- ̗̀ (she/her) is that NINA DOBREV coming off the private jet? oh no that’s TEAGAN DRACULESTI the TWENTY FIVE year old PRINCESS OF ROMANIA people often say they remind them of A BATH FULL OF ROSE PETALS, FRESH SNOW, STAR GAZING. they are arranged to marry Crown Prince Filip Přemyslid ( jasmine ) *

Orion: It's not that, honestly she'll probably like to travel the stars.

Orion: Hypothetical question, but how much will it take to send someone to mars?

The more they connected, the more obnoxious Eliza felt. There was a possibly that she’d read him all wrong. They had some similarities and writing him off so quickly was not something she was proud of. People passed judgement without a second thought and now, even she was guilty of doing so. “I don’t think you’re such a bad guy. You want people to think you are, so that’s what they see. We all have our defense mechanisms.” She shrugged off the latter part of his statement. Being committed was not her strong suit. She was far too egotistical to have a longterm partner and be faithful. On the other hand, she’d never actually put forth the effort to be a good girlfriend. If she had to prove herself to Aksel then it was only fair that he do the same. “So you expect me to just be unconditionally and irrevocably devoted to a man I barely know? How do I know you’re worth it? What’s in it for me?” The princess crooned before she could everything through in its entirety. The words spilling from her mouth sounded foreign even to her, an indication that she was undoubtedly drunk. In hindsight, it wasn’t such a good idea to drink her weight in aged wines tonight. “You’re joking right?” She giggled, gazing up at him with doe-like eyes when she realized he wasn’t. Eliza abruptly propped herself up with a hand on his knee, fingers reaching up to brush against his neck. “You poor baby. It happens to the best of us. That’s what they say right? I always leave before I’m left. At least that way, I’m the one who decides.” Maybe they both had their minds made up to make this arrangement burdensome from the moment they saw each other. She wasn’t ready to be married and it was becoming more apparent that neither was Aksel. 

It was an interesting way of dancing around the question but she wouldn’t complain. Aksel was her senior so it was safe to assume he’d thought this through at least once. Still, he proved that in the right setting he would allow her to make her own choices. “Maybe you aren’t so demanding after all.” The blonde confessed, though it was unclear how much it would all last. She took the opportunity to sprawl across his lap until she was comfortable, her hand propping up her head so that she could still see his features. Regardless of the dim lighting he was still striking. “A palace full of marabou trim robes would make me elated.” Her sentiment was intended to be teasing and hopefully it would be decoded that way. Her fingers trailed over the arm of the chair and onto his leg, taking her time to find the right words to convey her feelings. “I haven’t really decided yet–about any of it, really. I never really had to. The majority of my relationships have been....casual. It’s always been easier that way,” She flipped over onto her back before continuing, “What about you? It may be a strange thing to ask now that we’re supposed to happily ever after or whatever.”

With hopes of a truce on the rise, the air in the room changed. Perhaps it was less difficult to be placid in each other’s presence. The princess’s gaze fell to her lap as he went on dictating the terms of their so-called relationship. Parading around carelessly with her old lover didn’t seem to be an option anymore. Mateo was someone she loved dearly and that wouldn’t be so easy to let go of so soon. They were the worst people for each other but in the palace walls her mind began to wander and keeping her hands to herself was impossible. “Yes.” She nodded then, the white lie slipping through her teeth. The promise was already broken before she uttered the words. “That makes perfect sense to me– except the pregnant part. What would you say if I said children are a nuisance? Better yet, what if I said I wanted to have ten?” The questions were posed to shift the subject matter. Of course, this was an important conversation to have in the long run anyhow so trading one controversial topic for another was fair. Eliza had given little time to contemplating having children in the first place.

In the night, they loved like the sun would never come up. But each time it did, she uttered those all two familiar words.  What they were doing was completely childish and they both knew it. Tangling themselves up in the sheets and in each other wouldn’t change their fate. Behind those large doors to the prince’s bedroom, there was a whole world outside. They both had obligations to fulfill that they’d never asked for to begin with. Moments like this made it easy to forget how much pain they’ve caused one another- both intentional and unintentional. With her lip embedded between her teeth, she gazed at him with both admiration and longing. She missed him so much already and she hadn’t even left. Her eyes urged him to suggest that she stay, as if one day together would change anything at all. 

“That’s the thing,” Eliza took a swallow from the bottle before continuing, “I think his problem is me. He went into this big lecture about how he’s not just going to hand me the world. Something about earning it or whatever. If he doesn’t let up I’m putting in a petition to trade.” Her confession was facetious. She was almost positive they were stuck with each other so learning to live together was the only option.