Dining banter

Walking slowly, Jasmine followed behind the maid down the corridor, her heart thumped behind her ribcage, wondering why she was being called to the dining room even though she had an answer. The walk to the dining room felt long, and she continued to debate with her thoughts.

When they finally reached the dining room, Jasmine could feel the cold sweat break on her back when the stationed guards opened the door. The maid left her to step inside alone, and her fingers twisted her dress at the sides.

The long dining table was filled with the elite people dining. At the head of the table was the King, with Prince Nikolai, Prince Lucian, and the princess on his right side, and the Queen on his left. As she walked further, Nikolai looked up from his meal and beckoned for her to come to his side, and it was then she realized he was the one that called her. But why? He wasn't going to tell on her, was he? She fidgeted and started to walk towards him, and to her dismay, Prince Lucian looked up and his gaze fell on her. His brows furrowed deeply, and he gripped the utensil tighter, the same hand which she had bitten and was now bandaged.

Jasmine felt like she was walking down her lanes of death as she approached the first prince. By now, the other people had noticed the maid's appearance in the room.

"What is the maid doing in the dining room when we are dining? Doesn't she know-" The princess was saying, but Nikolai cut her off.

"I sent for her," He said, cutting into the steak on his plate.

"Why would you call a maid into the dining hall, Nick? You know it's against the rules," It was the Queen who spoke.

Nikolai didn't bother to look up from his plate, picking the vegetables and meat into his mouth when Lucian spoke up.

"She is the same maid I've been looking for," He had a grim look on his face as he stared at the girl like he would lurch at her.

"The one who bit you?" It was the princess who asked again, and when her brother glared at her, she closed her mouth and faced her meal.

This time, Jasmine had come to stand beside Nikolai and had her head dipped low while waiting for whatever punishment she was going to receive. She wished she had escaped from the palace without waiting for the guard to come pick them up.

"Did you call her here because you know she was the one who attacked your brother and wanted her punished?" The King asked his first son who continued to eat his meal unbothered.

"Hm.. I didn't know any maid attacked Lucian," Which was the truth, "Were you caught off guard or simply too weak to catch her before she ran away?" Nikolai directed the question to Lucian who dug his fork harder into his plate, feeling the number of eyes on him.

"Are you going to ask about that or punish the maid for committing such a crime," The Queen said, obviously not pleased that he was jabbing at Lucian.

"Did you know the weight of your crime?" Jasmine heard the King refer to her. Unlike the other family members, his voice was gentle, but the look on his face remained as cold.

"She wasn't the one who attacked Lucian," Nikolai spoke up before she could reply. Her eyes widened hearing his words, but the rest had already turned to the first prince and hadn't seen her expression.

"What do you mean, she is the same person," Lucian talked back, the lines between his brows deepening. "Jasmine is her name," He added.

"Probably, you were fantasizing about her when you took another maid to your room," Nikolai commented, his grey eye moving to lock his brother in a heated gaze.

"Jasmine had been with me throughout the evening," He added.

Lucian couldn't believe what he was hearing. He looked up at the maid who had schooled her expression and dipped her head low. He couldn't have mistaken her blue eyes, his ears burned with embarrassment as Nikolai had accused him of fantasizing about a mere maid.

"She was in the hall during the celebration yesterday and followed me back to the room, she wasn't -"

"Are you sure?" Nikolai cut him off before he could continue, which only fueled his anger. "You had been drunk and must have mistaken another person for her."

"How would you know if I was drunk when you didn't even attend the celebration?" Lucian fired back.

"You know me, I don't have to be at a place to know about every detail," Nikolai replied, pushing the plate from his front.

Nikolai wasn't the one to talk too much; he only replied when he was talked to. Hearing him talk so much and also making up a lie to defend this maid confused Lucian.

"But Jasmine wasn't your maid to have been attending to you. I had specifically picked up Emily for you," The Queen said.

"Why? To spy on my movement?" Nikolai questioned back.

"Nick," The King called, silently warning him. It was usual for the members to have dining banters, but he expected them to behave as they had visitors.

"I needed something urgent, and the maid you assigned was no where to be found, so I called for Jasmine," He said.

"Is this true?" The King asked Jasmine, and she raised her head subtly to look at Nikolai. He didn't bother to turn to her, picking up his wine glass to drink from.

"Yes, your Highness," She finally replied and caught the little smirk on the corner of his lips. It disappeared as quickly as she had seen it.

"The maid is lying and Nikolai als-" Lucian, who was enraged, spoke up, but Nikolai stood up from his seat, cutting him off.

"I believe if you hadn't had too much to drink, you wouldn't have embarrassed yourself this much," He said and started to walk away.

"Come with me," He said, turning to look at the girl who quickly walked behind him.

"She's not your maid, Nikolai, she is Lucian's," The Queen reminded him.

"You can assign one of your maids to watch over your son. This one is mine to keep," Nikolai replied without bothering to look back at the Queen and walked out of the dining hall.