BELIEVE IN YOURSELF.

     lucky.   he  thinks  he’s  lucky  to  talk  to  her.   part  of  her  wants  to  giggle   —-   but  artie  sounds  so  genuine  saying  it,   unlike  the  giggling  girls  gwen  usually  saw  in  the  halls  that  talk  about  how  lucky  they  were  that  the  queen  bee  appeared  to  like  their  shoes.   normally,   gwen  would  probably  scoff  at  his  comment,   but  she  finds  herself  smiling.   ❛   no,   i  mean  it.  truly.   ❜

     fingers  tap  lightly  against  the  counter,   eyes  looking  at  artie,   then  the  cupcakes,   then  artie,   then  the  cupcakes,  back  and  forth  for  a  moment.   oh,   god.   if  tiffany  or  lance  knew  she  was  growing  soft  for  the  school  loser   —-   oh,   hell   —-   who  CARES.   it’s  no  crime  to  be  nice.   ❛   they  look  really  nice   —-   i  think  we’re  gonna  ace  this  project.   ❜

     gwen’s just  ———   being too much . artie’s starting to half-wonder if this is some kind of prank . he... definitely wouldn’t put it pass lance to coax gwen into doing it but — but he can’t do that . he just . adores her too much to think that badly . and she — no. gwen is nice . countless of times artie’s a witness to that . so maybe ... just maybe ... everything that’s happening right now is actually . you know . not some cruel joke .       ❝     y - yeah ? yeah , i mean . i think so too . mrs burgundy’s not gonna see this coming , for sure .     ❞

“If a lion stands before you, do you trust your life in its jaws?”

        it  felt  like  almost  immediately  after  she  thought  about  the  possibility  of  speaking  to  artie,   they  made  eye  contact.   it’s  brief,   yes,   but  feels  like  hours.   he’s  grown,   yes,   but  the  eyes  are  the  same.   but  even  those  look  different   —-   no  underlying  sadness  to  them.   it’s  incredible,   she  thinks,   how  a  few  years  can  change  a  person.   and  now  he’s  saying  her  name   —-   and  before  she  can  say  anything  back  to  him,   he’s  pressed  something  into  her  hand  and  is  off  again.   as  soon  as  he’s  out  of  sight,   she  looks  at  what  he’s  given  her.   a  pin,   one  that  feels  heavy.   and  expensive.   a  small  smile  forms  on  her  face  as  fingers  curl  around  it,   and  she  heads  home.

          by  the  time  three’o’clock  rolled  around,   gwen  found  herself  standing  in  the  entrance  of  the  castle   (   a  huge  one,   may  she  add  )   with  the  permission  of  the  guards,   waiting  around  for  artie.   she  kind  of  chuckles  at  the  thought   —-   if  her  16  year  old  self  knew  that  in  a  few  years  she’d  be  waiting  around  to  see artie,   she’d  probably  laugh  it  off.   but,   she  smiled  a  bit  at  the  thought  of  being  excited   —-   maybe  she  had  changed  too.

        the meeting goes on for far longer than artie has expected . but as soon as it’s done , he’s sure he’s breaking records’ time with how quick he exits himself out of there . the court must’ve looked on with strange expressions while aunt lillian  ———   well , he’ll knock on her door and apologise later . maybe even tell her about gwen . at that thought , the eighteen year old breaks into a bright smile , his pale features deepening in a shade of pink , as he high-fives one of the knights — who really was holding his hand up to summon somebody , artie would assume — and bounces right to the patio near the entrance . the helps should’ve led her there .

          she  can  only  imagine  how  he  feels.  lillian  has  always  led  a  life  of  royalty  accompanied  with  magic.  yet  artie  has  been  left  out  of  these  family  affairs  until  now,  &  sans  harold,  he  must  learn  the  ways.  it’s  INNATE  to  him,  bless  his  heart.  but  even  the  best  are  far  from  perfect,  abandoned  by  fathers  &  mothers.

