knots and had become rough, limp and stiff like I had used too much hairspray. I scrunched my nose as I peeled the clothes off my body. I smelled like crap. I stood under the shower for long minutes, running my fingers through the knots in my hair and scrubbing my face. I tried to recollect all that had happened yesterday and the cold water hit my body brutally which reminded me of certain parts of last night like cliff diving. And God, when I actually realized what had happened, I was thrilled yet horrified.

I recalled pushing my sleeve down, kicking my stilettos and strutting towards Noah with a cheeky grin and batting my eyelashes. Next moment, I was kissing him . . . Everything seemed obscure after that and then in my next memory, I was laying beside Noah and tracing his abs. What had happened between that time?

This couldn't be my memory, it was my fantasy and unbelievable. Convincing myself that everything was just my frivolous imagination, I wore a blue, polka dot summer dress. It reached till my mid thighs and seemed perfect for such a warm day. After treating my hair with tons of different products to retain it's golden lustre, I plopped down on my bed to just think more of what happened or the possibilities of what could have happened.

I did remember making fun of my mum when I arrived back after having fun with Noah. She would be very furious by now, beyond furious, losing her mind. I needed to know what exactly happened so I could apologize and make up to whatever foolishness I imprudently committed yesterday night.

* * *

Knock, knock.

"Come in," I permitted and glanced at the door. Anne barged in, toppled over the bed and hugged me tightly. I tried to pat her back, but was unsuccessful in doing so considering how she was smothering me. She soon realized that and pulled away.

"Amelia, you know what happened yesterday?" she chirped merrily.

I tried to share the same enthusiasm as her and asked curiously, "What happened?"

"It's Luke. Yesterday, we both danced together like there was no tomorrow. He's so handsome and smart . . . It feels like I'm already falling for him!" she said in a daze while dramatically clutching her chest.

"Oh, that-that's great. Where is Marya though?" I asked and she straightened her back.

"She went last night with Andrew somewhere, didn't come back since," she replied nonchalantly and I gave her an incredulous look.

"She's your sister, Anne! You can't just leave her with any guy in a place where she can get lost," I yelled and she snorted.

"Chill, she's not going to get lost anywhere. Besides she isn't with any random guy, she's with your cousin. Andrew seems like a nice guy too and I'm sure Marya is having the time of her life. How I wish Luke had taken me somewhere!" she sighed dreamily and I shook my head, reaching for my phone to text Andrew.

Where the hell is Marya? - Mia.

His reply came within a few seconds and I squinted at the screen.

Don't worry, she's having fun. I'll drop her to the palace soon - Andrew.

Having fun? The entire night? I wondered what on earth they were doing?

Okay, but don't you dare hurt her, she's my guest and it's my responsibility to take care of her - Mia.

With that, I placed my phone on the nightstand and questioned Anne who was admiring the numerous soft toys on my bed, "Anne, by any chance, did you notice me yesterday night?"

She poked at the softness of one of the brown teddy bears and said, "Oh yeah, I did and let me tell you, you were a mess when you arrived back here with Noah. Your mum immediately sent you back to your room before the paparazzi could spot you. You smelled of alcohol and your mum looked pissed off."

"So well, I need to apologize to her then," I said, a small, mischievous smile playing on my lips.

"That you have to surely do and by the way, what happened between you and Noah?" She waggled her thin eyebrows and I shook my head.

"I don't remember--- "

A maid stormed in the room without knocking with a vacuum cleaner in her hand. She looked startled when she noticed that I was already awake.

"I'm so sorry, ma'am, forgive me, I thought you were still asleep. The queen has called you and your friends for breakfast," she informed us while lowering her head.

"Fine, we are coming right away," I said dismissively and both Anne and me proceeded down towards the dining hall. Everyone was already present and the spread too was ready. My mother frowned at us rushing towards the table and glanced at the enormous clock hung on the wall. I quietly sat beside Zen where I always did and was supposed to sit. Dad and mum sat at the two ends of the table, their usual place. Noah was seated beside dad and Anne beside Noah. I could sense Noah's stern gaze on Zen and me as I shifted uncomfortably on my seat.

The massive spread consisted of shiny cutlery filled sumptuous food ranging from savoury like different kinds of sandwiches, slices of various cooked and seasoned meat, grilled cheese, boiled and scrambled eggs, buttered toast, salads, baked beans, mushrooms, oatmeal, sausages with gravy to sweet like cereals, pancakes and waffles with maple syrup and chocolate sauce, Danish bread, crossinants, donuts, chocolate and raisin muffins, nutella sandwiches and many more. Besides that, there was always fruits, nuts, tea, coffee, hot chocolate, fruit and vegetable juices etc. Such huge array was cooked when guests were around [my friends who were today's guest] because my family and I generally just ate cereals with prunes, nuts and other fruits or toast and eggs with traditional English tea.

Once the breakfast began, we all quietly ate and there was silence except for Anne's spoon and fork clinking against the plates. This was our regular routine with Dad reading the newspaper like any other father and silently sipping tea. Mum occasionally flashed a smile at Anne or randomly at anyone she could lay her eyes on.

Suddenly, dad cleared his throat and all of us turned towards dad. He placed his tea cup on the table and then peeked through the newspaper. "Son, are you going for college?"

He was referring to Noah who's eyes widened for a fraction of second and said, "Yes, sir, to the arts school."

Dad nodded and resumed reading the newspaper and just like that, we all continued with our eating. Everyday, breakfast time and basically all meal times was dry and dull without my sister. I still hadn't met her and that annoyed me.

Zen couldn't seem to keep his hands to himself as it kept travelling inside my dress. He smoothly ran his hand on my thigh and squeezed it. Before he could cross his boundaries and tug at my underwear, I swatted his hand away. He didn't give up though, so I stomped on his feet brutally and he stifled a cry of pain. I grinned satisfactorily and when I glanced at Noah, he was glaring at Zen as if he knew what was happening under the table.

After finishing our breakfast, we all started walking back to our respective rooms without uttering a single word. From the corner of the eye, I noticed Noah and I wanted to talk to him about yesterday. I nearly ran to him, but Zen blocked my way and grabbed my wrist to pull me behind the curtains.

"What now?" I spat out while trying to jerk my wrist away from him. "Leave me right now, I need to talk to Noah."

"No, I want to talk to you," he said firmly, tightening his grip on my wrist and pulled me towards him until our upper bodies collided.

"What the hell do you want?" I snapped and he wasn't his usual perky self, he looked angry.

"You and that country boy just disappeared last night without informing any one of us! You couldn't just leave when we were going to announce our engagement and make it public!" he yelled and I scoffed while still struggling to get away from him.

"You know very well that I don't want to marry you and neither am I going to. So let this be clear among us, now let me go you bastard!" I yelled back and he looked baffled by my usage of an inappropriate word.

"Bastard? Whoa-Who taught you all this, my naive, little princess?" he teased and I was getting tired putting up with him, so I kicked his groin and he yelped in pain.

I smirked and hissed, "Your mother."