Her Memories
THUD! A loud sound could be heard as she fell to the ground.
When Prince Xavier reached to where Melissa was, he could see her laying facedown on the ground motionless, a big boulder could be seen next to her. She must've knocked her head on it when she fell! Panic seeped into his heart and he quickly turned her over to check on her injuries. What greeted him caused him to tear up instantly. There was a big cut on her forehead and she was bleeding profusely. Not wanting to waste anymore time lest her life could be in danger, Prince Xavier quickly carried her up and headed towards the main palace, all the while blaming himself for what had happened.
The whole palace was in chaos. The sight of Prince Xavier carrying a lady in his arms was too extraordinary! This was the first time anyone had seen Prince Xavier being so close to a woman, other than the Queen. Prince Xavier couldn't be bothered with the watchful eyes of the people around him.
When he reached the main entrance, he saw Duke Kensington walked towards him in hasty steps, with a surprised look in his eyes.
"Your Highness, what happened to Lady Melissa?!" Duke Kensington quickly asked, after confirming the identity of the woman in the Prince's arms. The bloody sight of Lady Melissa was truly shocking.
"She fell and injured herself, we must get her treated urgently." Prince Xavier said while trying to move forward. However, Duke Kensington's next words stopped him.
"Let me carry her, Your Highness. She is after all, my fiancée." Duke Kensington's voice didn't reveal the emotions he's feeling at that moment, albeit saying those words. He immediately moved forward and extended his hands, ready to take Lady Melissa in his arms.
However, Prince Xavier immediately tighten his embrace on Lady Melissa upon hearing Duke Kensington's words, refusing to let her go. His unseemly behaviour instantly brought a frown on the other man's face.
Both men stood still, staring fiercely at each other. Unknowingly, a small crowd had gathered around them, wondering what's happening. Hushed voices could be heard amongst them, as they were trying to guess the situation at hand. Some were also concerned by the amount of blood which could be seen on the Prince's attire as well as the lady in his arms.
"Xavier, Melissa's life could be in danger." Duke Kensington's cold voice could be heard after a moment of silence. 'What the hell is wrong with Xavier?? How dare he refuses to hand her over to me??' As much as Duke Kensington was irritated with his cousin's rude action, he decided to stay calm.
Prince Xavier finally realized he couldn't waste anymore time for fear of Lady Melissa's safety. No matter how much he refused to acknowledge their relationship, it was a fact that both Lady Melissa and his cousin were engaged. A murderous look flashed across the Prince's eyes and he reluctantly handed her over to Duke Kensington. They then proceeded to the guest room, where a doctor was already waiting.
Melissa opened her eyes and she was surrounded in darkness. Panicked, she thought she had died, one more time. She immediately shouted in frustration, "Are you kidding me?! I died, again??! Come on!!!"
But wait, why is this place so dark? I thought hell is fire...is this even hell? It can't be the heaven right? They said heaven is so beautiful with warm sunshine, garden full of flowers and endless comfort. Where am I?
No sooner than she said that, various images started flashing before her eyes. She saw scenes in her mind that didn't belong to her, but the girl she saw was obviously her! Was that...the original host, Lady Melissa Rose Knight? Were those her memories?
Melissa saw the original host's childhood memories, where she was pampered and cherished by her family. They all loved her dearly and she loved them too. She saw Duchess Rose Knight, the kind and gentle woman who taught Lady Melissa how to bake and sew. It was such a beautiful memory. Melissa didn't only see these memories but she also felt Lady Melissa's emotions, she heard and felt her deepest innermost thoughts and feelings.
Suddenly the scene went forward to when Lady Melissa was 13 years old and she was at the palace. Princess Katherine was picking a fight with her when Lady Melissa told her off for being an overbearing and conceited princess. Suddenly a young man came forward and defended Lady Melissa. This young man was the stranger whom Melissa met earlier! He was the Queen's eldest son, Prince Xavier!
"Aren't you afraid that the Princess would complain about you to the Queen?" Prince Xavier asked her while guiding her around the royal garden.
"Why should I? She's in the wrong, not me. How dare she called me ugly and asked me to fetch her a glass of water? Do I look like a maid to her?" Lady Melissa pouted her lips, not feeling the slightest guilt.
"Haha! Yes, you're right! How dare she! You're definitely not ugly at all." Prince Xavier replied, with a smile on his handsome face.