          ❛   what  kind,  arthur  ?  we  have  nearly  every  teabag  imaginable  here.   ❜  his  restraint  is  obvious  &  does  not  go  unnoticed,  but  KIND  QUEEN  LILLIAN  will  not  draw  attention  to  such.  ❛   well,  all  but  gingerbread.  our  dear  cookie  friend  took  offense  to  that.  i  do  hope  this  doesn’t  put  a  tamper  on  our  teatime.   ❜

         artie blinks aimlessly for a moment .    ❝    wh - what kind ?     ❞    and he sounds stupid , really , because what future kings don’t know the kind of teas that are available in the world ? in fact , didn’t he learn this before in home ed ? you know , when lance and the whole jousting team said that it was a “girl’s class” and considerably bailed . like , every time . and the teachers didn’t even care .    ❝    o - oh right . right . um —      ❞     pick something neutral , artie . something that you can’t get the name wrong .

          she  studies  his  face  carefully   —-   it’s  sad,   to  be  honest.   although  he’s  smiling  ever  so  slightly,   his  eyes  tell  a  different  story.   she  kind  of  feels  bad   —-   everyone  here  is  so  awful  to  him   —-   including  her   —-   and  for  what    ?   because  her  jock  boyfriend  says  so   ?   teeth  sink  into  lower  lip  as  she  listens  to  his  question,   and  she  gazes  at  the  ground.   flowers.   what  was  the  harm  in  flowers   ?   surprise,   the  answer  is  none.   if  lance  asked,   she  could  blame  it  on  some  other  guy  in  the  school.   ❛   uh,   yeah.   of  course.   that’s  totally  sweet  of  you.   ❜

                 ❛   that’s  unfortunate   —-   can  you  imagine  how,   like,   good  you’d  be  at  it  if  you  started  earlier   ?   like  cake  master / top  chef  level.   ❜   smile  remains  as  she  finishes  the  last  cupcake  and  places  it  on  the  tacky-looking  red  plate  mrs.  burgundy  had  provided  for  them.   ❛   i   —-   thank  you,   artie.   ❜   hands  rest  on  the  counter,   and  she  glances  down  at  them.   she  had  been  wondering  why  people  teased  artie  for  awhile  now   —-   and  she  especially  wondered  it  now.   he  was  nice,   and  kind  of  cool.   gwen  glances  back  over  to  him,   top  teeth  resting  upon  lower  lip.   ❛   —-   so  are  you.   ❜

           he shrugs  ,  the awkwardness stemmed from years of being isolated is clear in his action : always unsure , never that confident . no , never like lance . so , no . he couldn’t imagine being good at anything when everybody seems hell-bent on making sure he knows his place is as the unwanted kid in the school , in the country , in the world . but that’s okay . artie’s used to it .

      it  has  to  be  artie.   it  can’t  be  anyone  else.   the  face  is  the  same   —-   older,   as  hers  is   —-   but  the  same.   his  voice  has  lowered,   but  it  sounds  familiar.   gwen  can  hardly  believe  that  this  smiling  man  is  the  same  artie  she  went  to  school  with   —-   he  was  so  sad  when  she  knew  him,   constantly  hiding  in  an  attempt  to  escape  ridicule  and  a  constant  unhappy  expression  on  his  face.   now  he  seemed  to  be  the  complete  opposite   —-   happy,   talking,   out  in  the  open.   it  was  a  nice  change   !  

       soon  enough,   gwen  finds  herself  in  the  crowd  of  people  gathered  around  the  soon-to-be-king,   listening  to  what  he  has  to  say.   part  of  her  hopes  he’ll  notice  her   —-   it  would  be  interesting  to  talk  to  him  again  after  all  these  years   —-   let  him  know  about  her  and  lance’s  breakup,   let  him  know  about  the  chess  dorks  getting  kicked  out  of  school   —-   but  part  of  her  didn’t  know  what  she’d  do  if  he  acknowledged  her.   regardless,   she  stands  there,   listening  to  him  and  the  low  chatter  in  the  crowd.

         artie never thought he’d be a people person . he wasn’t, really . he’s awkward and witty and sometimes likes to speak up out of spite ( considering everyone really liked to pretend he never existed before ) but things change. years pass since he was that boy who everybody hated , who everybody deemed wouldn’t mount to anything other than the “dork” title they’ve set him up as. but — he has people now, looking up to him, needing him, calling his name. and artie ... artie likes the attention , even if it’s a bit stressful sometimes. he wasn’t useless anymore; he wasn’t passed off like he’s some sort of rotting prize that nobody wants . he’s better.

