Chapter 2

Now that I have rejected Ethan, I gasp and walk away from him, without giving a glance to him. I don't know if he likes me or not. I just know one thing, I like Aiden, my boyfriend, and I'm not going to break up with him. With great difficulty I have found him. I do not have the courage to lose him again.

As I enter the cafeteria, my eyes search for the blonde hair girl, my best friend, Emily. She's been my best friend from day one. I sigh in relief as my eyes catch a glimpse of her blonde hair in the crowd. I grin and take a seat beside my best friend and my roommate—Emily.

“I'm feeling under the weather,” I admit.

She furrows her brows. “Why?” she asks as she takes a bite of the burger, and licks the corner of her mouth then.

“A guy proposed to me just a moment ago.”

“What? Another guy likes you,” Emily murmurs in shock.

I wheeze, shutting my eyes and nodding my head.

“Sometimes I wonder how many guys like you. By the way, what happened then?” she asks.

“I rejected him,” I state, looking into her eyes.

Why is she even asking that when she already knows that Aiden is my boyfriend, and I reject every other boy.

“Is he handsome?” she asks, raising her brows.

I recall how Ethan looked. He is good looking, for sure. I can't lie about that so I nod in quick response.

“What! You…you are saying that he's handsome. You never find anyone handsome or good looking easily. It means he truly is handsome.”

She is stunned by my statement. It's true that I never find any boy good looking but Ethan is, so I had to concede that.

“More than Aiden?” she asks, her voice playful and teasing. I knit my brows and give a death glare to her. She purses her lips and utters, “I'm just casually asking.”

“Maybe, yes.”

I roll my eyes in frustration. I had to admit it.

“What! Girls are dying to date Aiden. Who's that boy who's more good looking than him?”

Her mouth drops open then. I grit my teeth. It's hard to admit that someone else is more dainty than my boyfriend, but it's true. I can't lie about that.

“Then why did you reject him?” she asks as she takes another bite of the burger.

“Because it's not about looks. I like Aiden. For me Aiden is the most good looking boy. That's it,” I say.

She gasps. “Oh Belle! Why do you like Aiden this much?” she questions.

Tears form in my eyes as I recall my childhood memories.

My father owned a hotel and resort in Corsica—back then when I was ten. We went for a picnic at the Ajaccio beach; and I remember I was playing on the beach with some kids, even though I didn't have any friends at that time. I was laughing with them. I was enjoying it with them. Many people were present there.

"Hourra!" I laughed and turned my face. And all of a sudden my eyes caught a glimpse of a boy. A very beautiful boy, who was sitting on the beach alone. I blinked my eyes twice and glanced at all the other people present there. The kids were playing with their friends. The couples were having fun. My mother and father were busy taking their pictures. Everyone was looking happy, however, that boy was sitting alone and looking upset. Why was he sitting alone and where were his parents? My heart told me to ask him if he's okay or if there's any problem? He was looking at his feet all the time.

I ran towards him. "Bonjour! Je m'appelle Belle," I introduced myself. He turned his face and looked at me with a poker face, but then again turned his face and started looking at his feet. I knitted my brows.

"Bonjour. Est-ce que tu m'écoutes? Pourquoi es-tu assis seul?" I asked him if he could listen to me, and why he was sitting alone there in French. He didn't reply though. So, he might be from another country.

“Do you understand English?” I asked because I thought maybe he would understand my language, but it looked like he didn't understand anything, that's why he was not replying to me. He was still mute.

I thought he couldn't talk, and he was deaf and dumb. I scratched my scalp while thinking. He again looked at my face and moved a little bit away from me.

"Do you have any problem? You can tell me if you have any,” I insisted.

"You're the problem. Can't you just keep silent for a moment? You have been talking for so long. You have made my mind go haywire,” he screamed at me.

I blinked my eyes, taken aback by hearing his voice finally.

"So, you can speak? I thought you couldn't," I told him and started laughing at him.

He turned his face, giving me a death glare.

"Are you trying to scare me? But you can't. Belle Dubois doesn't feel scared of anyone in this world," I stated.

He rolled his eyes and turned his face again in front.

"Do you still not want to be my friend?" I asked, one last time. He didn't say anything to me. "You don't want to be, I guess."

I stood up to walk away from him.

"Why should I become friends with you?" he said finally. I sat beside him hurriedly, facing him.

"So you were asking why should you become friends with me? Because we are kids and you're looking the same age as mine, I guess. What is your age by the way?" I asked him.

"Eleven,” he uttered. I smiled widely.

"I'm ten and a half. Look, we both are almost of the same age. Let's become friends then."

He turned his face, locking his eyes with mine.

