“Nicole Ella Kiara Brielle, you come out of there!” Nicole got off her bed and looked at the mess around her. Three days she had sat in her room and it was starting to show it. Every surface had stuff on it, from books to some candy wrappers. She was, to be frank, pouting. She hadn’t told her father about Jonathan, and when he found out from the Queen, he had gotten so angry at her lack of interest in the rich princes of surrounding countries that he had forbidden her to see the boy again. This happened a week after the princess had been helped by Jonathan. Nicole hadn’t seen him since he had led her to the castle that one evening.
“No.”
“Nicole El-” the servant tried again.
“I’m not coming out and you can’t make me, so go away and don’t bother me.” Then she covered her ears and started to sing, so the conversation started to sound something like this:
“Dum dum…
“You don’t…”
“…dee dee dee…”
“…you need to try…”
“…dee dah dah…”
“WILL YOU STOP THAT??”
“da dee dum dah dah dah …”
“FINE!! STUBBORN MULE!!!!”
Nicole was amused. Anna, her poor maidservant, had never called her a mule. She wondered if Jonathan was a mule, too.
Jonathan. Nicole could not stop thinking of him. He had occupied her mind so much she had almost eaten a rubber chicken instead of her meal one night. Suddenly there was a knock at her window. Not really a knock, more of a thwack. Nicole realized it was a rock. She opened up the window to find the very boy who had been in every corner of her mind.
“Jonathan!”
“Nicole! Come on down!”
“I…” he was standing on the ground. Nicole’s bedroom was three stories up.“What should I do? Climb the vine?”
“Well, I suppose the door would be easier, but the vine would be much more entertaining.”
“Jonathan!” He was being quite infuriating. “Fine. Watch closely, because I’m not going to climb it again.” Dusk was falling. Nicole climbed out of the window and caught her foot in the vine. She scrabbled at the vine and caught in with one hand, the rest of her body hanging. Her hand slipped and she felt herself fall to the ground. She sat up and looked into the laughing face next to her.
“Why do I always fall when you’re around?”