Chapter 3: The Prejudice

Aiden was making his way into the forest for his job as a lumberjack. He was carrying his favorite ax before his boss was showing up in front of him.

"Fancy seeing you here at this hour. I thought you might be late again, Blackwood," his boss sneered before Aiden smiled at him, not feeling threatened by anything.

"Well, what can I say? The woman that graced my bed last night was making me slept late and I have to be here before you can say anything else, so here I am," he said as he was setting up himself for his job. The boss was arching his eyebrow at him.

"I thought you're not approved of that way of life?" his boss asked him before Aiden shrugged.

I am but I will not be telling you, "Perhaps I need to experience it myself before I can judge it," Aiden said before he was putting on his protective mask and started on the lumber that was his quota for the day. The boss just nodded at him before leaving Aiden to his work.

Thank goodness, he thought before he was cutting the lumber before it can be delivered to the carpenter so that the gentry can buy them and gave away their money. Aiden has never been approved of the system that they were not the same equation as the gentry.

Sure, they kept to themselves but sometimes, Aiden wondered why they would not mingle with the commoners? Perhaps they don't want their pristine shoes to be dirty with their muds, Aiden thought grimly before he was focusing on his works.

Aiden worked from dawn to dusk, where he might be having his dinner. But he was so tired that day when he was making his way home. He just hoped that his grandparents left something for him on the table so that he can eat them.

But when he walked into the house, he was surprised to see the food was being served was too extravagant for their taste.

There were fishes that were cooked with some sauce of a kind. There were salads and there was also a bottle of wine that was popped on the table. He blinked his eyes before his grandparents were joining him as well.

"Did you make all this, Nana?" Aiden asked his grandmother before she shook his head.

"Well, whoever did it, it looks delicious that I cannot wait to eat," his grandfather said before Aiden was turning to look at the figure that was coming from the kitchen.

Blonde hair.

Blue eyes.

A sweet smile plastered on her lips.

"Oh, you're here. I thought I would cook something for you guys tonight so here we are," Arabella said before she was putting the dessert of something that he never saw before. Aiden can hardly contain his anger for Arabella has wasted their portions for the month.

"What do you think you're doing?" he asked calmly as Arabella was blinking her eyes at him.

"Well, I cooked dinner—"

"Don't you think that this kind of extravagant was too much for one night? This is the ratio for a month and you just wasted for a night of what? Festivity?" he stepped closer as he was looking intently at her beautiful face. Arabella was blinking her eyes as her mouth was moving but nothing came out.

"Don't you ever think that this might be the food that could last longer if we ration it right? Do you all gentry like this? Wasting food while the commoners starve?" he gritted his teeth as Arabella was raising her chin.

"I thought I was trying to lighten up the mood for you guys and to appreciate your help for saving me—"

Aiden laughed bitterly.

"For once, I never regret my kindness toward others but last night was a mistake. I don't think that I would be saving a pompous ass of a woman," Aiden sneered before his grandmother scolded him for using bad language in front of a lady.

"Aiden!"

Arabella was looking at him before she was staring for the longest time. Aiden can see that she was trying to control her emotion so that it would betray her expression. Then, she smiled as she was addressing his grandparents.

"Well, it would seem that I have stepped my boundary here. I thought you said that I can use anything that I want from the kitchen to prepare for dinner, Nana, and it seemed that it was a mistake. I am sorry if I have used your ration for the month. I promised I will repay everything—"

"Easy for you to flaunt your money when you don't have to work a day in your life, wasn't it?"

He cannot react to anything before he felt the sting in his face. Aiden was looking to his left as his eyes were focusing on the ground before he was turning to look at Arabella again. He saw something inside her eyes.

Tears, was it?

She gulped before she was holding the hand that was slapping him to her chest. She was breathing hard when Aiden was clenching his jaws.

"It was one thing to insult the whole gentry but do not assume that we did nothing. We might be seen as someone with a pompous ass and silly attitude but you don't know half of it," Arabella whispered before she turned away from him and walked out of the house through the back door. Aiden was looking after her retreating figure before someone was scoffing behind him.

"Really, Aiden? I thought I raised you better than that but clearly, you never changed," Nana said before she retreated to the bedroom, wanting to get some peace of mind.

This means that Aiden needed to fix this mess that he created. His grandpa was patting his shoulder before whispering to him.

"She has no one here, Aiden. You don't have to be so harsh. She might use all the stuff that we collected for the month but it can be found again. She, however, will only come once in this house," he said before Aiden snorted.

"It's not like I would be looking at her for the rest of my life," he said before his grandpa smiled.

"But it might and who knows, you might see the other side of the spectrum as well," he said before he went after his Nana. Aiden sighed as he stepped toward the fish that was covered with weird sauce. He took a bite and the flavor was melting inside his mouth.

He never tasted anything like it.

Now, Aiden felt guilty for telling Arabella that she was wasting the food. But if she can create this kind of flavor with his ingredient, he would like her to do it again. And so, Aiden went out the back door as well to search for the only girl that ever tug his heart to follow her footsteps.

*****

The heat was behind me but I don't think the tears would ever drop. I laughed bitterly before I was hugging myself as the chill breeze was hitting my face. I sighed as I was looking at the starless sky.

So much for thanking them to let me stay for a night.

Whenever I was sulking or being burdened with something, a walk would always help me to find my path back and my train of thought to be better. It would help me as well to think better before I did something rational.

Now, what should I do if I was not allowed again to be at Aiden's house?

I sighed as I was humming the lullaby that my mother used to sing to me. I missed her. and I missed my father as well but I cannot let the memory hold me back. I was a strong princess after all.

No, not a princess anymore. A queen, that's who I was now.

I sighed before I was looking at the sky again as I stopped in my walk. I was listening to the music of the wind before I was closing my eyes and I was standing there, wanting to escape this world.

First, I felt trapped in my own house, haunted by the fear of having to make a life choice and all that before I can even end my mourning for my parents.

Now, I was stuck here in the village with a person that has a prejudice against someone from the gentry and I don't think I have anywhere else to go anymore. My plan of escape did not go this far.

My horse was gone.

I have no money.

I was all alone.

"Oh, fuck. What will I do now?" I mumbled before something was coming from behind me. I turned to look at it, fists raised before Aiden was coming out of the bushes.

"You can come home and eat the dinner that you made for us. I hate it when it went to waste," he said before I frowned at him.

"Well, you obviously hated it anyway when I was using all the ingredients that you collected for the month," I said hotly before I was hugging myself around my waist, waiting for Aiden to go away.

Just leave me, please.

"I'm sorry," he mumbled but with my super hearing, I heard it alright. I turned to look at him as he was rubbing his neck.

"What?"

"I said I'm sorry. I know that you're used to using all the ingredients for one night and…I shouldn't be harsh to you. It was not a gentleman's way to treat a lady like that," he said before I was tilting my head to him. Aiden sighed.

"You're right, I don't even know that perhaps gentry tried their best to support commoners and all and the duke was kind enough to keep the tenants happy with their payments and all. And I am sorry for being prejudiced against you, Arabella. I don't think you're a snob for a gentry," he said before I arched my eyebrow at him.

"Are you…trying to be nice to me, Aiden?" I asked him as I was smiling at him. He scowled at me before turning away.

"Only because my grandma made me," he mumbled before I chuckled. He turned to look at me before he was turning away from me. I was about to call him before he stopped and waited for me to walk with him.

"Are you coming? The dinner would be cold by now," he said before my footsteps were moving toward him and deep inside my heart, I wished that I could always walk beside him.

Forever.