"Of course, my mother is so beautiful, and I look like her. That means, I'm beautiful too, am I not?" Lady Melissa said proudly.
Prince Xavier nodded repeatedly, indulging her vanity.
"By the way Your Highness, why did you save me? I think you're in more trouble now than me." Lady Melissa said, puzzled as to why this Prince would rescue her from his own sister.
"I think you and I can be great friends. So, I saved you. Friends should look out for one another." With that, they reached to where his garden was and he proceeded to show her around. Lady Melissa was delighted to see the beautiful flowers, and told Prince Xavier that white roses were her favourite.
The next images showed the both of them spent time together, going through the massive collections of books in the Prince's study, playing musical instruments together, had a game of chess and finally the Prince taught her how to paint. Melissa could feel that the Prince and Lady Melissa enjoyed their time together and somehow a bond was created between the two.
After their encounter, Lady Melissa could be seen smiling everyday at home. She wanted to see the Prince again but didn't know how. She had tried to accompany her mother to the palace but often didn't get the chance to do so, making her felt somewhat upset and frustrated. She didn't understand why she was feeling like this. Therefore, although she knew the Princess had spoken bad things about her and therefore no one would dare to approach her, Lady Melissa still tried to attend as many functions and events that she's allowed to, just so she could catch a glimpse of the Prince. She had managed to see him from a distance at times, and was satisfied.
Suddenly Melissa saw the original host standing alone, in the palace banquet hall. Lady Melissa had turned 16 at this time. She was nervous. After given her instructions not to wander off and to stay close by, her mother, Duchess Rose Knight had followed a group of noble ladies to seek audience with the Queen. Apparently, the Queen had something she needed to discuss with the noblewomen and had requested their presence at the inner chambers. Since it was inappropriate for a young girl like Lady Melissa to tag along, Duchess Rose Knight had no choice but to leave her daughter all by herself.
Lady Melissa looked around the huge banquet wall, where many guests were seen chatting happily amongst themselves. Lady Melissa recognized some of the young ladies present, and which families they came from. As she stood there wondering what to do, she noticed many guests still gave her curious looks as they had when she first arrived. When she was younger, Duchess Rose Knight had took her along to all the social events and gatherings. However, from her not-so-successful attempts at socializing, she seemed to have accumulated quite a reputation for herself, and it's not a good one. She sighed inwardly. 'All I did was just telling them the truth, is that so bad?'
In the past, some girls had approached her with the intention to build friendships with her, based on her noble status as the daughter of the Duke of Hurrey. However, her sharp tongue and uncontrollable knack for spitting out the truth, finally chased all of them away, and she had even offended quite a few of them. Lady Melissa remembered one time when she had told a girl that she needed to brush her teeth as her breath stank! That girl had cried and said Lady Melissa had bullied her.
In retaliation, these spiteful girls had spewed rumour about her, citing her as an extremely arrogant, mean, evil, and a scheming girl. The last straw was when she fought with Princess Katherine when she visited the palace the last time. Princess Katherine had heard of her reputation from some of the girls and when she met her, the Princess had purposely picked a fight with her. Luckily the Queen's eldest prince had intervened and saved her from further embarrassment. After that, everyone had avoided her like a plague.
Today, Lord Melvin was not around as he had caught a cold and had to stay home. As for her father, Duke Malcom had travelled out of town for business. There was no one she could relied on after she was left alone by her mother. Lady Melissa saw many familiar faces but none were friendly. Many young men were openly staring at her but none approached her either. Not that she mind, they looked so lecherous that she wanted to slap them!
Lady Melissa felt suffocated standing there, being stared at as if she was an object for scrutiny. She quietly left the banquet hall and searching her memory from her last visit to the palace, she went through the eastern side door which led to the royal garden. Sensing the peacefulness of the surrounding area and wonderful sight before her, Lady Melissa walked slowly towards the other end of the garden. During the walk, her mind was on Prince Xavier. He had brought her to this garden and showed her his collection of flowers. Apparently the Prince liked to plant roses, a passion not many people know about. She still vividly remember the various colours of roses which the Prince had planted in his garden. Her most favourite ones were the white roses.
When she reached the prince's garden, she was overjoyed when she saw that the white roses had bloomed beautifully. She squatted down and carefully stroked the flowers, with a smile on her lips. Her thoughts drifted again to Prince Xavier, the man whom had often appeared in her dreams for the past few years. It's true, she had fallen deeply in love with this prince.