      ❛   really   ?   never   ?   ❜   it’s  a  bit  shocking   —-   who  hasn’t  baked  before   ?   she  purses  her  lips  for  a  moment,   and  turns  back  to  the  cupcakes  on  the  counter  in  front  of  her.   ❛   they  totally  don’t  look  like  it’s  your  first  time.   you’re  a  natural   !   ❜   gwen   grins  and  glances  towards  her  cupcakes.   ❛   oh,   thank  you   —-  they’re  not  my  best,   but  they’ll  do.   ❜

              ow.   typically,   hearing  someone  say  that  wouldn’t  affect  gwen   —-   but  now   ?   artie  saying  it   ?   the  school  joke   ?   she  felt  foolish   —-   how  he  was  rubbing  off  on  her,   she  didn’t  know.   but  he  was  (   maybe  it’s  because  she’s  dating  lance,   and  lance  and  artie  used  to  be  friends   )   and  she  didn’t  know  how  to  feel  about  it.

              ❛   —-  what  makes  you  think  that   ?   ❜

             “ ………YOU want to snapchat HIM ?  ” head tilt’s in DISBELIEF, an eyebrow raised in just the slightest way. “……if you want DRAMATICS and FAKE shit,  be my guest. ”

            GWEN  WAS  FREE   !   or,   she  was  supposed  to  be.   she’d  graduated  from worcestershire  academy,   finally,   only  to  be  approached  by  her  father  about  an  ailing  grandmother  she’d  never  met  before  and  asked  if  she’d  spend  the  summer  with  her   (    okay,   daddy.   i’ll  go  visit  grandmother  shelley  or  sandy  or  whatever  her  name  is   )   .   at  first,   she  was  upset.   she  wouldn’t  get  to  hang  out  with  her  friends,   or  see  anyone  she  actually  knew.   after  a  second  of  thinking,   though,   she  was  excited.   a  new  town,   a  bunch  of  new  people  to  meet   ?   perfect   !   but  now,   here  she  was,   sitting  in  her  grandmother  susan’s  tiny  house,   bored  to  death.   ❛   grandmother,   ❜   she  starts,   pursing  her  lips  together.   ❛   i’ve  wanted  to  just  explore  the  city   —-  is  it  okay  if  i  go  out  today   ?   ❜   after  a  grumble  of  yes  and  buy  me  this  from  the  market,   gwen  was  out  the  door.

               and  how  beautiful  far  far  away  was   !   the  name  itself  was  a  bit  silly  to  gwen   (   and  a  bit  familiar  sounding.   maybe  they  had  an  exchange  student  from  there  once   )   but  that  silly  notion  was  cast  aside  as  she  kept  walking.   that’s  when  she  saw  him   —-   tall,   skinny.   that  face  was  familiar,   one  she’d  seen  before.   was  that   —-   artie   ?

        the hooves of the horses are loud , stomping   —    but gladly the yell artie gave mixed with brimming laughter is enough to warn the people in the streets as he races through to make way , pale cheeks flushing while his knights circle and catch up , their own smiles , artie could see , mixing harmoniously with the panic that the almost king of far far away could’ve been harmed . but it’s just silly games . he knew lately things are tensed when it seems artie wouldn’t leave the castle for months due to occasions rising after another , but — gosh . it’s so good to be out here . he wonders when he’ll be able to visit fiona and shrek again ?     ❝       oh come on stephen , you can do better than that ! i told you to not let me win !      ❞     he jokes with the knight who’s playfully rolling his eyes back at him and artie laughs , before he notices he’s gathered himself an audience.