THE KINGS: A King Who Bows to His Queen.

olia's

y Blossom. Yep!

, "Blossom"; my dad aba

ttle garden, and she won't shut up about h

's what she

owhere to be found. He dropped me off at the hospital when I was in labour and disappeared. I was disposed to hating

e being so persistent in your crying, the nurse had to beg me to hold you and breastfeed you. I reluctantly took you in my arms, and all my resen

ou as you were sucking on my nipples, your tiny hands pressed into my sk

, I wanted to despise you so much, I wanted to feel disgust when I looked at you, but all I could feel

itioned close to the cheerful daisies that dotted the neighboring flower bed. You started crying, I figured you were hungry, so I walked over to where your stroller was, I took you in my a

that I was amazed. I gave you the middle nam

was a very complicated woman; she was sweet, but she was a complex being. Sometime

couldn't take it anymore, she ran away when she was 16 years old. I don't know how she managed to survive, but somehow she

Taken.

ted t

as healthy-how co

rson. I fed off Ricky in order to keep my soul alive. It was starving and shriveled before I met him, but being in his p

c and all, but that's just a line she

eelings for your dad," she'd add, wheneve

pillars morph into butterflies, romance novels, thrillers, sci-fi, and all. She didn'

spitting image of him, except my hair was strawberry blonde, and I had hazel-green eyes. This i

****************

s mother's voice pierced through the dawn's quietude

d drowsy. She dashed into the bathroom, her morning ritual a flurry of mo

ayer, and stood up. Magnolia's gaze flicked across the room, and she spotted the rumpled mess that was her bed. 'Make your bed after waking up,' her mother had dru

white foam frothing as she mechanically brushed them clean. A nagging voice rose in the depths of her mind, questioning the importance of her rushed dental hygiene. 'I

the array of underwear on her dresser. Sh

ice chiming in once again. 'Even if you wear a pair of worn-out gr

is at it again! Why do I bother to indulge in these pointless inner

g over her skin. The shower provided a brief moment of peace, a pause in the rush of her morning routine. But even here, Magnolia's mind refused to quiet. Thoughts of her mo

the turmoil in her life, one beacon of hope glinted in the darkness: she was a scholarship student at the most prestigious high s

tugging at the corners of her mouth. She was proud of herself. It was a rare moment of self-aff

ty, is a reflection of her desire to blend in, to avoid drawing attention to herself. She was a chameleon, always adapting to her envir

opened it, and took the stone inside it. It was a normal-

Lia stood alone, clutching the hem of her gown, eyes wide with fear. Her mother had vanished in pu

omers streamed by, their eyes sliding over the abandoned child with

verwhelm her, a boy in a turquois

gaze was kind and curious, contrasting star

as though he were addressing a sp

she fixed her gaze on his shoes, the intricate

to his pocket, withdrawing his hand slowly, as though he were extracting a delicate tr

, extending his hand. "I'm giving it to

stone in her hand. As he turned to leave, Lia found herself following him. In her mind, the stone was a talisman, imbued with power beyond it

m, continued on his path until the sound of fabric

're beautiful, so dark like a dark hole sucking you in, and you

his. He did so without hesitation, the trust between them already blossom

aze never wavering. It was a silent e

ng across his face. He nodded, tucking the parke

ound the corner and into the bustle of the store. But at that moment, something had shifted.

end of the aisle. Lia's mother, her eyes darting about in searc

a blend of relief and exaspe

oking all ov

er mother took her silence as petulance and ushered her

boy had disappeared. And for the briefest moment, she could have sworn she saw him th

and walked out. I closed the door b

said, smiling. I walked over to our little dining table and sat down. "I also squeezed some fresh o

g, like she's my sister and not my mom. I walked over where she was seated, pecked her cheeks and just when I was about to leave, she too