"Friends?" I asked, raising my hand for a handshake. He nodded, and then shook his hand with mine. I grinned widely because he became my first friend ever. I never thought it would be that easy to make a friend.

"Okay, then let's go. We should play." We both started playing with sand while talking to each other.

"What is your favorite color?" I asked.

"Red,” he replied.

"Mine is navy blue. What's your favorite cartoon?" I asked.

"Ben 10."

"Mine is Oggy and the cockroaches. What is your hobby?"

"Sketching."

"Mine is dancing. What is your favorite food?”

"Chicken,” he said.

“Are you not a francaise?” He shook his head as he answered, “I'm American.”

"How did you come here?" I asked.

"We were going from nearby and my car stopped working. The driver told me to wait here until it starts working again. The mechanic must have come now to repair it,” he explained.

"You have a car and a driver too,” I scowled, hearing that.

He looked at me in surprise. "There's plenty at my home. Do you want to see that?" I shake my head. "No. I'm okay here. My house is not too far. You can come with me there,” I suggested.

"You live in this locality?" he asked.

"Yup," I nodded.

He sighed and looked away. "The driver told me not to go anywhere. I can't go."

“Okay.”

“How can you speak English fluently?” he asked, staring into my eyes.

“I learnt by watching American movies and shows.”

He widened his eyes and his mouth dropped in shock.

“Seriously!” A surprise flashed in his eyes.

“I like American models and I watch them. I want to become a model in the future. That's why.”

“You are talented,” he said. I chuckled and nodded.

“Yes. I am.”

“They are my parents.” I turned my face, pointing my finger at my parents. The crowd was decreasing as the sun set down. It had not become totally dark yet, but the moon could be seen then. The sky was turning red and the scene of the beach was so mesmerizing.

He took a seat beside me looking at the moon, and then he turned to look at my face. "It looks like you like this very much,” he said.

"Yup. It calms me down. My mom says that one day a prince will come from the moon to marry me…just like Prince Adam married Princess Belle. Does your mom not say things like that?”

“I don't have a mother,” Saying this, he turned his face away as if he was hiding his tears from me while I kept staring at him for a long time. My heart was hurting. I wanted to take his pain as my share and give him all my happiness. I had never felt like this for anyone before, and at that moment I realized that I'm liking him.

I took off my stylish gold pendant with my name on it which my father had made for me in a large size so that I could wear it all my life, and put it around that boy’s neck. As I hooked my name's pendant on his neck, he turned his face to me in amazement.

“What are you doing?”

“Mom says we should be giving something to comfort someone who we care about. I don't have anything to give you other than my pendant.”

“You care about me!” he asks. I flashed a wide grin and glanced away briefly.

“Why?” he shot a quick response.

“You are my first friend, that's why.”

I turned my face to look at him as he uttered out of the blue, "I like you." He kissed my cheek. My cheeks flushed in shyness. He pulled away from my cheek and flashed a wide grin to me.

"You're so beautiful. I was already looking at you before you saw me here,” he said. I was looking into his eyes, and it didn't feel like he was lying to me.

"Why were you looking at me?" I furrowed my brows.

"Because I never found any girl this much beautiful. You are exactly my type. I like you now," he stated.

I shook my head. "It's not true. You're lying to me!” I asked. My cheeks started heating up when I heard that he likes me. I glanced away briefly, staring at the sky to hide my face.

"I'll make a palace for you one day and will make you my queen. I promise that. Will you marry me in the future?"

I perceived his face, flabbergasted by his words. It was a pleasure, hearing from his mouth that he wanted to make a palace for me and marry me. No one ever said something like that to me.

"Young master. We can go now."

We both heard a voice. We looked in that direction from where the voice came. There was a man. He must be his driver, I guess.

"Belle,” his voice guarded me off. I glanced up into his eyes. My breathing stuck in my throat, as he cupped my face and kissed my lips. He pulled away from me and stared into my eyes as he said, "Only you'll become my queen. Remember that. I'll find you. Will you wait for me?"

“Yes,” I nodded. I didn't know why and how, but I liked him. Maybe because his looks were my type, or maybe because he kissed me, or maybe because he became my first friend. I liked him. I really did, that's why I couldn't stop from saying yes to him. A wide grin settled on his lips.

"What's your name by the way?" I asked.

He wrote his name on the sand and ran away from there. I said bye to him, and when I turned to see his name on the sand—the wave of water erased his name. I could only see the last alphabet of his name which was ‘N’.

And since then I have been waiting only for him—just waiting. I didn't know whether it was love or madness, but my heart was never ready to believe that he would not come. I was sure that he would come. I was sure that we would meet again. I was sure that if he had told me to wait, then one day he would definitely find me. I had faith in him, and I finally found him. I found my boyfriend, my Aiden.