[Third-person POV: general]
The courtyard was bathed in the soft glow of moonlight, casting shadows across the garden. Younger Eden and Angelina sat side by side at the edge of the fountain, its gentle splashes providing a soothing backdrop to the quiet night.
The night held a special significance; it was the eve of their engagement, a momentous occasion that would bind their destinies. As they sat together, they both felt awkward around each other.
Angelina gazed at Eden, his silhouette glowing in the moonlight. "Why are you so quiet?" she began, her voice a gentle melody of a child.
Eden turned to her, his eyes reflecting the stars above as he grumbled while touching the small engagement ring in his hand. "Why do I have to marry you?"
Angelina, a little bit hurt by his words, smacked his head as she replied, "You are the one who wanted to marry me."
Eden, rubbing his head, replied, "It was your father's idea."
"Humph, And your family accepted it because you wanted this to happen," she replied with a humph, facing the other side while folding her arms across her chest.
"Yeah, I wanted to marry you. Happy?" Eden replied, making her face him again.
"Happy!" Angelina replied with a smile, triumphant in winning against him once more.
"No! Not happy," but immediately she turned on her words as she saw an opportunity to ask something from him.
"Not this again," Eden sighed, but nonetheless, he leaned closer as he asked, "So, what will make the princess happy?"
"Call me Anna!" Angelina shouted as she heard him calling her princess again.
"Yes, yes, Anna." Eden quickly corrected himself as he asked, "Your answer?"
"Hmm, let me think," she replied as she placed her chin on her hands, and after a while, a happy smile formed on her face.
"It looks like you thought of something good," Eden said with a curious look as he noticed her smile.
"Hmm, hmm," Angelina nodded her head twice, her smile not fading a bit.
"Tell me, what do you want?" Eden asked.
"I want a blue house," she said excitedly as she grabbed Eden's hand.
"Don't we already have a house?"
"No! Dummy, a house for just the two of us!"
"And?"
"And I want it to be like this big," she replied, stretching her hands sideways as much as she could.
"I get it; what else?" Eden said, grabbing both of her hands.
"And it should be beside a river so we can play anytime we want."
"Anything else?"
"I also want it to have a view from where we could watch the sun set down."
"Uh,huh", Eden nodded as he made a thought expression, and after a while, he replied "Okay".
"You promise?", Angelina asked, extending her pinky finger towards him.
"I promise", Eden replied with a smile as he interjected his pinky finger with hers.
"Okay," she said, nodding happily. She again sat down beside him, albeit a little closer this time.
They both sat quietly as they looked at the garden in front of them. Their gazes were on the flowers, and a comfortable silence surrounded them.
"Hey." The silence between them was broken as Angelina called out.
"What?" Eden asked, turning his attention towards her.
"Wanna kiss?" she said. Her face had a cheeky grin, which Eden didn't notice.
"No!" he refused, directly shaking his head as he said, "Mom told me to only kiss someone I love."
"So you don't love me?" she asked, making a hurtful expression.
"...No...I mean...Yes," caught off guard by the question; Eden didn't know how to reply, and his face also started to heat up because of the embarrassment.
"Close your eyes," she said as she brought her face closer to him.
Eden, not knowing what to do, closed his eyes. His face turned toward her as he waited for her to kiss him.
*Poked*
But all his anticipation turned into shame as she, instead of kissing him, poked both of his cheeks.
"Hahahaha!" Her laughter echoed throughout the garden as she held her stomach.
Eden, however, was not as happy as she was, covering his face with his hands. A mix of shame and embarrassment was evident on his face.
"What are you two doing here?" Grace's voice cut through the laughter of Angelina as she approached, her eyes narrowing as she looked at them.
"Bleghh, he is mine",
Angelina, mischief dancing in her eyes, replied as she stuck out her tongue in response. which immediately made Grace angry.
"Look, a dragon!"
Angelina shouted, diverting Grace's attention as she looked at the sky.
Seizing the moment, she gently leaned in and planted a soft kiss on Eden's cheek, a playful smile on her lips.
"Where is the dragon?", Grace mumbled as she looked back at Angelina.
"Why are you even here?" Angelina asked her own question with a grin.
Grace, unfazed, replied, "I came to tell you both that the photo shoot is ready. They're calling for you, especially your sister."
"We are coming", she replied to Grace as she looked back at Eden, who was still in a daze, staring at her.
"Let's go", she said with a smile, extending her hand toward him.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"An–"
"Ann–"
"Anna," a gentle voice called, pulling Angelina from the depths of her dreams. Her eyes fluttered open, and her body jerked as she lifted her head from the office table.
"A dream," she mumbled, disorientatly looking around her, until her gaze settled on a brown-haired girl beside her.
"Aeloria," Angelina whispered, recognizing the familiar face. She leaned back in her chair, closing her eyes and letting out a sigh.
"You should go back to bed and sleep for a while," Aeloria suggested, busying herself with arranging Angelina's scattered papers.
"No, I'm fine," Angelina replied, her eyes reopening.
"Are you crying?" Aeloria inquired with concern in her voice as she noticed the redness in Angelina's eyes.
"I just... wanted to see more," Angelina mumbled, slowing her tears with a gentle rub of her palms.
"Anyway, how are the new products doing in the market", Angelina asked as she calmed herself down.
"They are doing great", Aeloria replied as she moved a step back after arranging her table.
"And how is the funding for the orphanage going", she asked as she checked the paper she was last working on.
"One of them is going to open up soon, and I plan to visit it at the opening ceremony", Aeloria replied with a nod, her head held up proudly at the work she has been doing for the last three years.
"How does your head even work for you to come up with this many ideas?", Angelina mumbled with a chuckle as she asked her.
"I am a born genius", she replied playfully, earning another chuckle from Angelina.
"Lair," a voice chimed in out of nowhere, but they both seemed unfazed, as if they were used to it.
From seemingly thin air, a small fairy materialized, her hands folded on her chest.
"Quit it, Ivy; nobody asked you," Aeloria grumbled, attempting to grab the mischievous fairy.
"Ho-ho, should I tell Angelina about the Prince Charming you were thinking about last nigh—" the little fairy teased, but Aeloria's threat cut her off abruptly.
"One more word, Ivy, and I will throw you back to fairy land," Aeloria threatened, her tone leaving no room for negotiation. The mischievous fairy, Ivy, wisely held her tongue at the warning.
"Who is she talking about", Angelina asked, genuinely curious about what she heard.
"No one!", Aeloria replied, shaking her head and indicating not to ask more.
"Anyway, why are you back? Didn't you go back home?", Angelina asked as she picked up her metal pen.
"He is back", Aeloria replied, and even though her words did not indicate who Angelina seemed to understand, the pen dropped from her hand.
"Wh-what?", Angelina asked, trembling as she looked at her.
"Yes, he is back; he brought a house recently in his name to the riverside of the Yamda".
Aeloria replied, taking out some documents from her space ring.
"What color is it?", Angelina whispered, but it was loud enough for her to hear.
"It's blue". She replied, and her response made Angelina lean back on the chair as she desperately tried to stop her body from trembling.
"Why..are..you..back", Angelina mumbled slowly as she felt her head ache in pain.
"You should at least talk to him, Anna", Aeloria said, as she is most familiar with her and knows how much she has conflicting emotions about him.
"I cannot," she mumbled, her expression returning to being stoic the face she wears in front of everyone "I'll not, for my kingdom".
"But—", Aeloria tried to argue, but she was quickly stopped by her.
"I have committed sins I need to pay for," Angelina said coldly as she returned to her work.
"I don't deserve happiness", she mumbled to herself, containing all her emotions inside her.
"Not after what I did".