As I do every day, I put together the things I needed for class before I took a shower. When I got back downstairs, I found the prince, who was not in uniform but rather was dressed in a formal suit. I was perplexed about what was going on; no one had informed me that we were heading somewhere else until the king appeared.
I bent my head in respect.
"No, Gemma, you are not required to bow every time you come into my presence." My head was elevated by the King. "I see you’re dressed in your uniform. Please accept my apologies for not informing you of the event scheduled for today."
"It’s perfectly fine with me, Your Majesty. If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to get dressed."
I was going to turn back when King Lucien intervened. "Gemma, from today, you no longer need to accompany us to every appointment we have; I don’t want to be a nuisance to you anymore."
"Certainly not, Your Majesty. I insist on accompanying you since it is my responsibility to do so."
"Gemma, you had the option to decide at this point. It is entirely up to you whether you will go to Borstal or if you will return home to visit your family." The King smiled at me.
"Your Majesty." I returned his grin, but then I saw Prince Augustus, who was clearly not pleased with himself; he was just staring down as if he didn’t want to go anywhere.
"All right, we’re off now."
I lowered my head. "Take care, Your Majesty."
"It goes for you as well, Gemma."
I had a strange feeling once again; I wanted to return to Allerick, yet my heart desired to accompany the Prince. I let out a heavy sigh as I made a mess of my own hair. This is driving me insane! I despised him for causing me to feel guilty once again.
I returned to the room and, without hesitation, changed into my normal dress. On the way out of the palace, another of His Majesty's car was waiting. I didn’t pay attention to it since I assumed there was a guest. One of the royal guards walked up to the door and opened it as though he were expecting me to board. It took me a while to understand that I was the one he was waiting for when he called my name.
"His Majesty has given me the command to return you to your house."
"No, it’s OK. I’m able to go back home by myself."
"Please, Miss Gemma. I’m only carrying out the directives of the monarch."
My only option was to ride when I had no choice; otherwise, the King may punish him for disregarding his command. I initially contacted Kuya Samuel to ask if Allerick had been discharged from the hospital. Unfortunately, not yet, since he is still under observation. I approached the chauffeur and asked if he could drop me to the hospital right away.
"Thank you very much, Mr..."
"My name is Tiller, Miss Gemma."
"Thank you very much, Mr. Tiller." I had a grin on my face when I finally entered the hospital.
Upon entering Allerick’s private room, I saw Mama washing his face with a towel as he fell asleep. The stillness that surrounds us is strange; my heart longed to approach Mama, but my mind told me to turn back instead. I received the distinct impression that she still hated seeing me.
"Where are you off to?"
After hearing her, I came to a complete halt.
"Are you sure you’re not going to say hello to Allerick or me?"
The tears came out of nowhere and without warning. Mama’s arms were extended wide as if she were waiting for me to come and cling to her. I rushed out the door and wrapped my arms around her.
"Mama!" I screamed, my voice breaking.
When my mother heard my moans, she wanted to cry. "Shh," she said as she gently stroked my back with her hand. "I should not have told you those things that were painful. You did not want Allerick to experience this fate. My stone, I’m sorry for what I’ve done. I didn’t think it was more difficult for you, so instead of soothing you, I chose to place the blame on you. What I did was completely unjustified."
"No, mama. Everything you mentioned was right and I was completely worthless. I’m the one to blame."
"My stone," she said, touching both of my cheeks, which caused me to sob even more. "There isn’t a single person to blame for what occurred."
Suddenly someone slammed the door open. "Gemma!" Gabriel yelled.
We’ve been interrupted by the arrival of these two crooked friends of mine.
"I apologize for interfering with your private time, aunt."
"Gabriel!" Mama glanced at Abel with a stern expression.
"Sorry." Gabriel apologized, a smirk on his face.
"What’s the deal with you two? We’re at the hospital, and you’re not only distressing Allerick, but you’re also the patients in the other rooms."
"Gemma!" Gabriel called me out again, this time in a low voice, taunting me. "Are you still mad?"
"Douchebag!" I addressed him with a sly grin on my face. "I wonder what brought you here exactly?"
"We received a call from Samuel," Mishelley replied.
"It’s just what I expected."
With a smile on his face, Gabriel said, "Perfect timing!"
"Amarillo is hosting a program for elderly individuals who have been abandoned by their children, obviously at Tara’s father’s company. You’ll be joining us as well."
I rose to my feet. "It’s not going to happen. I’m no longer an Amarillo student."
"What does it matter? Given that you were formerly the school president, I’m guessing they don’t mind if you join us."
