1ST PERSON’S POV:
I lost track of time. I don’t know how long I’ve been in this world. Though I’m sure that I’ve been tied to this rope for a day already.
It was hard to sleep consistently in my current situation. I could only take a few naps before waking up because of the cold or something itches that I can’t scratch.
Amid the miserable things that continue to happen in my life, watching the winter sunrise erases all the negative feelings I have for a moment. I would like to hold on to that moment of peace, even if it’s just for a bit.
Gazing at the sky eventually led me to be blinded by its brightness. I looked down and blinked multiple times, hoping to remove the dizzying effect of staring at the sun. After getting my sight back to normal, I saw Vaughn walking through the forest while carrying a wheelbarrow. He looks so tiny from afar.
With my poor eyesight, I wouldn’t have recognized him if not for his unkept curly hair. He has wavy locks, but it looks like he had a perm because he doesn’t tame it. The only time I get to see his slightly neat hair is whenever he runs his fingers through his hair (out of frustration because of me hehe).
He stopped his tracks and turned his body in my direction for a moment before walking away. I think he nodded his head or something, but I’m too blind to that. Anything farther than one foot away from me is a blur.
I scrunched my nose and sighed. These sucks. I rolled my shoulders and stretched my neck to the side to ease the discomfort. My bones are tingly, and I feel like peeing.
I. Hate. This.
I shouted my frustrations out and started wiggling aggressively. I really hope that the mean prince will always step on something wet while wearing socks.
Brooding wouldn’t get me anywhere. So, I did what I do best: get lost in my thoughts.
I slumped and let the ropes carry my weight for a while. Standing up for the whole day burned my leg muscles. My joints are getting stiffer the longer I stay still.
How did I end up here?
My head was filled with ‘What ifs’ and wishful thinking. Though none of it wishes to go back to my world. Why would I want to go back to my problems?
I sighed for the nth time of the day. I stood up again and wiggled to remove the jittery feeling. The rope wrapped around my body loosened a bit, making it easier to move around the pole. Now I can turn around to see Vaughn walking from behind me.
He was still carrying the wheelbarrow that has soil. He stopped a few feet away that I had to squint my eyes just to see his face. As usual, it’s still blank. I heard him scoff before looking up and down.
“Prince Jayden and his soldiers wouldn’t be here for another two days. I can only come by the dark,” that was all he said, then there was silence. I only let out a small ‘ok’ because I don’t know how to respond to that. He clicked his tongue before leaving wordlessly.
That’s why the field was empty of soldiers and a mean prince. I guess they had to rebuild the damages caused by the intruders.
After a while, I saw someone running stiffly towards me. His long limbs made running look awkward for him. He stopped when he’s in front of me. I recognized his face, but I can’t remember his name. I just remember that this is a man-child.
He crouched down and held onto his knees while catching his breath. I continued to stretch my limbs while waiting for him to calm down. He then placed his hands on his waist and looked at me from head to toe before rolling his eyes.
“You are of no fun,” he raised his brow while looking at me with sass. I scoffed before subtly rolling my eyes.
“Really? I was hoping to make being tied up fun. I guess I failed.” He clicked his tongue before pointing at me with an overly exaggerated, mortified face.
“What’s with that attitude towards Prince Riain?!” he even covered his mouth for added effect. I copied his expression earlier and looked at him from head to toe. We had a staring contest for a while until he broke into a sheepish smile. He rubbed his neck and let out an awkward chuckle.
“So… When are you free?” I pursed my lips and only stared at him harder. All the emotions on his face vanished and put on a blank expression. It lasted a few seconds before he dashed away.
Riain came back the next day and popped up from behind, only to groan after seeing my face and left. He repeated the same process every morning and the afternoon with the same outcome: him unsatisfied about something and leaving with saggy shoulders.
This sums up how my days have been. Riain will appear to check on my situation, then I will be busy with being tied up after he leaves. After two days, it became a routine for Prince Jayden and some guards to bully me. I don’t know if placing their target item on the top of my head to practice their throwing skills is still considered bullying. If they were not taunting my life with daggers, they place a bucket on top of the pole and place bets on who can make me have a shower in the middle of winter. Every time someone was successful, I had to wait for Vaughn to remove the bucket from my head.
Vaughn will come by before dark to give me some food scraps and will rest somewhere among the trees. He would stay for a while with a torch to warm me up or dry my clothes. Sometimes, to fill the silence, he updates me about the construction and the mean prince’s mood. His actions are louder than the loudest thing on earth. Vaughn could be the sweetest person in this world, only if he wants to.
We barely get food in this abundant palace, and yet he still gives me a portion of his meal. Our meals combined throughout the day is a two-inch slice of wheat bread. If the cooks were kinder for the day, they’ll give us an over-ripe apple.
The palace gave all the soldiers and guards a complete meal and a place to eat. Higher ranks get to have over three meals a day. Since Vaughn and I were the outcasts, we are not allowed in their dining hall. They served our foods at the farthest back of the kitchen.
My stomach growled at the thought of our malnutrition. There may be times where Aziel, Jayce, and I couldn’t eat for a day, but this is a whole new level of starvation.
Riain’s appearance distracted me from my hunger, but this time he brought someone unexpected. It was the guy whom I always asked for directions.
Riain clicked his tongue and shook his head disapprovingly after seeing me in the same situation.
“Can you stop being tied up?” He whined with his whole body. I judgingly looked at him before glancing at my tourist guide. Our eyes accidentally met, and we looked away immediately. It was our first eye contact. He shifted in his place while Riain continued to whine about me not being fun.
“Then why take the effort to come here when it’s obvious that I’m still tied here?” I asked. He stopped grumbling by himself and crossed his arms.
“Maybe it will be a different person today,” he shrugged before pouting. How he nonchalantly treated my situation only means that this is not an unusual sight. I sighed at the thought of the other people who experienced this.
“So far, you’re close to beating the longest person tied up here… That means you have a strong endurance… Then you’re a perfect playmate! We can play…” he continued to talk to himself about the games he wanted to play with me while I was left confused. I asked what he meant by his first statement, but he was too busy having a one-sided conversation with my tourist guide. The tourist guide heard me and nudged Riain to stop and pointed at me. Riain looked at me and rose a brow.
I reiterated my question, to which he squinted his eyes while grabbing his chin to appear like he was thinking hard.
“A week, perhaps? 3 days more and you’ll be the new victor!” and this ass had the audacity to clap like winning here is a great thing. “Alright, I’m bored now. Farewell!” he abruptly said before dragging his friend away.