"No!"
"Yes," Mishelley said with a devilish grin.
"MAMA," I called out as I turned to face her.
"I think you should go," Mama urged.
"You, as well." I let out a groan.
"Come on, come on!" Gabriel yanked me from Allerick’s room.
"What about Allerick, though?" I asked.
"I’m sure your mother will be able to look after Allerick," Mishelley replied.
Then I yelled, "Argh!"
I was sitting in the rear of the bus with these two obnoxious people. My forehead was furrowed, and it was very clear that I was not pleased with what was going on. In hindsight, I should have opted for a stay in the Borstal instead.
Mishelley took a quick look at me. "What’s up with that expression? Aren’t you relieved that you can get away from the palace, even only for a few moments?"
"No!" I responded in a split second. "I don’t want to go anywhere with you ever again. I should have gone to Borstal instead; I made the wrong choice."
Gabriel patted me on the back and smiled. "All you have to do is enjoy the moment."
"How am I supposed to enjoy this time if I don’t want to be in the company of the individuals I despise?
"Oh, we have a guest," Tara said, her face contorted as though she was disgusted to see me. "It was, without a doubt, Gemma, the former school president of Amarillo. It was a true pleasure to have you as a guest here. I hope everything is going well for you."
I scowled at her with a menacing smile.
"Anyway, going back to our topic, as I already said, my father and his stockholders were delighted to meet you. They are ready to donate millions to help the elderly. Amarillo was fortunate to have me as its president, as opposed to other..." She looked at me with a piercing stare. "Anyway, enjoy your trip, guys."
The fact that they elected her because of her inappropriate relationship with Mr. Jang, which is quite repulsive, hasn’t stopped her from gloating about her presidency until now.
Tara was nearly knocked down as the bus came to a complete stop. Everyone, including me, had to hold back their laughter.
"What the hell is going on? Have you not noticed that I am still standing here? If something happens to me, you are finished!" Tara snarled, her voice rising with rage.
"Someone is following us," the driver said.
"So?" Tara quizzically raised her eyebrows.
"It seems like they want us to come to a halt."
"Will you be paid by me or by them? Start the engine, you worthless old guy!"
"Tara, mind your words," Gabriel said as he rose to his feet, he expressed his displeasure with Tara’s comments to the driver. "Just because the money that will be given to him will come from your father's pocket does not give you the right to treat him in a way."
"Ugh!" A scowl came from Tara, and she laughed. "Baby, you don’t get it. Dad paid him enough so I could treat him that way,"
Gabriel’s hand was grasped by Mishelley, who motioned for him to just sit down.
"Now, get moving!" She said it out loud.
The car was restarted, but this time it moved at a higher speed than previously. We also didn’t pay attention to the vehicle that was following us, since they might have been heading in the same direction as the bus we were on. It wasn’t until their pace increased that they came close to passing us. The vehicle was already ahead of us and seemed to be making a serious effort to hold us up. We were all looking out the window, waiting to see what they were going to do next. Instead of being frightened, the pupils seemed to be even more enthralled by the occurrence.
"What in the world are they up to?" Gabriel could only speak in hushed tones, clearly concerned.
"Can you tell me why it seems like we’re in the middle of an ambush?" Mishelley added.
Gabriel admitted, "Looking back, it was a mistake to have Gemma come with us."
"What exactly are you two implying? These events have absolutely nothing to do with me."
Mishelley put her lips right in front of my ears. "Given that you’re a royal servant, I am quite certain that those people want you, and those people are the monarch’s opponents."
"You’re so obsessed with Asian dramas that you’re making up things that are completely out of context," I said.
"Well, it could happen." Gabriel chimed in with his thoughts on the situation.
I tapped my head. "I can’t believe what you’re saying."
Despite the bus driver trying all he could to prevent the vehicle from reaching us, the car was able to overtake us since they were driving so fast on the highway. When they were given the chance to block the street to stop the bus, the driver jumped into the bus to ensure that we did not collide with the car ahead of us. Almost every one of us banged our heads on the seat as a result of the abrupt braking.
Everyone got up to have a better look at the person stepping out of the black vehicle; I attempted to get a better look, but they were too tall for me. Someone must have entered since I heard the door open. The kids likewise took their seats one by one, allowing my two eyes to see the guy who was obstructing our path. I examined him closely to see if I recognized him, but despite his appearance as a member of the royal family, his face was unfamiliar to me.
"Do any of you know who Maria Gemma Mendoza is?"
Everyone, including myself, was taken aback since he knew who I was and knew my whole name. What the hell is going on here?